Dinamalar

Dinamalar
TypeDaily Newspaper
FormatBroadsheet
Founder(s)T. V. Ramasubbaiyer
Founded6 September 1951
LanguageTamil
HeadquartersChennai, India
Circulation693,742 (as of April 2023)[1]
Websitedinamalar.com

Dinamalar is an Indian Tamil daily newspaper. It was founded in 1951 by T. V. Ramasubba Iyer.[2] Dinamalar has an average circulation of 689,773 (ABC Jan–Jun 2022).[3]

History

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Dinamalar was founded by T. V. Ramasubbaiyer on 6 September 1951 at Thiruvananthapuram. The operations were moved to Tirunelveli in 1957.[4]

Circulation

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The newspaper is printed in 10 cities in Tamil Nadu namely Chennai, Coimbatore, Erode, Madurai, Nagercoil, Pondicherry, Salem, Tiruchirappalli, Tirunelveli, Vellore[4] and Bangalore. As of Jun 2022, the newspaper has a circulation of 1,731,8959 and more than 2 million epaper subscribers.[3]

Content

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The investigative journal Cobrapost released an undercover investigation and video which exposed the executives of Dinamalar speaking of promoting Hindutva and promoting the agenda of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2018.[5][6] Cobrapost reported that the Director Lakshmipathy Adimoolam was devoted to the ideology of the RSS. In the operation, Adimoolam went on to say that his family's loyalty to the RSS and the BJP has harmed their business a lot. Director Adimoolam also mentioned "We have a lot of same wavelength with the BJP family is around."[7][8][9][10]

Dinamalar in July 2021 published misleading news claiming that Tamil Nadu's western area was going to be made into a separate union territory called Kongu Nadu.[11]

Controversies

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On 8 September 2008, Dinamalar's supplementary edition Computer malar carried a cartoon of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad which led to protest from Islamic groups.[12]

On 22 April 2019, Dinamalar received a backlash after its headline on the 2019 Sri Lanka Easter bombings report was seen to be mocking Christians and Jesus. The report titled  "O...Sesappa" which meant Oh...Jesus in a mocking tone was seen offensive by many. Dinamalar Office asked for police protection following the incident.[13] Many readers on social media objected the heading. Following this, Dinamalar published an explanation and expressed its regret.[14]

In January 2019, Dinamalar posted a body-shaming cartoon of the BJP's Tamil Nadu President Tamilisai Soundararajan. The cartoon depicted the BJP leader playing ring toss, makes her look wantonly disheveled.[15] Soundarajan slammed the cartoon and said "Those with a basic lack of respect for women are capable of opining in this manner."[16]

Dinamalar called the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu as "Palani" instead of "Palaniswamy" in July 2020. The incident caused a controversy. A protest was held in Coimbatore today on behalf of the Social Justice People's Party and at the end of the protest the Dinamalar newspapers were set on fire.[17]

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In October 2009, Dinamalar published an article claiming that several Tamil film actresses were involved in prostitution along with pictures and names. The South Indian Film Artistes' Association petitioned to have the senior sub editor arrested and staged a rally condemning the same. The rally was led by Rajinikanth with other actors including Vijayakanth, Sarath Kumar and Suriya. The senior sub editor of the newspaper, Lenin was arrested under Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prevention of Women Harassment Act and was sent to judicial custody.[18][19] He was released on the next day on protests from Chennai Press Club, Madras Union of Journalists, Press Trust of India and the Indian Newspaper Society. Dinamalar stated that the news was obtained from ethical sources and there was no secondary agenda.[20]

In February 2012, Vanniyar Sangam leader and Member of Legislative Assembly, Kaduvetti Guru lodged a complaint to Police Commissioner seeking the arrest of Dinamalar editor Krishnamurthy and its publisher Lakshmipathy for publishing news insulting the Vanniyar caste and trying to create caste violence. The article published by Dinamalar read, "Vanniyars do not interact and keep their distance with other castes. Vanniyars been involved in anti-social activities due to poverty and even though they have show elevated status in society, they are widely known for their violence and oppressive behavior.[21] Due to this, other castes follow an unwritten rule to not do business with Vanniyars. Due to this, Vanniyars are introducing themselves in the community as Gounder in order to avoid professional harm." Pattali Makkal Katchi's leader G. K. Mani asked why Dinamalar hates Vanniyars so much and also said that the newspaper had constantly defamed the Vanniyars.[22]

