"I believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers"

Mahatma Gandhi’s statement, “I believe in equality for everyone, except reporters and photographers,” carries a nuanced and perhaps playful undertone, hinting at the complicated relationship between public figures and the media. At face value, Gandhi was among the strongest proponents of equality, nonviolence, and justice for all, but his singling out of reporters and photographers blends irony with a candid critique. The remark draws attention to the unique position journalists occupy in society: chroniclers of events, interpreters of narratives, and, sometimes, manipulators of public perception.

Gandhi’s frequent interactions with the press were marked by both cooperation and frustration. While the media helped spread his message of nonviolent resistance, they also posed challenges, distorting words, sensationalizing issues, or intruding on deeply personal and spiritual moments. The intrusive lens of the camera and the constant demands of reporters could become obstacles for a leader intent on sincere communication and reflection. In half jest and half seriousness, Gandhi implies that journalists, as conveyors of information, sometimes enjoy a license that borders on the privileged, often exempted from the standards by which others are judged.

There is also an implicit commentary on the power dynamics at play. The media can shape reputations, influence public opinion, and construct realities; as such, they wield a form of authority distinct from that of the everyday individual. Gandhi’s exception suggests a skepticism regarding the unchecked power of reporters and photographers. By humorously removing them from his egalitarian ideals, Gandhi is perhaps challenging society to reflect on the responsibilities and limits of press freedom.

Ultimately, Gandhi’s quip highlights the enduring tension between those in the public eye and those whose role is to observe, document, and report. It prompted his contemporaries, and still prompts us today, to examine the ethical boundaries within which the press should operate, and to acknowledge the unique pressures faced by those whose lives and work are perpetually exposed.