| Username |
Post |
| ashu |
Posted
on 14-May-01 05:09 AM
Hi everyone,
Though I did request a top-level editor at the Post to post the following here in his/her own name, s/he asked me to post this here on the newspaper's behalf. (Don't ask me why.)
Since I do NOT work for the Kathmandu Post, but have been a
long-time well-wisher of that newspaper (many of my good friends have worked or are working there!), I am posting the
following here.
The GBNC postings on plagiarism have created quite a stir in Kathmandu, and that's great.
After all, we all want good, credible journalism in Nepal.
Kudos to cyber-sleuths like Diwas Khati and others.
oohi
ashu
******************
> To: ashutosh@post.harvard.edu
> Subject: Re: Fwd: plagiarism
> Date: Mon, 14 May 2001 08:37:08 -0000
>
> hi ashu,
>
> you can post a portion of the email.
> I suggest
> that it be done by you,
**************************************
Dear Ashu,
Someone just sent me a mail about the charges of
plagiarism in two recent
articles published in The Kathmandu Post. As the
News Editor of the paper, I
am concerned because the charges seem to be
true.
On behalf of the paper, I apologize for the
editorial oversight, and promise
to check such acts in the future.
(I have already
talked to the reporter in
question, and he seems to be genuinely
sorry.)
anyway, I would like to inform all of our
well-wishers, including the
gbnc.org community which is doing a remarkable
job of keeping a tab on what
we do, that we aspire to high standards of
journalism here too, though we
admit that much needs to be done, in terms of
language and journalistic
skills, we also hope that you understand that it
is difficult to find the
talent to work full-time in newspapers here.
those who do want to work in
english language journalism do so only to build
thier resumes for some other
career later on. very few stick it out through
the
thick and thin to build
long-term professional careers.
but that is changing now. pls understand that
the
kathmandu post is only
eight years old. the average staff here is just
24-25 yrs old, most of them
have been in the job less than one and half yrs.
we
are a young newspaper,
but we assure you that we are striving mightily
to
improve. we also
encourage criticism of our work, as you all have
been doing, so as to learn
from our mistakes. the days when the Post turned
a
deaf ear to criticism are
over.
thanks again and best regards,
News Editor
The Kathmandu Post
************************
|
| akhilesh upadhyay |
Posted
on 15-May-01 11:41 AM
Hi everybody. In response to charges of plagiarism against a Kathmandu Post reporter:
First and foremost, let me make it clear that (as a reporter of The Kathmandu Post myself) I am not here to defend the reporter in question. Far from it. It's a deplorable act, which needs immediate correction.
But that's easier said than done. It was nice to see the News Editor of The Kathmandu Post, Suman Pradhan, take reponsibility for the oversight rather than passing on the buck...But honestly that's stretching yourself a bit too far. How can you fact-check for pliagiarism? If one of your 20-odd reporters lifts a para from Encyclopedia Britannica, or a 1983 FNCCI newsletter, and cleverly makes some minor changes? One Washington Post reporter (?) was found doing such a thing recently - lifting sources and essence from a Wall Street Journal story. The Post found out only after the Journal filed a complaint.
I am not saying that because such things happen here in the US papers and universities (in a much better managed system), they are excusable. And that credibility should be sacrificed for convenience. But as someone who's been in Suman's shoes before, I am asking this forum how far can an editor go, especially in daily newspapers with a relatively short deadline? While fact-checking (cross-checking facts after the reporter has submitted the story) is a common practice in the US, editors to a great extent trust the reporter to be honest. They expect him/her to play by the rules of the game (not to lie, exaggerate, invent quotes, sources, or plagiarize, and give proper attribution, etc)
Anyone who is found breaching the reporter's honor should be told in no umambiguous term that what he or she has done is inexcusable.
akhilesh upadhyay
New York University
New York
718-786-790
|
| Biswo |
Posted
on 15-May-01 12:28 PM
Dear Akhilesh:
I agree with you that Suman stretched himself too far. Because
he clearly left the perpetrator safe and protected.
I was expecting some kind of action against the writers who wrote
such stuffs. I agree with you that not every articles can be
checked, but you need to be strict on those people who are
caught. It is sad that Suman tried to parry this glaring
question by mentioning the shortcomings (of manpower) of the TKP.
He should at least anounce that he was no longer accepting the
articles from the writers in question.
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 15-May-01 02:25 PM
Hi Akhilesh,
Welcome to the GBNC site. Time-permitting, please
do post your own analyses/thoughts/ideas and
info here. There is much we can all learn from
you, even though -- as reasoanble people with
strong pinions -- we may not always be in
agreement.
