journalistsagainsttb

On 7 January 2012, we posted an online discussion on JATB. It was called Working with the Media – what it takes.

During this discussion, our panelists debated on the mutual expectations that the media and development practitioners have from each other. Savyasaachi Jain and Nalini Krishnan, our panelists had drawn attention to the Anna Hazare Campaign which had grabbed major media attention in 2011. They had also pointed out that the campaign had some lessons for the NGO community on how to engage with the media. So we decided to find out.

Dr R Balasubramaniam, (Balu) who has been an important part of the Anna Hazare campaign, agreed to speak with us. Balu is a development activist, social innovator and leadership trainer. After getting his degree in Medicine, he earned his M.Phil in Hospital and Health Systems Management from the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences, Pilani. He has an MPA from Harvard University. He is a Tata Scholar, a Mason Fellow in Public Policy and Management of the Harvard University and was a Fellow at the Hauser Center for Non-profits, Harvard University. He is an adjunct faculty at Cornell University and University of Iowa, USA.

He founded the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement, and has spent the last 28 years of his life in the service of the rural and tribal poor in the forests of India. He has assisted the Lok Ayukta (the anti-corruption agency) of Karnataka in investigating issues of Mal-administration and corruption in the health sector and the Public Distribution System of Karnataka. He is currently leading an anti-corruption movement in Mysore called ‘Mysore Against Corruption’. He has been very successful in using the media effectively and writes a popular fortnightly Tuesday column titled ‘Hosa Kanasu’ (New Dreams) in Prajavani, one of Karnataka’s oldest Kannada dailies. Listen in to Balu for valuable insights into how to use the media more effectively for development.

This discussion with Balu is moderated by Jasvinder Sehgal and Bharathi Ghanashyam, both members of JATB.

Listen in to Working with the Media – Part two