India’s media landscape was once a bastion of journalistic inquiry. Now, a dazzling arena prioritises spectacle over substance. The coverage of the India-Pakistan conflict best exemplifies this. Our Godi media embodies a media ecosystem fuelled by hyperbole, extreme nationalism, and contrived outrage. Since the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam attack and India’s Operation Sindoor response, TV news channels have exploited the rising tensions for profit. Retired military men and bombastic news anchors act as war strategists, constantly spouting unverified claims. We will examine how India’s Godi media, spearheaded by Arnab Goswami, Major Gaurav Arya, and General G.D. Bakshi, exploits crises for profit, favouring financial gain over integrity and fuelling nationalistic fervour.
The Stage is Set
Decades of territorial disputes and mistrust fuel the India-Pakistan conflict. This is ripe for media sensationalism. India’s missile strikes in POJK, responding to the Pahalgam attack (26 fatalities), have ignited a serious escalation of tensions. Godi media used this moment to spin a complex geopolitical crisis into a reality TV-style spectacle. Republic TV, Times Now, India Today, and Zee News have traded detailed reporting for a simplified formula to boost viewership. Predictably, we see shrill patriotism, Pakistan-bashing, and a lineup of “experts” doubling as entertainers.
The business model is simple, yet ruthless. Conflict increases viewership, which increases advertising revenue. According to a 2021 Centre for Media Studies report, India’s television news industry produces over ₹30,000 crore yearly, with prime-time debates as its primary source of revenue. The present crisis, heavy with nuclear threat and emotional burden, offers a wealth of potential. Missile launches, diplomatic rebukes, and unverified claims of downed jets translate into captivating television segments, keeping viewers glued to their screens, pleasing advertisers, and boosting anchors’ egos.
The Ringmasters: Anchors as War Mongers
Naturally, anchors are central to this spectacle. Showmanship defines these ringmasters. No one rivals Arnab Goswami of Republic TV in this area. Known for his decibel-defying rants, Goswami has turned his show, The Debate, into a nightly war room where Pakistan is the eternal villain, and dissent is treason.
Times Now’s Navika Kumar is no less adept at this game. Her show, Newshour, thrives on creating a sense of perpetual crisis. On May 7, 2025, Kumar hosted a panel discussing Operation Sindoor. She repeatedly interrupted a Pakistani analyst to demand, “Why does Pakistan lie about everything?” The segment, replete with dramatic music and split-screen visuals of missile launches, was less journalism than a scripted WWE match. Kumar’s selective outrage ensures that viewers remain hooked, their patriotic fervour stoked.
Zee News’ Sudhir Chaudhary takes a different tack. He blends smug lectures with conspiracy theories. His show, DNA, often frames the conflict as a civilisational clash, with Pakistan cast as the eternal aggressor. On May 6, 2025, Chaudhary aired a segment claiming Pakistan was using “fake videos” from the Russia-Ukraine war to discredit India’s drone capabilities. Chaudhary used scary voiceovers and fake images to make a melodrama out of the claim, ignoring the facts. Ironically, his channel faced criticism for broadcasting unverified footage to boost India’s military strength.
The Gladiators: Major Gaurav Arya and Co.
If anchors are the ringmasters, retired military officers like Major Gaurav Arya and General G.D. Bakshi are the gladiators. Arya is a frequent guest on Republic TV. He has built a cult following with his hawkish rhetoric and penchant for redrawing maps on air. He has a tendency to propose fantastical military strategies that play to the gallery. Arya presents satellite photos and unclear videos, alleging to possess secret information regarding Pakistan’s military failures. His May 8 appearance on Republic TV, where he declared Pakistan’s air defences “a joke,” was pure theatre, devoid of evidence but rich in bravado.
General G.D. Bakshi, another Republic TV staple, brings a different flavour of bombast. Known for his apoplectic rants, Bakshi’s appearances are a study in performative rage. Bakshi’s portrayal of conflict as a religious war reflects General Asim Munir’s hardline stance. His May 7 segment, where he thundered about “teaching Pakistan a lesson,” was less analysis than a call to arms, designed to inflame rather than inform.
