-The Business Standard Why the hue and cry over Walmart? Many of India Inc's big ones are no strangers to lobbying in the US  There is a very fine line that separates lobbying from bribery, and there are diverse opinions on what kind of influential pressure on lawmakers qualifies as acceptable, and what doesn't. Quite clearly, bribery is illegal and unacceptable, there is nothing wrong in lobbying per se -- at least...

-The Hindu Rural newspaper Gaon Connection, recently launched in Uttar Pradesh, seeks to project the hinterland as it really is For long the national media has been accused of shutting its door on rural news. And by now, the largely city-centric media has won the argument too that news about villages and small towns just do not bring them the advertisers. So we are in an age when the ‘business of media’...

-The Hindustan Times With UPA 2 having carried the day on the motions disapproving foreign direct investment (FDI) in India’s multi-brand retail trade sector, the crescendo for a fresh round of GenNext reforms has reached a higher pitch. The editorial in this newspaper titled The slog overs have begun (Our Take, December 10) states, “Now that FDI in retail is through, the UPA must push ahead with other reforms.” The Congress-led coalitions...

-The Hindu Absolutely nothing wrong in funding the channels in a transparent way, says official Raipur: Raman Singh’s BJP government “has paid for favourable news stories” and “regular live coverage” to a host of national and local television channels, an English language newspaper reported. Furthermore, the senior editors of the channels concerned allegedly wrote to the public relations (PR) department of the Chhattisgarh government “negotiating” rates to produce “news stories” and to ensure...

-The Indian Express Raipur: In May 2010, Hindi TV channel Sahara Samay presented a five-point proposal to the public relations department of the Chhattisgarh government about covering government activities during 2010-11: 1. Two-minute special package: Sahara Samay will show the package 15 times a day during news bulletins. It will contain “CM’s speeches, government policies, and special news related to various departments.” Cost: Rs 3.28 crore per year at Rs 3,000 per...