Unilever and Mindshare are trying to sweep Saad khan’s tragic death in Clear Reality Show under the rug. Traditional media has been put at silence while new media is trying their level best to help poor family by bringing this matter into public through blogs, social networks and online news sites. After our first poster on the issue, given below is our new comic strip which shows the exact situation.
Media Role at Saad Khan's death in Unilever & Mindshare's Clear Reality Show
Download high resolution image if you want to take a print of this strip.
Our media which has shown the swat lashes video over a week without confirming if that video is real or fake and still did not cover this story. Perhaps they can’t go against the hands which feed them. But can’t they have even a little decency of acknowledging this unfortunate incident? They have already lost their credibility as for as main stream educated Pakistani’s are concerned (I hope I am saying this right.) But here is a chance for them to prove us wrong otherwise.
And regarding the show sponsor and producer, I am not getting what on earth is stopping them to come forward and show some corporate social responsibility and resolve the issue on ethical grounds rather than on legal grounds. This way they even don’t need to put the show in shelves rather they can have another show as a tribute to saad and may be give all the money earned through that show to Saad’s family. And if they don’t have any guts to do that then, Well, next time I go to grocery store I will make sure that there is nothing from unikiller and mudshare (the brands they own/promote) in my basket.
At the end I would really admire all the efforts new media is putting into this cause. This is not only helping build the necessary pressure to get an ethical solution for Saad’s family from these filthy business empires but also showing the wonderful power of user engagement new media has to offer.
A marketing technologist having 15+ years of entrepreneurial experience with over a dozen digital start-ups, now leading product development @ IMM - Jang Media Group. 
Our Media is a cruel Mafia. I remember there was a popular news of Khabrain Group’s Channel 5’s employee committed suicide because he wasn’t paid Salary for past 5 months.
I am happy that now the new Pakistani media is heading towards really right direction and we won’t let anyone to play with our lives again.
All we need is to stay together.
Pakistani media!!!! too bad on their part!!!!!
Paki media…just 4 adds…phewHhh….God blessss him!!
Well we all know the kind of business that Unilever for that matter give to the mainstream media, so cant blame them i mean they have to run their channels and newspapers don’t they..
As much is said regarding this issue, however you cannot count out that media is totally silent, i came across this piece on Dawn News’s website, though quite late but not to be counted out.
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/world/09-pakistani-drowns-during-reality-tv-contest–szh-01
vasef, that is a no excuse. they could have save the sponsor and put the blame on the producers. And unilever can not ignore media as a whole. they need them to sell their brands. So I don’t think media was so very much ties up in this particular situation. Only if they had a heart they could expedite the whole process and actually help make all such future shows much better from security perspective as well as from entertainment value for the viewer.
And a few who reported have reported in such a way that sounds like a famous punjabi slang “ganglouan tu mitti chaarna” in urdu it’s closest is “laho lagga ker shaheedun mein shamil hona” In English we can say that they are now just trying to tell that we are in where as they were not when they were desperately needed.
Sir! Exactly my point!! thats what i am saying, dawn has done what we call.. UNGLI KATA KAY SHAHEEDO MAIN NAAM LIKHWANA. And i agree with you, as far as you talk about them having a heart, oh please dont even expect them to do expedite such things, i dont think so. Moreover, will you expect news1 & Tv1 to ever cover this story.. NEVER!! Tahir Khan sahab will keep their clients and protect his agency. So please don’t expect these brands and channels to have any dignity, their sole purpose is to show masala content, this is as sickening for me as it is for you sir, I’ve written a lot about this on my blog too, kindly check it out.
http://vasifabbas.wordpress.com/2009/09/04/saad-khans-death-inside-scoop/
My brothers we have become so greedy for money that we are no more human being we have no ethics left in our self and this is one such example of it, Unilever played with the lives of so many contestents just to promote his brand and earn more money and in the process when they faulter their partners in business are there to protect them and in turn protect thier business wether it is on the cost of the life of some one else.
God help us and give some sanity to our minds so that we can differentiate between good and evil.
and I pray to Allah to rest my brother in peace and help his family to overcome thier grief