ATIYA ACHAKULWISUT
Contributing editor and political columnist
Ihave to admit this. I stared for a long, long time at the photo to illustrate the recent story about a man whose private parts were bitten by a python that showed up in his toilet.
The snake/penis “news” seemed to mark a defining moment in journalism for me. I remember thinking back to when I was told as a cub reporter (nearly 30 years ago, if you really need to know) what makes a good human interest story. It must be something unusual. It should have something to do with children or dogs. If it is emotional, all the better.
As I looked at the photo, which showed the white floor smeared with blood and the remnants of a toilet that had to be hammered to pieces to catch the python, I thought an incident this unusual must fit a definition of a good human interest story. What is the odds of a three-metre snake slithering through the plumbing before finding an opening right when a man was doing his business? It must be extremely small. There was a measure of blood for excitement. There was also a sneaky element of the private parts under attack.
As I deliberated the merits of the story, various versions of “Toilet terror as python bites man’s penis” began to pop up on one after another on news portals and social media channels everywhere. I knew they would. I knew how the story would be followed up the next day with a take on how the man narrowly escaped the snake attack and his description of the moment the dreadful accident happened. I knew this was a story that would go viral and bring a lot of traffic to news websites.
But would I want to cover such a story, I remember thinking. Did I believe it was a must-read for the newspaper? I really was not so sure.
As the Bangkok Post marks its 70 years in business, the question of what is news will be central to what lies ahead for journalism in the future.
No doubt a sense of uncertainty, gloominess even, permeates the print industry as more and more people are switching to online and mobile platforms for their daily dose of news and information. The new media outlets are faster. They are more convenient. They also come with videos, vivid graphics and endless layers of related information.
What is the next frontier for journalism? Granted, print as a medium is likely to become irrelevant as online platforms have proved to be better, more eco-friendly and convenient for consumers. But will journalistic values and causes that the press stands for, the fight for justice or coverage of marginalised groups — people who are not popular, entertaining or interesting — also become obsolete in the process?
The Post has battled many equivalents of the viral python as it has played its part in defending “old media” values. Where the future of news will take us, only time will tell.