NPR’s Lauren Frayer’s now deleted racist tweet in opposition to India simply exhibits how biased western media is

On Saturday (January 15), the Indian correspondent of US-based, non-profit media organisation National Public Radio (NPR), Lauren Frayer, deleted her racist tweet, whereby she arbitrarily presumed that an incident of prepare housebreaking in Los Angeles was from India.
“I have deleted this tweet because it was insensitive,” wrote the NPR journalist on the micro-blogging platform after netizens known as out her racist angle in the direction of India. In this tweet she connected a screenshot of her deleted tweet and ensured that her contentious tweet remained on the social media web site.
A day earlier (January 14), Lauren Frayer had shared a floor report of a prepare housebreaking incident in Lincoln Heights in Los Angeles and claimed, “At first glance, I thought this was India.” The video, shot by photojournalist John Schreiber, confirmed how looted packages of UPS bins, Amazon packages and unused Covid exams have been mendacity across the prepare tracks.
Screengrab of the tweet by Lauren Frayer
As per stories, California has been witnessing an increase in smash-and-grab-thefts in current months. Cargo theft in freight trains had turned prepare tracks in Los Angeles into rubbish dumps. This was precipitated primarily as a result of disposal of packaging materials and scrapped cardboard by thieves after the loot.
Freight firm Union Pacific acknowledged the incidents of thefts and mentioned, “These rail crimes pose a serious safety threat to the public, our employees and local law enforcement officers. We have increased the number of Union Pacific special agents on patrol, and we have utilized and explored additional technologies to help us combat this criminal activity.”
Netizens slammed Lauren Frayer over her insensitive tweet
Despite being aware of the info of the case, NPR journalist Lauren Frayer went forward and instructed that the filthy tracks and incidents of prepare loot have been paying homage to India. The gross generalisation, with a malicious intent to painting India as a ‘litter-filled garbage dump’ to a worldwide viewers, didn’t go properly with Indian netizens.
Twitter person (@SimiBGood) wrote, “I’ve been living in India for almost 8 years now and never ever had any parcel stolen or anything else for that matter. And I’ve seen worse looking and smelling places right in the middle of SF than anywhere around here. Let’s not even start of LA.”
Screengrab of the tweet
Another person, Venkatesh, identified, “I think this attitude of casting aspersions of India being underbelly impoverished untidy looking place need a change. Westerners, colonial rulers, their medias have done enough damage to us, and we are not in a position to take it any further.”
Screengrab of the tweet
“How come? These kind of narratives are welded to your brain? By whom? How?It is so difficult to imagine these things in your own country?” wrote one SB Shetty.
Screengrab of the tweet
NPR and the racist rhetorics of Western media
Lauren Frayer is just not new to peddling anti-India narrative. Popular Twitter person, The Hawk Eye, had identified how her Covid-19 reportage was closely biased and relied on cherry-picking to tarnish India’s world picture. She was additionally seen creating hysteria among the many public by sharing footage of burning pyres.
“All of her articles will give glimpse of any typical left media houses. e.g. Frayer observed that Protesters that carried out 26/1 riots at Red Fort is “storm in capital” and “overshadowed traditional military parade,” wrote The Hawk Eye.
All of her articles will give glimpse of any typical left media homes. e.g. Frayer noticed that Protesters that carried out 26/1 riots at Red Fort is “storm in capital” and “overshadowed traditional military parade”. Check her different articles, simply headlines are ok!8/ pic.twitter.com/DfTvohh1ly— The Hawk Eye (@thehawkeyex) January 15, 2022
This is nevertheless not the primary time {that a} NPR journalist had chosen to malign India. In September 2019, producer Furkan Khan took to Twitter to claim that if Indians hand over Hinduism, they are going to be fixing most of their issues ‘what with all the piss drinking and dung worshipping’.
When caught on the improper foot, Furkan first defended herself by chalking up her tweet to ‘sarcasm’ and in addition mentioned that ‘trolls’ have been lacking the context. Concerned social media customers wrote to NPR asking whether or not the media home endorsed such behaviour. In response, NPR replied to them stating that she has resigned from NPR.
Calling Hindus ‘cow piss drinkers’ or ‘dung worshippers’ is a typical insult utilized by Islamists to deride Hinduism. In the video launched by the Jaish-e-Muhammad terror outfit following the assault on the CRPF convoy that killed 40 CRPF personnel, expressing his unmitigated hatred for Hindus, Dar had justified their killings by calling them ‘infidels’ and ‘cow piss drinkers‘.
Similarly, NYTimes has additionally had a historical past of racist reportage in opposition to India.
For occasion, anti-India media New York Times has all the time been dismissive in regards to the leaps India is taking within the world economic system. One recollects the racist cartoon by NYT after the nation’s bold house program and had even apologised for it.
Screengrab of the racist cartoon printed by New York Times
After Indian Armed Forces carried out the surgical strike on terror camps primarily based in Pakistan in aftermath of Pulwama terror assault, NYTimes peddled anti-India narrative. In an article titled, “After India Loses Dogfight to Pakistan, Questions Arise About Its ‘Vintage’ Military”, the author Maria Abi-Habib has rigorously omitted some info and indulged in pushing a false narrative that initiatives Indian Armed Forces in a poor mild. Interestingly, Congress chief MP Gaurav Gogoi has additionally performed his half in pushing a story that portrays India’s Armed forces as ‘vintage’. Maria Abi-Habib has additionally intentionally ignored that Pakistani Armed Forces flip-flop over its statements concerning the variety of Indian pilots that they’d captured. The New York Times reporter has proven no eagerness to state info in her reportage somewhat she has simply cherry-picked the info which suited her bias in opposition to the Indian armed forces.
After that, in a single article, NYT claimed that because the 2019 normal elections have been closing in, Modi’s recognition was on a low and the “rejuvenated opposition was landing punch after punch with corruption allegations. But one bombing in Kashmir, and weeks of military brinkmanship with Pakistan afterward, appears to have interrupted Mr. Modi’s slump.” The alleged newspaper was compelled to vary its newspaper after outrage on social media. And proper after the 2019 General Elections when PM Modi was elected once more with a thumping majority, NYTimes referred to PM Modi as ‘one of the most divisive leaders India has produced in decades’.