On another note, maybe The Kathmandu Post
should give a more rigorous orientation to all
its incoming reporters re: what plagiarism is
and what it isn't, much like what universities
in the US do to incoming students. Half the
battle against plagiarism will be won if the
reporters are told what's acceptable
reporting/write-up and what's not.
On a yet another note :-), sorry that I couldn't
join you in New York last fall because, as my life
pleasantly unfolded, I ended up giving up my job
there -- having a lot more fun looking after
the Kamaiyas and the Maiyas in Nepal :-)
But it's good to see you post stuff to this
Web site.
oohi
ashu
|
| Diwas |
Posted
on 15-May-01 02:41 PM
Akhilesh_G,
To answer questions like ".. what can a lone Editor do...?" to curb plagiarism.. here are my thoughts:
1. In house policies and guidelines
2. Proper orientation and training
3. ACTION vs. taking responsibility
Esp. w/ #3, By allowing Gurubacharya and Karki to "contribute" to TKP et al even after these incidents is definitely not good. TKP depends on faith of ppl. Isn't that the reason why Kantipur was more successful vs. Gorkapathra? If TKP wants to be Nepal_ko print-media leader, then it has to stand by principles of objective journalism (which is still a 10/10 imo), and journalistic integrity.
By letting those two ppl be involved with TKP, Kantipur Publication is throwing further insult to its readers (who definitely read and READ), and esp. telling me that KP can get away with anything.
Add # 4 to it: Kantipur Publications, in this day and age of emails and websites and what not, needs a better "contact" method than the generic email address... It would be nice to have e-mail address (at least) of all dept. chiefs so that we/I could write directly to them, and not to INFO_@_tkp...
-dk
|
| sally |
Posted
on 15-May-01 03:14 PM
I agree with Akhilesh that it's not up to the editor to fact-check. Most newspapers, in the US as well, have no fact checkers. That's the reporter's job. But it's up to the editor to establish and enforce a professional standard.
When plagiarism happens at US newspapers, the response is typically harsher than simply telling the reporter that "what he or she has done is inexcusable."
The reporter is fired.
A few years back, when I worked for a major US newspaper chain (Gannett), one of the sportswriters in our newsroom was caught plagiarizing from the Web. The first time it happened he was given a strong warning. The editor was a decent, understanding fellow and the sportswriter had a good track record--although, apparently not much sense. Because he did it again.
The day after he was caught the second time, he was gone.
Ultimately that's probably the best way to handle it. What's different is when the case becomes public. Then the paper's reputation is at stake. There was one case at the Denver Post where a rival paper, Westword, discovered that the Post's art critic had won her job with a fake clip from the New Yorker. The trick was a simple one. She had photocopied a New Yorker article and pasted her own name over the byline. If the case had been discovered in-house, she probably would have been given a warning. But it was a public scandal. In her case, there was no second chance. She was fired.
When a plagiarism case becomes public, the editor really has very little choice but to make an example of the person concerned. If the people at the KTM Post who plagiarized are still publishing, I think that's a serious lapse on the paper's part. As a mom, I try to teach that if you do wrong, there's a consequence. If that's the right approach for kids, why shouldn't it be the right approach for professionals too? For gosh's sake, at least give them a "leave" for six months or something. An adult version of "time out."
Of course, in the case of Nepal, I do think there's an interesting dynamic going on, and I expect this adds to the problem. As a non-Nepali, I'm always reluctant to make generalizations, but my impression is that cheating is so widespread in the Nepali educational system that for a reporter to cut-and-paste from the Internet isn't such a great leap from what s/he probably did during school.
Undigested memorization seems to be encouraged to such a degree that for a student to duplicate someone else's words is not only seen as positive--it's virtually essential for passing exams. It's not a big step from parroting to plagiarism. And ultimately, what's the big difference between cheating and corruption? Students in the boondocks who pass chits through windows during the SLC in full view of teachers; wealthy Kathmandu parents who bribe the appropriate parties to secure the right marks for their kids in order to get them into US or British schools; those kind of things make the schools of Nepal a pretty good training ground for future plagiarists, corrupt politicians, and so on, don't you think?
Interestingly, I do think this ties into some very good comments Ashu made about St X and inclusiveness. It's my feeling, at least, that the more open and decentralized a society Nepal becomes--the more opportunities people have to succeed based on merit, rather than connections, and the more places they have to work and show their abilities (outside the Valley as well as inside it)--the less of a problem cheating, plagiarism, and so on may become. I do think it happens partly because of a feeling of desperation, and is tolerated for the same reason. There are so few options right now for Nepalis to construct really good lives that they're willing to do anything to get ahead, and society as a whole is willing to forgive them for it.
I may be off in my reaction. I know this is only part of the story. But I did want to toss it out as food for thought.
