Crime news reporting is a significant part of the digital media and news industry, especially in Pakistan. While reporting such grisly news is necessary to spread awareness about the negative aspects of our society, airing such content for longer periods of time unnecessarily is something which should be restricted.
The horrible Sahiwal incident dominated the reporting minutes recorded for news channels. The pattern of crime reporting is, more or less, same throughout the year with a massive focus on negative news.
Here is a breakdown of the crime reporting minutes from January 01 to January 22, 2019, shared by the Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Fawad Chaudhry.
Note that the total number of minutes in the above-mentioned duration come out to be 31,680.
| Channel | Crime Reporting Minutes |
| 7 News | 2024 |
| Aaj News | 1330 |
| Abb Tak | 1418 |
| KTN | 1210 |
| 24 News | 1869 |
| Dawn News | 1286 |
| Samaa TV | 1352 |
| Mehran TV | 792 |
| News One | 704 |
| Channel-5 | 1836 |
| Rohi | 1122 |
| K21 | 1232 |
| Neo News | 1374 |
| 92 News | 1308 |
| Such News | 1550 |
| Dunya News | 1396 |
| Public TV | 984 |
| Metro One | 1726 |
| GNN | 1462 |
| Express TV | 1418 |
| Capital TV | 1462 |
| Din News | 1034 |
| Geo News | 1264 |
| Mashriq TV | 1616 |
| Bol News | 1594 |
| Hum News | 806 |
| ARY News | 1330 |
| Lahore News | 2178 |
| Roze News | 1550 |
Out of all the news channels, Lahore News tops the charts for airing crime news with 2178 minutes whereas the lowest reporting time has been recorded for News One with 704 minutes.
The minister has urged the media houses to review their policy of airing crime news, saying that it is not important for every news to be aired as a breaking news. He further questions the impact on the society after airing such news for longer periods.
Chaudhry’s tweet on the microblogging platform has received a mixed response. Let’s have a look at how people have reacted to his suggestion of decreasing the airing minutes for negative news.
Some agree.
True.
Some don’t like the suggestion.
Game of Thrones (read ratings).
A useful suggestion?
You are the Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, aren’t you?
Do you think the airing time should be standardized? Let us know in the comments section.