In September 2019, A Judicial Magistrate in Krishnagiri sentenced the Editor and the Publisher of Tamil daily Dinamalar to two years’ imprisonment in a defamation case filed by a police inspector. The Judicial Magistrate passed the order on a private complaint lodged by an inspector, who was posted in Krishnagiri in 2005. The complainant said in a column “Tea Kadai Bench”, published in the daily, it was alleged that he received kickbacks from those trading in illicit liquor that was transported from Bengaluru into Tamil Nadu via Hosur. Besides, the report alleged that he had acquired properties through illegal means. Though he had sent a legal notice to the daily seeking damages of ₹10 lakh, the publication did not respond to it. The lawyers representing the editor and the publisher had argued that it was the duty of the media to hold those in positions accountable. However, the magistrate held that the article was not backed with evidence and lent to “gossip mongering”. The court said the write-up, that had not named the complainant in the allegations, however, ended up directly naming him as a conversational tool.[23]

References

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  1. ^ "Highest Circulated Daily Newspapers (language wise)" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC). Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Dina Malar founder's contributions recalled". The Hindu. 26 March 2009. Archived from the original on 30 March 2009.
  3. ^ a b "Submission of circulation figures for the audit period July - December 2015" (PDF). Audit Bureau of Circulations. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 February 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  4. ^ a b "About us, Dinamalar". Dinamalar. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  5. ^ Newslaundry. "Newslaundry | Sabki Dhulai". Newslaundry. Archived from the original on 17 July 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  6. ^ "Dinamalar: We have a lot of same wavelength with the BJP family is around, says Director". Cobrapost. Archived from the original on 25 May 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  7. ^ "Cobrapost Exposé: We Got A Direct Call From The PMO To Share Personal Data Of Our Users, Paytm VP Ajay Shekhar Allegedly Says In Video". HuffPost India. 25 May 2018. Archived from the original on 10 December 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Cobrapost Sting: Big Media Houses Say Yes to Hindutva, Black Money, Paid News - The Wire". The Wire. Archived from the original on 5 May 2020. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  9. ^ "ஹிந்துத்துவாவை பரப்ப ஒப்புக்கொண்ட தினமலர் ?". You Turn. 30 September 2018. Archived from the original on 11 March 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  10. ^ ":: Cobrapost ::". 25 December 2019. Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
  11. ^ "கொங்கு நாடு உருவாகுது, தமிழ்நாடு இரண்டாக பிரிகிறது என தினமலர் வெளியிட்ட தவறான செய்தி !". You Turn. 10 July 2021. Archived from the original on 11 March 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  12. ^ "Tight security in TN after terror alert". Hindustan Times. 25 September 2008. Archived from the original on 3 January 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2020.
  13. ^ "மோசமாக தலைப்பிட்டு மொத்துப்படும் தினமலர்: பாதுகாப்பு கேட்டு போலீசாரிடம் தஞ்சம்". 24 February 2020. Archived from the original on 24 February 2020. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  14. ^ Webdunia. "இலங்கைக் குண்டுவெடிப்பு 'கேலி' தலையங்கம் – மன்னிப்புக்கேட்டது தினமலர் !". tamil.webdunia.com (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  15. ^ January 31, The News Minute; IST, 2019 at 03:49 AM (30 January 2019). "Cartoon Body Shames Tamil Nadu BJP Chief, She Slams the Perversion". The Quint. Archived from the original on 24 December 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  16. ^ "Cartoon in Dinamalar body shames BJP leader Tamilisai, she slams the perversion". The News Minute. 30 January 2019. Archived from the original on 19 February 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  17. ^ "'முதல்வர் பழனி': கோவையில் தினமலரை எரித்த வாசகர்கள்". Samayam Tamil (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 26 October 2021. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  18. ^ "Tamil daily editor held for film story - Indian Express". archive.indianexpress.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2021.
  19. ^ "Dinamalar editor arrested". hotclix.com. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  20. ^ "Dinamalar press release". Dinamalar. Archived from the original on 25 July 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
  21. ^ "தினமலர் கிருஷ்ணமூர்த்தி, லட்சுமிபதி மீது போலீஸ் கமிஷனரிடம் புகார". Dinakaran. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  22. ^ "சாதி மோதலை தூண்ட சதி : தினமலர் கிருஷ்ணமூர்த்தி, லட்சுமிபதி மீது போலீஸ் கமிஷனரிடம் புகார". Dinakaran. Archived from the original on 22 July 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  23. ^ "Dinamalar Editor, Publisher awarded two years' jail for defamation". The Hindu. 5 September 2019. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
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