<p>Starting out as a reporter and with a team of 20 women journalists today, Kavita Bundelkhandi, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the 20-year-old rural news portal Khabar Lahariya (KL), anchors her own weekly show and special stories. She is the only Dalit member of the Editor’s Guild of India. Started in 2002 as a newspaper in the Bundelkhand region of Central India, KL’s all-women team comprises Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims and other marginalised communities. KL switched from print to digital in 2015. It is housed under Chambal Media, covering mainly central India. In the city recently, Kavita spoke about limited coverage in mainstream media due to a lack of diversity.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Why did KL switch from<br />print to digital?</strong> </p>.<p>With the advent of smartphones and the Internet, the requirement came from readers seeking quick access to news. Also, print was on the decline and cost recovery became difficult. The switch to digital has been largely positive; digital and social media presence has helped readers gain latest news quickly, and it has increased our readership. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>With an all-female team,<br />how challenging has it been?</strong></p>.<p>Earlier when reporters did investigative stories, they could remain anonymous but with digital and facing the camera their identities were revealed. Trolling took place, reporters didn’t know how to deal with that. When covering stories, they worked long hours, travelling long distances and faced questions from people for coming late. Gradually, they gained credibility with their stories. Today, many senior reporters have their own shows that are popular.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Tell us about the stories KL<br />has covered?</strong></p>.<p>KL has covered numerous stories on crucial issues relating to Adivasis, Dalits and the marginalised communities. Many of our reports that focused on grassroots journalism became big<br />stories in the regional/national media.</p>.<p>Our follow-up stories on health camps, housing schemes, electricity in homes, tuberculosis in a tiny hamlet and similar issues compelled the authorities to take action. </p>.<p class="Question">Could you share some experiences of KL during Covid-19?</p>.<p class="Question">It was an extraordinarily challenging time during Covid-19 and the lockdown. In response to calls from villages seeking food, medicines etc, we drew up a plan to help them. We reported extensively on the happenings during Covid — about patients, deaths and other related issues such as unemployment, domestic violence with males unemployed, and mental stress; also on how transgenders and sex workers were impacted and how their sources of income dried up. We visited those who were lodged in quarantine centres. We also collated information about people beyond the Bundelkhand region and connected them to NGOs and helped them get rations and transport for migrant workers. We were able to reach out to people in distress because we had access to small villages, marginalised people, and tribal communities which the mainstream media didn’t have and ignored.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>There’s not much rural news<br />in mainstream media. Why?</strong></p>.<p>If reporters haven’t seen or experienced rural life how will they report it with accuracy and feeling? Diversity at every level is key to reporting rural issues. There’s diversity and women from all backgrounds who have had personal experiences of injustice, depravation, power imbalance, caste discrimination, gender issues, police indifference, and abuse by local leaders, should be highlighted. Limited coverage in mainstream media is due to a lack of diversity.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Also, we see few Dalit women<br />in mainstream media?</strong></p>.<p>Definitely, Dalit women are under-represented in mainstream media especially in senior, decision-making positions. Media organisations must be conscious of composition and diversity. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Journalism in India is accused<br />of some disturbing developments...</strong></p>.<p>It is not hidden, whatever is happening in journalism today is open and definitely disturbing. As the fourth pillar of democracy, it is important for the media to continue to ask questions and be unafraid of the powerful. It is also important to note that journalism is, primarily, not a money-making business but a public service.</p>
<p>Starting out as a reporter and with a team of 20 women journalists today, Kavita Bundelkhandi, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the 20-year-old rural news portal Khabar Lahariya (KL), anchors her own weekly show and special stories. She is the only Dalit member of the Editor’s Guild of India. Started in 2002 as a newspaper in the Bundelkhand region of Central India, KL’s all-women team comprises Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims and other marginalised communities. KL switched from print to digital in 2015. It is housed under Chambal Media, covering mainly central India. In the city recently, Kavita spoke about limited coverage in mainstream media due to a lack of diversity.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Why did KL switch from<br />print to digital?</strong> </p>.<p>With the advent of smartphones and the Internet, the requirement came from readers seeking quick access to news. Also, print was on the decline and cost recovery became difficult. The switch to digital has been largely positive; digital and social media presence has helped readers gain latest news quickly, and it has increased our readership. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>With an all-female team,<br />how challenging has it been?</strong></p>.<p>Earlier when reporters did investigative stories, they could remain anonymous but with digital and facing the camera their identities were revealed. Trolling took place, reporters didn’t know how to deal with that. When covering stories, they worked long hours, travelling long distances and faced questions from people for coming late. Gradually, they gained credibility with their stories. Today, many senior reporters have their own shows that are popular.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Tell us about the stories KL<br />has covered?</strong></p>.<p>KL has covered numerous stories on crucial issues relating to Adivasis, Dalits and the marginalised communities. Many of our reports that focused on grassroots journalism became big<br />stories in the regional/national media.</p>.<p>Our follow-up stories on health camps, housing schemes, electricity in homes, tuberculosis in a tiny hamlet and similar issues compelled the authorities to take action. </p>.<p class="Question">Could you share some experiences of KL during Covid-19?</p>.<p class="Question">It was an extraordinarily challenging time during Covid-19 and the lockdown. In response to calls from villages seeking food, medicines etc, we drew up a plan to help them. We reported extensively on the happenings during Covid — about patients, deaths and other related issues such as unemployment, domestic violence with males unemployed, and mental stress; also on how transgenders and sex workers were impacted and how their sources of income dried up. We visited those who were lodged in quarantine centres. We also collated information about people beyond the Bundelkhand region and connected them to NGOs and helped them get rations and transport for migrant workers. We were able to reach out to people in distress because we had access to small villages, marginalised people, and tribal communities which the mainstream media didn’t have and ignored.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>There’s not much rural news<br />in mainstream media. Why?</strong></p>.<p>If reporters haven’t seen or experienced rural life how will they report it with accuracy and feeling? Diversity at every level is key to reporting rural issues. There’s diversity and women from all backgrounds who have had personal experiences of injustice, depravation, power imbalance, caste discrimination, gender issues, police indifference, and abuse by local leaders, should be highlighted. Limited coverage in mainstream media is due to a lack of diversity.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Also, we see few Dalit women<br />in mainstream media?</strong></p>.<p>Definitely, Dalit women are under-represented in mainstream media especially in senior, decision-making positions. Media organisations must be conscious of composition and diversity. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Journalism in India is accused<br />of some disturbing developments...</strong></p>.<p>It is not hidden, whatever is happening in journalism today is open and definitely disturbing. As the fourth pillar of democracy, it is important for the media to continue to ask questions and be unafraid of the powerful. It is also important to note that journalism is, primarily, not a money-making business but a public service.</p>