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PCMag India | Software Reviews | Internet - Products | [Feature
Social media has killed the
newspaper: Author Andrew Otis
talks about India’s first newspaper
and more
BY JHINUK SEN FEB. 25, 2019, 6:44 P.M.
Hicky's Bengal Gazette, where it all started and where it's headed
f ¥ in ?
Who reads newspapers anymore?
This a question we have asked ourselves
often. The print is dead, or dying, discussion
has been going on since 2012. But yet,
newspapers have survived it all. The industry
is alive and the press’ are running and there
are enough ads to prove all speculations
wrong, the revenues keep rolling in
And this gets us wondering, where did it all start and where is it all headed?
Some of us, thanks to a course called the History of English Literature that we
had to study while in college, know that Hicky's Bengal Gazette was India’s first
newspaper. But that’s all we knew about it. No details, no follow-ups. Therefore,
when we learned about a book called Hicky’s Bengal Gazette: The Untold Story
of India's First Newspaper - we had to find out more.
We caught up with author Andrew Ortis to find out all about Hicky’s Bengal
Gazette and how he thinks the industry has shaped up since. And well, 2018-
2019, we obviously had to talk about fake news and libel and the possible death
of the newspaper. Here’s what he had to say:
Why and how did you decide that you wanted to write about Hicky’s Bengal
Gazette?
| knew | wanted to write a book on Hicky’s Bengal Gazette since August 2011,
when | researching 18th century colonial newspapers in the British Library in
London. | was on a grant from the University of Rochester, where | received a
BA
| wanted to write a book on Hicky’s Bengal Gazette because it’s an amazing
story. | also wanted to correct the historical record and to provide a complete
and nuanced view of India’s first newspaper. When | first came across James
Augustus Hicky | was surprised that a lot of what | had read about him was
rubbish; almost everything about the man who founded India’s first newspaper
was so incomplete or biased as to be useless. | fell in love with the story of
India’s first newspaper: an editor who sacrificed everything for freedom of the
press, called on the people to rebel against the British East India Company, and
questioned the Governor General's manhood. There was drama, suspense, and
so much nuance.
At first, | wasn’t sure if | was the right person to write a book on Hicky. As an
American, | felt like an outsider. | knew nearly nothing of Indian or British
history. | also didn't want to exoticize India or further colonial narratives. But |
thought that being an outsider might give me a fresh perspective. Plus, | had
some experience in India — | had lived in Hyderabad as a student for six
months, and | had written a thesis comparing struggles for freedom of the
press in British South Africa and British India. For these reasons, | thought |
could tell the story of India’s first newspaper in a balanced and fair way.
What sort of research went into writing this book?
About two years of on-the-ground archival research went into my book (the
whole process of researching and writing took five years): a little over a year in
India, about half a year in England, and another few months in Germany. | read
old letters, newspapers, and court documents, working from these sources to
construct the story. A lot of my research involved cross checking sources and
pursuing leads. | went on a lot of wild chases in India for documents, such as
Minutes of the first Supreme Court of Bengal, which had been last seen in
1911. | traveled for weeks to find these old minutes, going back and forth
between Kolkata and Delhi. At one point | got myself into the Supreme Court of
India, and ended up randomly walking between court rooms and offices, asking
anybody if they had seen of these them. | was never able to find the minutes.
| tried finding Hicky’s descendants (never found any), but what | really wanted
were primary sources, so | avoided interviews. | was devoted to the truth and
made sure to source every quote in my book.
Hicky’s Bengal Gazette seems to be a great model for print journalism,
especially considering what we are seeing in news these days, where do you
think Hicky lost ground and stopped publication? (Allegedly Hicky was
‘suppressed’ when Hastings issues fresh lawsuits against him, and the types
were eventually seized by the Supreme Court, but was that all that was needed
to stop real, and provocative, journalism?)