These ex-military men are not just pundits; they’re brands. Arya’s YouTube channel, with millions of subscribers, monetises his hawkish persona. Bakshi’s books and speaking gigs thrive on his image as a patriot-warrior. Their presence on TV channels is a win-win: the channels get “authentic” voices, and the gladiators get fame and fortune. The casualty? Truth, which is buried under a pile of machismo and misinformation.
The Script: Sensationalism Over Substance
Godi media’s reports spread unverified accusations, smear opponents, and silence critics. The May 8, 2025, claim by Pakistan’s Khwaja Asif that five Indian jets were downed was a gift to Indian channels. Republic TV, Times Now, and India Today ran wall-to-wall coverage. Goswami and Kumar ridiculed Asif’s social media use. On May 7, Zee News aired a report claiming India’s strikes killed “hundreds of terrorists,” a figure unsupported by any credible source. The blatant hypocrisy is a calculated move; Godi media deflects from its own lies by highlighting Pakistan’s deceptions.
Visuals provide another tool. Channels pair their segments with recycled or misleading footage. Firstpost reported on May 8, 2025, that Pakistan shared visuals from the Russia-Ukraine war to claim it had downed Indian drones. Indian channels, rather than fact-checking their own visuals, used this to paint Pakistan as a serial liar. India Today’s May 6 segment, for instance, featured grainy footage of alleged terror camps, with no attribution or verification. Flashy graphics and dramatic music engage viewers, prioritising impact over factual accuracy, even with questionable content.
The script also involves silencing dissent. On May 7, 2025, Arya and other guests on Rahul Kanwal’s India Today panel shouted down a lone voice questioning India’s strike narrative. The anchor, rather than moderating, joined the pile-on, framing the dissenter as “anti-national.” This tactic ensures that the narrative remains monolithic, with no room for complexity or critique. The result is a feedback loop where viewers, fed a diet of outrage and patriotism, demand more of the same, and channels oblige.
The Audience: Complicit Consumers
Godi Media’s success hinges on its audience, which laps up the spectacle with fervour. The May 8, 2025, IPL match cancellation in Dharamsala, triggered by air raid alerts, saw fans chanting anti-Pakistan slogans in the stands. This visceral anger, stoked by weeks of incendiary coverage, is the fuel that keeps the circus running. Channels like Republic TV and Zee News know their viewers. They are city dwellers, middle-class, and deeply patriotic, seeking recognition of India’s might and Pakistan’s treachery. Every segment caters to this demographic, from Goswami’s fist-pounding monologues to Chaudhary’s sanctimonious lectures.
The Cost: A Nation Misled
The consequences of Godi Media’s profiteering are profound. By reducing a complex conflict to a binary of good versus evil, channels like Republic TV, Times Now, and Zee News erode public understanding. History, politics, and proxy wars created the tangled web of which the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor are a part. Yet, anchors like Goswami, Kumar, and Chaudhary have no interest in context—it doesn’t sell. Instead, they peddle a narrative that inflames tensions, emboldens hawks, and drowns out calls for de-escalation.
The domestic cost is steep. The May 6, 2025, call for mock drills across India, prompted by fears of escalation, reflects a nation on edge. Godi Media’s role in stoking this paranoia cannot be overstated. By hyping unverified threats and glorifying military action, channels create a climate of fear and division. Dissent is silenced, and minorities—often scapegoated as “pro-Pakistan”—face suspicion.
The Exit: A Call for Sanity
India’s Godi media, with its cast of anchors and gladiators, has turned the India-Pakistan conflict into an ugly carnival. Republic TV, Times Now, India Today, and Zee News use Goswami, Kumar, Chaudhary, Arya, and Bakshi to script, not report, news. Sensationalism, jingoism, and selective outrage are the ingredients of their highly profitable formula, but this comes at a high price: public misinformation, national polarisation, and regional instability.
The path out of this morass lies in reclaiming journalism’s soul. Viewers must demand accountability, regulators must enforce standards, and journalists must rediscover their spines. Until then, the circus will roll on, with Godi media cashing in on every missile, every lie, and every drop of blood. In a nation of 1.4 billion, where media shapes minds and destinies, the stakes could not be higher. But for now, the ringmasters and gladiators hold sway, and the audience, complicit in its applause, keeps the show alive.
Will they ever heed the voice of sanity?
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