Times of India resorting to cheap gimmicks

India's premier daily "The Times of India" is really indulging in cheap gimmicks these days. 

If you pick up the issue of Times of India, you will notice that each photograph has a add on image of a new app called Alive developed by them.  This is another form of gimmicks to sensationalise the news. 

 

This is a mockery of news dissemination by indulging in such publicity stunts to gain one up man ship in newspaper arena.  Looking at the gravity of the news, it seems senseless on part of TOI to indulge in this kind of stunts.

This really commercialises the fact that President of US A's tears are just for a mobile app.   But maybe their marketing guys know something we don't!

Years ago when there was no Internet and the telly had limited options, people asked me how to learn good English, I would often tell them to buy a copy of Wren & Martin and to read the Times of India Editorial every day.  The editorial in those days was written in proper Queens English, with proper grammar and everything.  Now a days the Op-Ed page seems to the worst page the paper has with silly comments like their view, Times view, Aman ki Asha etc. 

For once TOI should leave India - Pakistan relations to the Government of India, Government of Pakistan and its politicians.  No amount of surrogate advertising on part of TOI will mend the Indo-Pak relations.  Perhaps it will understand that the people of the two countries want to come together but the politicians don't. 

Now the recent stunt of this Alive app is to much to digest.  Being a avid fan of TOI since my childhood, I expect TOI to be better than this.  No news paper in the world except of Rupert Murdoch papers are trying for making money through online paper.  And TOI should realise that reading a paper is not just a habit, its a routine for most of the people who read it. 

Hope the marketing staff understands the feelings of the readers and does something about it.

Vijay Prabhu