TELEVISTA
Ads that insult the game
AMITA MALIK

It is not always pleasant to say ‘I told you so’, but it is certainly satisfying to have one’s constant criticism confirmed by an authority on the subject. For years this columnist has been pointing out that intruding advertisements on TV have ruined Indian cricket. So I am thankful to a national daily for highlighting what Australian cricket star Steve Waugh has had to say about Indian cricket telecasts under the banner heading: Telecast in India is unwatchable. So, courtesy The Times of India, I shall quote at length what Steve Waugh had to say, which confirms every word I have written down the years. Says Steve: "The custodians of the game in India must protect it against the overcommercialisation taking place on television. It is annoying, ridiculous and an insult to the game to see an advertisement being squeezed in just because the bowler has not reached the top of his run-up. The telecast in India is unwatchable and since I was watching the game at a bar with a few others, I could see I was not the only one put off by the advertisements. Youngsters are missing out on vital commentary since most comments are cut off after the over or when a wicket falls. These are not good signs for Indian cricket and somebody needs to protect the game from being devalued in this manner. Everybody must remember that the advertisers are there to promote the game. The game cannot be reduced to a vehicle that promotes the advertisers".

It could not have been better put and I am proud to say that each of Steve Waugh’s points has been mentioned time and again by me, a lone voice amongst all those sports reporters and columnists.

And now to those in authority who should have noticed and kept advertisers in check long ago. Watching the game live from VVIP seats, it does not seem to have bothered them. First, the authority which gives the telecast rights to a channel must make it a part of their contract what percentage of the coverage could be used by advertisers and where and when they occur. On no account must they intrude into the game or the commentaries.

They now cut off the valuable analyses between overs, sometimes even after the commentator has spoken the first sentence. Also, on no account should ads be imposed on the heads of players and umpires while on the field, regardless of whether they are standing or playing. Nor must ads be imposed on the field, that is, on the grass and nearest the screen as if it is a right.

There are also two ministers and the bureaucrats of those ministries who should take an active interest in what goes on the screen during sporting events. Mr Das Munshi, who seems more interested in football and in fashion channels, can surely also lay down some rules about to what extent advertisers should interfere in the coverage of the actual game.

Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, whose portfolio includes sports, could also lend a hand because coverage of the very sports in which his ministry dabbles is or should be his concern. I also appeal to all my colleagues who write sports or media columns to take up this very important cause.

And lastly, how is it that Indian cricketers, past and present, have taken it all lying down? If Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and other stars, as also the BCCI and, why not, the ICC, made a noise, everything would fall into place. Steve Waugh has started something. Let his Indian counterparts take it up from there, soon and fast.

The most startling exposes on the screen have been the BBC video of the two men standing near Bob Woolmer in the

last shot of him. And, of course, the shocking killings in Gujarat by senior police officers, including the winsome and innocent Kausar Bi, so lovingly photographed besides her husband in some attractive husband-wife poses. It made shocking and depressing viewing. Let us hope justice will be done in the end.

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