On April 22, 2025, India was devastated by an unspeakable act of terror. In the serene tourist town of Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, 26 innocent Hindu tourists were mercilessly slaughtered. Pakistani-sponsored terrorists coldly asked victims to state their religion before executing them at point-blank range. Families stood helpless as their loved ones were gunned down—targeted solely for being Hindu. This was not a random act of violence; it was a calculated, premeditated massacre driven by hatred.

And yet, the global media’s silence was deafening. In New Zealand and across much of the Western world, the tragedy barely registered. Some outlets offered brief, sanitized mentions; others chose to ignore it altogether. Shockingly, instead of mourning the victims or condemning the brutality, much of the western commentary quickly shifted to criticizing India’s response, labelling it “aggressive” or “nationalist.” This now-familiar pattern reflects a deeply troubling media bias.

Mainstream media’s selective outrage has become glaringly obvious. Too often, India is painted as the oppressor, while regimes like Pakistan, despite exporting extremism and religious violence across the globe is portrayed as victim of global geopolitics. There is a disturbing readiness to scrutinize India for its internal decisions, while giving little attention to the very real threats it faces from across its borders. Such distortions are not just shameful and misleading; they are dangerous also.
New Zealand presents a particularly contradictory picture. While its government seeks stronger ties with India and pushes for a Free Trade Agreement, its media often undermines these efforts by amplifying skewed narratives. These conflicting approaches cannot coexist. If New Zealand genuinely wants to engage with India as an emerging global power, it must begin with a more honest and informed understanding of the realities India faces.

Western media, including New Zealand’s, often operates within a narrow ideological bubble. Shaped largely by leftist perspectives of western counties, many outlets seem to view India through a singular, reductive lens, especially under the current government. They cling to a narrative where India is always on trial, while conveniently overlooking the atrocities committed by Islamist extremists or the systemic persecution of minorities in Pakistan.

What makes this silence even more appalling is the frequency with which religious minorities are targeted in Pakistan. Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, and others have long faced mob lynchings, forced conversions, desecration of temples, and targeted killings. These crimes are well-documented by international human rights organizations, including the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). Yet, these horrifying incidents rarely make headlines in New Zealand’s media. Instead, stories that reinforce a negative image of India—like the Citizenship Amendment Act or the abrogation of Article 370—are given centre stage, often without adequate context or factual accuracy.
This imbalance distorts global understanding and dishonours victims. When those killed are Hindus, or when the attackers are Islamist militants, the empathy and outrage we see in other global tragedies often disappears. This double standard is not only morally indefensible, it undermines the very idea of universal human rights.

Compounding the problem is the role played by certain Indian-origin commentators in New Zealand. While diversity of voices is important, some individuals use their platforms to amplify anti-India narratives, often ignoring the threat of religious extremism in Pakistan. Their ethnicity gives them perceived legitimacy, making their biases more persuasive, even when their arguments lack nuance or context. Instead of informing, they often inflame, focusing on India’s imperfections while turning a blind eye to external threats.

The impact of all this is real and it’s painful. For the Indian diaspora in New Zealand, this kind of one-sided reporting is not just frustrating, it’s alienating. They feel misrepresented, their grief ignored, their voices drowned out. Their anger is not rooted in blind patriotism. It’s a plea for fairness, for truth, for recognition of the suffering of their community. If this imbalance continues unchecked, it risks damaging New Zealand’s relationship with India and with its own growing Indian community.
For New Zealand, it’s time for serious introspection. Media in liberal democracies like New Zealand must return to the core principles of journalism: truth, fairness, empathy, and consistency. Terrorism must be condemned unequivocally, no matter who the victims are or where the perpetrators come from. Every innocent life matter including of the Hindus. And every government, India included, should be held accountable, but with context, balance, honesty, and integrity.

India, like any democracy, is not above criticism. It is a complex nation with its own set of challenges. Honest critique is not only welcome, but also vital. But what we see today is often not honest. It is filtered through ideological lenses and geopolitical convenience. That kind of journalism does not inform, it misleads.
The world needs a media that has the courage to tell the whole story, not just the convenient parts. Especially when the truth is uncomfortable. Because anything less isn’t just a failure of journalism, it’s a disservice to India, and to the democratic ideals we all depend on. -Yugal Parashar