Court TV

Sunday, May 6, 2007
NDTV recently had a program on "Indian Judiciary in 60 yrs" and one of the speakers remarked "we should have in house cameras to cover court cases" I came up with the following idea.
As an extension of Realty TV we could have COURT TV. This could add to the ongoing debate of judial activism and the increased influence of public and Electronic media (as was experienced in the Jessica Lal case). The content and time slots for such a channel could be:

10AM-5PM--> Show court proceeding of prominent cases, based on parties involved( Film stars etc example Mumbai bomb blast) or viewership interest ( Jessica lal cases) or current socially debated topics (IIM reservation issue)

5 PM- 10 PM-->
1.News and reviews of days court cases from public, imminent lawyers and special speakers.
2.Viewers dial program to discuss cases
3.Informational programs to educate public about laws, their right, duties and constitution
4.Showcase old cases and history of indian judiciary
5.World view of judicial systems
6.General news

7 AM- 10 PM--> Discussion about the days upcoming important casesThese are just what I can think top of my mind, surely an innovatove media person can think of more.
Now lets cover somemore aspects of this business idea:

REVENUE:
1. Public interest in high profile cases is very high, this could be utilised to place ads.
2. Reputed legal firms would want to showcases their abilities through this channel and can sponsor many of the evening programs

SOCIAL RELEVANCE:
1. Increased public awareness of the Indian legal system
2. Greater debate and public involvement in the socially relevant cases
3. Better source of legal advice in the call in programs

Finally, I should also list out what could be the hurdles or pit falls for such a channel
1.Biggest of course is that it requires a big legislation
2. Willingness of the parties to be on camera
3. Social stigma because of being involved in crimes ( we all see people covering their face to avoid recognition).This can be overcome by making TV coverage optional.
4. Infrastructure investment though high would not be a bottle neck

These are my view, what do you say? Is any media mogul listening...