Pheri betaula,
Sally
|
| Akhilesh |
Posted
on 15-May-01 05:43 PM
thanks everybody for responding. Couple of thoughts on plagiarizing.
1. I know Suman Pradhan, the Post News Editor, for a number of years, and I can count on his integrity. I am told he has taken the reporter in question to task. I would like to leave it at that.
2. Asoo is right. We at the Post - nepali journalism in general - need rigourous orientation on do's and don'ts on ethics. To be honest, as a journalist in post-1990 Nepal, I have struggled with many an ethical dilemma over the years myself. On the one hand there isn't much to learn from the old guards while on the other you have all the youngesters looking up at you. It gets very lonely, and frigtening out out there at times. I for one can empathize with Suman Pradhan.
Again, I would not like to speak for this reporter in question. I can only speak for myself. I was never told what plagiarism constitutes - neither at The Rising Nepal, The Kathmandu Post, Tri Chandra College or Tribhuvan University. And textbooks don't always help define border-line cases and topics there are as controversial as plagiarizing. I had a long discussion during my first semester on plagiarism with a jounalism professor in DC, and frankly, he was able to explain to me quite a few things with examples.
I would urge everyone here to sensitize nepali journalists--and academics--to these important issues rather then mount a witchhunt. Of course, that's my thought.
|
| ashu |
Posted
on 16-May-01 12:29 AM
Akhilesh wrote:
>I would urge everyone here to sensitize
>nepali journalists--and academics--to these
>important issues rather then mount a
>witchhunt.
As far as I can tell, nobody is mounting a witchhunt
against anyone here. Calling all this a "witchhunt"
is to misunderstand the geneuine concerns people here
have about acts of plagiarism.
If anything, I would argue that the BEST way
to "sensitize nepali journalists--and academics--to
these important issues" is to expose them to and or
have them participate in discussions/debates and
kura-kanis like this.
I'm sure this interactive forum would welcome
participation on any issue from other journalists
in Nepal. So, please pass the word around.
oohi
ashu
|
| Suman Pradhan |
Posted
on 16-May-01 01:28 AM
After going through all the comments that have been posted here about the recent incidents of plagiarism in The Kathmandu Post, I must say that we are quite stunned. We are in no way defending this crime, rather very concerned about what happened, and trying very hard to stop this from occuring again.
I thank all of you who have raised this issue and brought it to our notice. We are certainly taking steps to black-list outside contributors who have managed to publish plagiarised articles in the Post.
As for our in-house staff who have committed this glaring error of judgement, we are very serious about that too, indeed more so. How we deal with the situation is entirely up to us and we don't intend to make that public. But suffice me to say that the matter is being looked into at the highest levels.
As Ashu wrote to me earlier, we all make mistakes, it's what we learn from it that matters. As a senior editorial staff at the paper, let me assure you that we are trying our best to check such practices here.
My predecessor, colleague and good friend Akhilesh wrote about the constraints that face editors who are stretched to the limit by short deadlines. By this, he, and indeed we too, are not trying to defend what occurred, but just laying out how slips can happen.
Someone wrote that what is needed is more training for journalists, to tell them at the very beginning that plagiarism is a crime and will not go unpunished. this is all fine and we indeed provide on-the-job training for fresh journalists here. But it must also be said that mere training is not the answer to this ill. the reporter in question was trained in the US (where I'm sure J-school proffessors would have taught what a crime plagiarism is). Even in good US newspapers, instances of plagiarism have surfaced. many of those accused have come from good J-schools with lots of top rate training.
As one of you noted, and what we are noting here now, is that ultimately it all boils down to the individual journalist, to his/her conscience. after all, readers' trust is the greatest asset for a journalist and newspaper. let me assure you that we are committed in seeing to it that this trust is not breached again.
just in case someone wants to notify us of future offenses, here is my email address
suman@kantipuronline.com
regards and thanks again,
suman pradhan
the kathmandu post
|
| akhilesh |
Posted
on 16-May-01 01:46 AM
participation on any issue from other journalists
in Nepal.>
The GBNC discussion will be considered a milestone if a large number of Nepali journalists voice their opinions freely. There has to be a greater interaction between the writers and those who read their writings. ciao.
|
| ds |
Posted
on 18-May-01 03:04 AM
test
|
| test |
Posted
on 23-May-01 09:37 AM
NO ADVERTISEMENTS LIKE THIS ONE PLEASE! (we get enuff spam to deal with already)
Hi Niraj
Sorry for the late reply due to our email servers.
About xxxxxx offers, you too can avail, but for Nepal the Postal
charges is Rs.300/- extra. So it is going to cost you more.
xxxxxx are xxxxx
xxxx
You can check out for our website for more details
xxxx
Regards
Babuprasad S
Coordinator xxxx
|
