ONE QUESTION. ONE ANSWER. TOTAL SILENCE.

It was supposed to be a safe question.
A familiar setup.
A predictable payoff.

But on live television, predictability collapsed — and with it, the illusion of neutral journalism.

🧑‍💼 WHO WAS ASKING — AND WHY IT MATTERED

The interviewer was Smita Prakash, Editor-in-Chief of ANI — a media house widely seen as data-aligned with the Bharatiya Janata Party ecosystem. This context matters because questions aren’t asked in a vacuum. They’re framed with expectations — sometimes with answers already imagined.

🎙️ THE GUEST WHO DIDN’T FOLLOW THE SCRIPT

The guest was Vikas Divyakirti, known for his blunt opinions and refusal to tailor answers for applause.

When Smita Prakash asked him,
“Which prime minister was not caste-biased?”

The subtext was clear.
The expected answer was obvious.

But Divyakirti answered simply:

“Jawaharlal Nehru.”

⚡ THE MOMENT THE ROOM FROZE

The reaction wasn’t outrage.
It wasn’t a debate.
It wasn’t even a disagreement.

It was silent.

No follow-up question.
No challenge.
No counter-argument.

In journalism, silence after an unexpected answer is louder than any interruption. It signals one thing: the question was never meant to be explored — only affirmed.

🧠 WHEN QUESTIONS ARE DESIGNED, NOT DISCOVERED

Good journalism follows answers wherever they lead.
Bad journalism collapses when answers don’t obey.

The shock wasn’t that Divyakirti named Jawaharlal Nehru.
The shock was that the interviewer had no Plan B.

Because the question wasn’t about history.
It was about validation — specifically, validation of Narendra Modi.

📺 PROPAGANDA VS JOURNALISM: THE THIN LINE

When interviews are framed to elicit applause rather than understanding, journalism quietly turns into messaging.

You don’t inform the audience.
You perform for power.

And the moment power doesn’t get its cue, the performance breaks.

🔗 WHY THIS MOMENT MATTERS

This wasn’t about Nehru versus Modi.
It wasn’t even about caste.

It was about media credibility.

When editors-in-chief freeze instead of probe, viewers learn something important:

• Some questions are asked only to hear one answer

• Some journalists are comfortable only within ideological boundaries

• Some platforms mistake proximity to power for purpose

• 
  

🧨 FINAL WORD: DON’T BE “SIS.”

Journalism isn’t loyalty.
It isn’t obedience.
It isn’t a shock when truth arrives uninvited.

A journalist’s job is to follow the answer, not abandon the question.

When power writes your curiosity, silence becomes your loudest confession.

Don’t be “sis.”