Srinagar, May 8 -- Students of journalism at Islamic University of Science and Technology recently delivered a public lesson that many institutions in Kashmir should have delivered years ago. Through a sharp and timely skit, they exposed how social media theatrics have reduced journalism into spectacle, performance, and noise.

Their message struck a nerve because people already know what has happened to the media space. Anyone holding a smartphone and a microphone now claims the authority to report, interpret, accuse, provoke, and dominate public conversation. Social media pages present themselves as newsrooms. Performers introduce themselves as journalists. Public attention gets chased through outrage, emotional manipulation, staged con...