By Edie Grossfield
Indian journalist Ramesh Vinayek is three weeks into a four-month American adventure. The special correspondent and bureau chief for India Today magazine and television news is traveling to several U.S. cities on a fellowship from the World Press Institute.
Vinayek, who is based in Chandigarh, spoke about his experiences during a Post-Bulletin-sponsored event Wednesday night at Rochester Public Library. About 55 people listened to and questioned Vinayek on topics ranging from Indian political history to radical religious movements.
With a readership of 16 million people, India Today is the premier news weekly magazine in the country. Vinayek describes it as the Time magazine of India. During his 17 years at the magazine, he has covered a wide variety of issues, including agriculture, economics and the environment. His main area of interest has been terrorism, a big issue for northern India.
Vinayek's job is dangerous at times. When he joined India Today in 1987, northern India was wracked by violence from a militant separatist movement. He has covered hijackings, assassinations, massacres and other forms of terrorism.
"Covering terrorism has been pretty hazardous but hugely satisfying professionally," Vinayek said. "I owe my professional growth to being in a trouble spot."
Vinayek is traveling with eight other World Press fellows from throughout the world. Next week, they will be in New York City to attend the Republican convention. Other cities on their agenda include, Washington, D.C., Atlanta and Los Angeles.
Just three weeks in the United States have already dispelled some of Vinayek's assumptions about Americans and their press.
"I couldn't believe the U.S. was a godly nation," he said. "I was surprised to learn that 60 percent of Americans are religious."
Also, Vinayek used to think the U.S. media never questioned its government's premise for going to war with Iraq. He figured the press was suckered by the government.
"Much to my surprise, I'm amazed to discover the media has been fairly critical of the government about going into Iraq," he said. "This speaks highly of the professionalism of the American media."
Vinayek said India has a free press that is fiercely independent, but he admits biases exist. Much is made of the media as a watch dog "but a dog with a bone in its mouth never barks," he said. "We have a lot of bones lying about in India."
Also, the country's "official secrecy act" prevents journalists from accessing government information. Government officials decide what journalists see.
"So, we get a lot of government-fed information," he said.
The ease and speed by which American journalists can access information about the government on the Internet also surprises Vinayek. He said he wishes that were possible in India.
During his three-week stay in Minnesota, Vinayek said he has been impressed with various aspects of American journalism. One has been the emphasis on civic issues, such as poverty and community responses to immigration. What also impresses him is the imbedded tradition of investigative reporting — something he would like to see increase in his homeland.
Vinayek said learning about American journalism and traveling with people from all over the world has been fascinating. Yet the most interesting part of his adventure so far has been staying with host families in St. Paul and rural Goodhue County.
"It's a very good learning experience, and I pick up a lot of understanding about American culture," he said. "It's amazing to me that even though we are a world apart, we have similar concerns."
