Very recently, YSR Congress party general secretary and Rajya Sabha member V Vijay Sai Reddy announced that he would launch a media house to counter the malicious campaign being unleashed by yellow media, particularly Eenadu.
Reacting to a series of articles being carried by Eenadu on the alleged land deals in Visakhapatnam involving Sai Reddy’s family members, Sai Reddy said the daily promoted by Ramu (as he called Eenadu group chairman Ch Ramoji Rao) had turned worse than a pamphlet for the Telugu Desam Party.
“Just because Ramu owns a newspaper and a television channel, he has been indulging in character assassination. Here is my challenge. I am going to enter the media field. I will launch a newspaper and a television channel with my own money,” he said, indicating that he needed a media house to counter-attack Eenadu.
Sai Reddy’s announcement was no doubt a big news on that day, but one wondered whether he is really serious about launching a media venture.
It requires massive investment to launch and run a newspaper and a channel and whether the MP would be able to mobilise resources for the same.
A section of party leaders say Sai Reddy might have made the statement in a fit of emotion, as he knows how difficult it is to run a media house, after having seen the struggles of Sakshi to sustain.
“Sakshi has been able to sustain because of the advertisement support from the Jagan Mohan Reddy government, because it is owned by the chief minister’s family. If Sai Reddy launches a newspaper and channel, it is doubtful whether he will get the same support from the government,” a party leader said.
Secondly, the party leader also wonders whether Jagan would allow Sai Reddy to launch a media house, which will definitely be a competitor to Sakshi. Even if follows the party line, it will have compete with Sakshi in advertisement revenue and circulation, he said.
There is another section of party leaders who say Sai Reddy has come out with the statement only after making all the arrangements to launch the media house.
“He has already commenced the exercise and has started head-hunting for editorial and marketing wings. By February or March, his newspaper will hit the stands. As regards a television channel, he might try to take over an existing channel,” the source said.