Reporting Kashmir from Delhi

By Nahida Mushtaq

For years, Kashmir remained a hub and heartland of remarkable reporters who documented its complex socio-political landscape. However, in recent times, a noticeable trend has emerged. 

Driven by growing disillusionment with the state of journalism, scores of educated, professionally-trained journalists are increasingly leaving the region to report from outside. They’re now watching Kashmir, as Agha Shahid would’ve said it, from New Delhi, and beyond.

This exodus is not merely a personal choice but a symptom of a deeper malaise. It’s an ethical crisis that has engulfed Kashmiri journalism marred by sensationalism, bias, and exploitation.

Kashmir has historically produced credible and upright journalists. Despite the omnipresent risks of working in a strife space, they’ve sought to uphold the principles of truth, objectivity, and public service. 

Many of these shifted scribes were educated in prestigious institutions, both within India and abroad, where they were trained in the ethics of reporting, the importance of verification, and the responsibility of wielding the power of the pen. They exemplified the potential of educated journalism by winning international accolades for courageous reporting. Their work was grounded in a commitment to factual accuracy and a refusal to succumb to the pressures of propaganda, whether from state or non-state actors. 

However, the landscape has shifted dramatically in recent years. And the decline of ethical journalism can be attributed to several interconnected factors. 

First, the rise of self-styled “citizen journalists” and social-media influencers has muddied the waters. Armed with smartphones and a hunger for attention, these individuals often lacking formal training or an understanding of journalistic ethics have flooded platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and X with unverified reports, sensationalized narratives, and exploitative content. The 2024 Gandbal boat-capsizing tragedy in Srinagar, where six people lost their lives, is a stark example. 

As grieving families mourned, Facebook journalists descended upon the scene, thrusting microphones and cameras into their faces, prioritising viral footage over empathy or consent. This is not journalism, it is opportunism masquerading as reporting.

Second, the traditional media has not been immune to ethical lapses. The pressure to survive in an increasingly hostile environment has pushed them to the wall. Others, desperate for relevance in a crowded digital space, have resorted to sensationalism or partisan reporting, amplifying divisive narratives rather than fostering understanding. 

The 2020 media policy, which empowers government officials to label content as “fake,” “unethical,” or “anti-national,” has only exacerbated this trend, creating a chilling effect on story enterprise.

Third, the sudden clampdown of institutions like the Kashmir Press Club in 2022 shook the professional journalistic community. And therefore, the decision to leave the valley became a hard choice. 

For many of these individuals, Kashmir is not just a beat; it’s home woven into their native identity. Yet, the conditions within the region have become crippling, stifling their professional growth. 

The exodus reflects a moral stance as well. For those who’ve studied the principles of journalism verification, balance, and humanity, the current storytelling degradation is unbearable. Reporting from outside allows them to reclaim their integrity, to tell their homeland stories in right spirit. 

This remote reporting provides them a degree of range and reach as well. They  can access international platforms, collaborate with global newsrooms, and publish without any issue. They can also draw on a broader range of sources– exiled activists, diaspora voices, and declassified documents that enrich their reporting.

This external vantage point has produced some of the most compelling journalism in recent years. Yet, this approach is not without its challenges. Distance can dull the immediacy of reporting, making it harder to capture the raw, on-the-ground reality that defines the Kashmir story. Sources may dry up as trust erodes between journalists and locals who feel abandoned by those who “fled.” 

Moreover, the reliance on secondary accounts risks introducing inaccuracies or biases, particularly if the journalists’ perspective is shaped more by their new environment than by the Valley itself. The danger of becoming detached or worse, irrelevant looms large.

The departure also has big implications for how Kashmir is understood. The vacuum inside the valley is filled by less scrupulous voices who distort the public perception with half-truths and sensationalism. Over time this could lead to a sanitized or oversimplified version of the Kashmir story, one that priorities geopolitical analysis over lived experience.

The flight of educated journalists from Kashmir is a tragedy, but it is not irreversible. To stem this tide, the region’s media ecosystem must undergo a radical transformation. There must be a concerted effort to rebuild ethical standards and to revive the culture of credible chronicling.

• The author is a Kashmiri scribe whose works have appeared in regional and national media. Views expressed in this article are author’s own and don’t necessarily reflect KO’s editorial policy. 

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