An Indian reporter found an interesting, though slightly controversial, way to cover the devastating floods that have thus far claimed more than 1,000 lives in the country and left countless others missing and trapped.
A recent clip, above, of News Express' Narayan Pargaien conducting a report on the monsoon's destruction in the northern state of Uttarakhand has garnered outrage on the Internet, with bloggers and social media users alike labeling the video as "inhumane" and "shameful." The outrage probably has something to do with the fact that Pargaien conducts the entire segment while sitting on the shoulders of one of the village's flood survivors, who is clearly struggling to maintain his balance while supporting the weight of the reporter.
The reporter defended the clip by claiming the the villager had simply perched him on his shoulders as a sign of respect. "It was the first time someone of my level had visited his house," Pargaien told newslaundry.com. "So while crossing the river he offered to help by carrying me ... between which, I thought of reporting."
Not completely without scruples, however, Pargaien did concede that he was wrong to shoot a segment at that particular moment -- that is, before placing the majority of the blame on his cameraman.
“The report was supposed to be telecast only with footage of me chest-up," Pargaien told AFP. "This was entirely the cameraman’s fault, who ... tried to sabotage my career by shooting from that distance and angle and releasing the video."
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