SEBI asks media houses to disclose private treaties

You might want to read this. 
Reproducing a part of that post :

"In recent weeks, in addition to attracting imitators, BCCL’s treaties have also received growing scrutiny following a magazine article by columnist Sucheta Dalal, who cited an internal email from Rahul Joshi, the editor ofThe Economic Times, which suggests journalists at BCCL are being asked to provide editorial coverage to treaty clients in a way that enhances “the value of these companies and ToI’s (Times of India’s) investment.”


Which is why this news is important and should have come ages ago. 
I am always surprised by people who read a newspaper and believe the facts in it without questioning the content or reading between the lines. It's as though the hallowed hallways of print can do no wrong.
This makes the case for bloggers and tweeters more stronger. With rise of citizen journalism and WikiLeaks we can expect more people telling us info that can inform the population. Even if we assume the worst case scenario of bloggers being bought by newspapers, I don't know how many deals a print newspaper will strike with an independent web-based journalist.
Not to mention the numerous times TOI and other papers have lifted pictures from Flickr without any form of credit or compensation. 

What after 140?

Image updates, Videos(see Twitvid) and personal channels.

We are already referring to Youtube video sets as channels. With video cameras and mobile journalism a living waking reality, the crowd will find its own truth, own news and own music.
Post Justin Bieber (who uploaded a video on Myspace and got noticed), its all about recognizing the audience and where they are moving. So as a content provider how much autonomy are you giving the user?

Lessons from Trent

A friend and I were talking to security guard at the Westside outlet in Kala Ghoda. We ended up asking him if the store would be open on a particular day, which we thought could be a holiday.
The security guard said this with pride in his voice " When they were attacking the Taj, the store was open on all four days at the scheduled timings. There is no reason why it should be closed on any other day."
My friend and I stood still for a while and walked out quietly.
I don't know much about the internal workings of Trent Ltd. or the Tata Group, but I like the lesson I learnt.
When your internal policies are fair, just and rewarding, even your most visible employee becomes your brand ambassador.

Why unbiased opinions don't exist.

This enlightening article on how we support what we already like is the subject of this post. You've been to Amazon where they suggest you to buy books based on what people have already bought? That's technology and algorithm trying to tell you what to buy based on your opinion spectrum. Rarely will technology or recommendation be given to encourage an opposite thought. And its true with all of us. Because I don't agree with communism I haven't read a single book on it and will never be recommended a book of that sort.
Reproducing a paragraph from that article (by the very amazing Pratchett no less) :

“Be careful. People like to be told what they already know. Remember that. They get uncomfortable when you tell them new things. New things…well, new things aren’t what they expect. They like to know that, say, a dog will bite a man. That is what dogs do. They don’t want to know that man bites a dog, because the world is not supposed to happen like that. In short, what people think they want is news, but what they really crave is olds…Not news but olds, telling people that what they think they already know is true.”

Terry Pratchett through the character Lord Vetinari from his novel, “The Truth: a novel of Discworld"

On Leadership

I have been reading a lot about leadership in the book about J.N.Tata. On a parallel note, it amuses me that a lot of examples in my life are about how leadership should not be practiced.
Most leadership that I have observed has been about establishing territory and rules. There is very little speed in execution of ideas and considerable time is spent on rules and getting people to follow them. Post the establishment of rules and followers, execution of ideas takes place with a one track mind to impress authority or establish more authority! Even though we all read and nod our heads in agreement there is hardly any semblance of creativity in leadership today.
Look at the corporate world. After reeling under the pressures and stupidity of a few people's mistakes everyone donned the garb of austerity and expected others to follow. The first section that was impacted was imagination. The same is with smaller leadership roles. I am sure you have examples around you of a person making a mistake and then being denied a leadership role.
I am not sure that is the leadership I subscribe to and look up to.
In other news here is an organisation that gives you the freedom to quit and contribute.

Some perspective

"...The Swadeshi had their own Savings' Bank and Sick Benefit Fund, a Library and a Co-operative Society and arrangements for recreation. There were schools within easy hail. The employees had their own Provident Fund and free treatment at a dispensary. A Library and Reading Room were erected. Close to 200 of the operatives with their operatives were housed by the Company and additional quarters were built for apprentices and staff. They had a crèche for infants of the female employees where a qualified man would supervise the daily care of babies. All children of workers went to school free of charge."

All this and more was offered at the Swadeshi Mills run by Mr. J.N.Tata in the early 1900s.