Hicky is a great model for absolute courage in reporting. | like to say Hicky was
fearless but flawed. Hicky reported on the corruption of leading East India
Company officials. But he was also sloppy and made unverified claims. Hicky
wrote that Governor-General Warren Hastings had erectile dysfunction, and
reported that one of Hastings’ top military commanders had gotten himself
circumcised to be ‘more pleasing’ to one of the Muslim women of his harem
I'm skeptical about Hicky’s ability to verify these claims.
Hicky was the only person in India willing to publicly oppose Hastings. But
Hastings’ used his dictatorial power to suppress Hicky. First, Hastings forbid
Hicky from mailing his newspaper through the post office. Then, when Hicky
hired his own private mail carriers, Hastings sued Hicky for libel.
Hicky didn't stand a chance. Hastings had bribed two of the three judges of the
Supreme Court. The judges sentenced Hicky to jail. But Hicky kept printing his
newspaper from his jail cell for another nine months (how he did so | could
never discover). Finally, Hastings sued Hicky again. The Supreme Court had to
issue a special order seizing Hicky's printing press and that was the end of
India’s first newspaper.
About free speech, libel and false news. Tell us your thoughts.
Free speech is one of the most important rights that someone living in a
democracy should have. It allows people to criticize their rulers, and have free
and open discussion. That right comes with responsibilities, such as treating
others with respect and dignity. When politicians preach violence, then that
right disappears. No one should ever have the right to threaten or encourage
bodily harm against others. | hold this truth to be universal. | don’t know where
| stand on hate speech. On one side, jailing someone for being hateful doesn’t
make them less hateful or solve root problems of racism. On the other, hate
and racism should never be tolerated. | think more is needed than banning
expressions, such as increasing acceptance in society.
India’s has good laws protecting freedom of the press, but | think they could be
stronger. In civil actions, the defendant has to prove that any statements they
made were true or were fair comment. | think the onus of proof should be on
the prosecution, like in the U.S, where the prosecution has to prove the
publisher acted with ‘actual malice’, or with ‘reckless disregard’ for the truth
Ultimately, libel should be used to counter malicious falsehoods, such as those
spread by conspiracy websites like Infowars. These are the real ‘fake news’,
It is hard for most publications to function the way Hicky's Bengal Gazette did,
but what can we possibly learn, and execute, from the ‘guys who did it first’ in a
very ideal situation?
One thing we can learn from Hicky’s Bengal Gazette is the importance of
criticizing one’s rulers. A free press that is allowed to investigate and print
without restrictions is essential to democracy. No democracy can survive
without a free press. Hicky paid dearly for exposing the corruption of his fellow
countrymen, spending years in jail, but he never gave up. He was called an
‘insolent scoundrel’ during his time. But ultimately Hicky is now revered as the
founder of India’s first newspaper and a tireless champion of freedom of the
press. The lesson that modern newspapers can learn is this: history is watching
you
What do you think plagues newspapers the most these days?
| worry that the owners and managers of India's major media companies will
not have the courage to defend freedom of the press. The Cobrapost sting
deeply shocked me. Two dozen news organizations were exposed offering to
write favorable stories in support of the ultranationalist Hindutva agenda in
return for cash. These news organization, like the Times of India, should be
defending the public interest. Instead they offered to peddle nationalist
propaganda. It's totally unethical and a disgrace to journalism. It also reduces
public trust in journalists. If the public can't trust journalists then what hope is
there for journalists to protect democracy?
Would you start your own version of the Bengal Gazette if you could? And what
would it do differently from papers we get today?
That sounds like a lot of work.
If there's anything | think Hicky’s Bengal Gazette would do differently from
newspapers today is that | don’t think Hicky would have taken a paid news
piece. No amount of money would make him compromise his morals.
Are there things you learned while researching for this book that you haven't
put it in there?
There is one thing | didn’t put in my book because | didn’t want to speculate:
who did Hicky marry, or whom did he cohabitate with? Many male Europeans
cohabited with Indian ‘bibis’ since there were so many more male than female
Europeans in India