My tired brain would like to associate '8' with infinity, since that's how long it will take to get any semblance of #diversity across #media.

Here's month eight of tracking the sorry #OpEds of @IndianExpress @htTweets and @the_hindu.

THREAD

As sad as it is to note the increase in the number of #COVIDー19 positive cases across #India, it's sadder to note the lack of increase in #female #OpEds.

@IndianExpress had 129 #OpEds, @htTweets 78 & @the_hindu 120.

Of the 129 in IE, #women got 37 bylines, including 10 #jointbylines.

@IndianExpress adopts a convenient trope of getting multiple joint bylines featuring women. At times, as many as 3 women for one small piece.

While this is just sad, it ups the numbers.

Six #women including one joint byline opened @IndianExpress' #TheEditorialPage.

Prachi Mishra, Vandita Mishra, Naina Lal Kidwai, Coomi Kapoor, Oshin Dharap & Pranjul Bhandari.

Like #July, this month too, women got the second lead 10 times.

Women opened the #IdeasPage in @IndianExpress SEVEN times.

Rukmini Bhaya Nair, Mrinal Pande, Hena Singh + Swati Parashar, Nirmala Sitharaman, Nirupama Subramanian, Neeti Nair, Ritika Juneja (jt w/Ashok Gulati).

NOT ONE WOMAN got more than one byline in @IndianExpress. Not even their in-house reporters/editors. This is just deplorable.

Of course, this is NEVER the case for IE's men though.

Never ever. Nope. Not even in the #OpEd editor's dreams.

Six men got more than one #byline in #August in @IndianExpress. WHY aren't their #editors exhausted with these names yet? WHY?!

PB Mehta(4), C Raja Mohan(4), Khaled Ahmed(5), Ashok Gulati(3)

Christophe Jaffrelot + SY Quraishi = 2 each.

On Aug 3, Amitabh Kant got a byline in BOTH @IndianExpress & @htTweets; this was repeated by Ram Madhav on Aug 5, & Parameswaran Iyer on Aug 21.

Of course, this didn't happen for any #female. Why would it?

In @IndianExpress' #IdeasOnline section, out of 52 pieces, women got ONLY 17 bylines. What a joke.

Again, WHY am I doing this?!

These #OpEd numbers are utterly, bitterly disgusting.

Of the 78 in @htTweets, women got 17 bylines, incl two joint bylines.

Women opened the #OpEd 8 times. Usual suspects Barkha Dutt(2), Yamini Aiyar (2).

Others — Manjari C Miller, Ritu Kumar, Nimmi Kurian (jt w Gautam Mukhopadhaya) & Meeta Sengupta.

Again on the Saturday (Aug 8) when Dutt & Namita Bhandare wrote their fortnightly columns, @htTweets gave the third spot to Rukmini Banerji--their ONLY #allfemale #OpEd this month.

Please. They don't deserve any congratulations.

Why does this paper and its editors find it impossible to find enough #female #OpEd writers?

What is the problem exactly? Please break it down for me. I'd love to understand.

Other than regulars Yashwant Raj, Shashi Shekhar & Rajdeep Sardesai;

Amitabh Kant and Kapil Sibal got two #bylines each this month in @htTweets.

This month's #EditorsPick had the following #book recommendations: DK Mishra, Vimala Ramachandran, S Gopal, Yogendra Yadav & Isabel Wilkerson .

Jayachandran's #FaultLine continued its weekly spot in @htTweets.

. @htTweets has now changed its design, font, look, the works. Its tagline reads 'First Voice. Last Word.'

How unfortunate then, to see that the #OpEd in this fancy new look gave no #woman neither the first voice, nor the last word.

Again. HOW? WHY?

#Editors across the room would do well to learn that looks won't change your core.

You're never going to even strive for #diversity. It's beyond your ken. Clearly.

Of the 120 in @the_hindu, 28 featured women, with five joint bylines.

Meera Srinivasan, who works at Hindu, got three bylines this month--an incredible feat this paper has granted one of its own.

Apart from AS Panneerselvan, who works at @the_hindu, these men got multiple bylines:

Faizan Mustafa, Rajeev Bhargava, Justice Madan B Lokur, Pulapre Balakrishnan, T Jacob John + MS Seshadri, Krishna Kumar, Mohd Ayoob, Sajjan Kumar.

Since AS Panneerselvan is the 'ombudsman' of @the_hindu and is the 'Readers' Editor' I'm disappointed that the abject #diversity and #representation in HIS paper doesn't seem to bother him.

Women opened the #OpEd in @the_hindu MERELY THRICE, and one was a joint byline.

These were Sonia Gandhi, Mary E John, and Ashwini Deshpande (jt w/ Rajesh Ramachandran).

Mazaak banaakar rakha hai sabko.

At the risk of repeating myself like these papers repeat their men, WHY CAN'T THEY GET MORE/ THE SAME WOMEN TO WRITE? WHAT IS THIS BIG MYSTERY THAT JUST CANNOT BE SOLVED?

One pattern that I've noticed but forget to mention is that if the same men don't publish on the very same day in multiple papers, they achieve that on different days.

For instance, TM Krishna wrote in @IndianExpress on 13 Aug and in @the_hindu on 20 Aug.

Similarly, Harsh V Pant wrote in @the_hindu on 13 Aug and in @htTweets on 28 Aug.

Neither was a joint #byline.

Abhishek Manu Singhvi wrote in @htTweets on 11 August and a joint #byline (with Jaiveer Shergill) in @the_hindu on 15 Aug.

Mani Shankar Aiyar in @the_hindu on 6 Aug, @IndianExpress on 27 Aug.

Wow.

This was extended to one woman--Sonalde Desai--she got a joint byline (with Bornali Bhandari and Santanu Pramanik) in @IndianExpress on Aug 3; and a solo byline in @the_hindu on Aug 12.

LOTS of #propaganda columns keep appearing in these #newspapers, so if you come across any explosive exclusive or such, just know that all of their #OpEds have been complicit in all that's wrong with our country.

I spoke a lot about the song 'Virah' from the recent web series Bandish Bandits.

While that was the separation of lovers, I'd now like to think it's the glaring separation of 'sense' from #OpEds in @IndianExpress @htTweets @the_hindu.

Why would anyone want to be a #journalist today? Please spare me your collective nonsense.

You know you've all done a pathetic job because the #OpEds will always remain sorry.