Pakistan’s embattled media group printed a grovelling front-page apology to the army on Monday after allegations broadcast by Geo TV that the country’s spy chief had plotted to assassinate one of the channel’s star journalists.
The apology came two days before an anticipated ruling by the broadcast regulator on the affair and marked a clear retreat by a media conglomerate after weeks of bruising public criticism from the army, opposition politicians, extremist clerics and media rivals.
The text, printed in English on the front page of the News and in Urdu in the bestselling Daily Jang, said its coverage of a gun attack in Karachi that seriously injured journalist Hamid Mir in April had been “excessive, distressful and emotional”.
After the shooting of Mir, Geo TV responded by giving prominence in its hours of coverage to the allegations from Mir’s brother that Zaheer-ul-Islam, the head of the military spy agency the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI), had ordered the assassination attempt.
The company said it deeply apologised to the ISI chief and his family. It also insisted that it has “the greatest regard and respect for the armed forces of Pakistan and its leadership”.
Initially, Geo had put up a vigorous defence of its actions but its position has progressively weakened as the weeks have gone by.
At the behest of the army the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) was asked to consider banning Geo. Under military pressure many cable companies dropped or downgraded Geo, overturning the channel’s once dominant audience share. And other private channels have ripped into their main rival, accusing it of betraying the country.
Clerics have also accused Geo of broadcasting blasphemous material in a light entertainment show – a move that potentially put the group’s journalists at risk from violent retaliation.
The furore has aggravated an increasingly acrimonious relationship between Pakistan’s civilian government and the army, with many assuming Geo had received the backing of the ruling party to attack the ISI.
Pemra is set to make a decision on the army’s complaint against Geo on Wednesday.
Although Geo framed the row as merely one of the “ups and downs” of any other “relationship” and said it was time to move forward, many analysts believe the military establishment will not be satisfied with an apology alone.
Editor