Digital Media and Society

In the field of politics, the reign of social media has revolutionised the runnings of it. Digital media has a significant role in a democracy in today’s world, keeping the citizens aware about the government, politics and help counter any abuse of power and irresponsibilities. With the help of social media, political parties and leaders put forth their manifestos, schemes, methodology and intentions they have that will be put into practice after campaigns of elections. The use of prominent social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter boosts the presence of political figures and parties. Furthermore, during election campaigns, the social media platforms act as a medium between the political leaders and the citizens at a more personal level than old media/press and news channels. Campaigns and interactions on social media platforms are cost-effective and reach a much broader demographic. India, a democracy is home to a large population and electorate, with several political parties which of late use digital and social media to their advantage.

Original source: https://www.epw.in/social-media-and-elections

Since the 2016 US election campaigns, social media and prominently Facebook, has been under close inspections and have a part of controversies such as data of millions getting shared with research company, Cambridge Analytica and Russian accounts using Facebook to influence voters (Iyengar, 2019). In recent years, voters rely on social media and messaging platforms to gather information and communicate about political parties and leaders and share their preferences and political ideology. Elections in India are not only fumed by the conventional ways of a democracy but is rather a complex set of factors such as religious beliefs, violence, disinformation and misinformation. For example, there are over 200 million users of WhatsApp which is known to be the centre of hoax messages and misinformation (Iyengar, 2019).

Original source: https://www.financialexpress.com/lifestyle/democracy-hacked-growing-influence-of-social-media-and-idea-of-democracy/1568040/

The Prime Minister of India currently, Narendra Modi has one of the biggest Twitter followings for a political figure. He is present on all prominent social media platforms, with a great number of followings. In addition, he also has a television channel called NaMo TV, he still has a LinkedIn profile, a YouTube channel, a Pinterest board, to name a few. This social media strategy has led to his enormous following in the nation and abroad and it makes it easier for him to enforce his combative fascist nationalistic directive (Pal, 2019). Leading him to winning the 2014 elections and becoming the Prime Minister. The Bhartiya Janta party under him were declared victorious under him by the use of digital and social media during campaigns. Since then more parties have incorporated the use of digital media to their advantage and this has transformed the scene of Indian politics and elections. Political parties have shifted their overall election campaign budgets and spendings to digital media. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP had dominated elections advertisements on Google by 80%. The elections generated over 139,000 advertisements on Google and Facebook (Mampatta, 2019). Google, Facebook and other platforms of the companies had made known ads transparency tools before the elections (2019) to make ads funding known (Chaturvedi, 2019). Along with the advertisements, political leaders of India use Twitter on a day to day basis as a means to interact, inform and discuss their views, etc. Especially chief ministers of the 29 states, keep their respective citizens informed and updated about through social media platforms like Twitter. It is to be noted that a greater number of Indians have access to the internet since the 2014 elections. (Iyengar, 2019).

Original source: https://www.indiatvnews.com/fyi/news-top-10-most-followed-leaders-netas-politicians-on-twitter-full-list-529312

With the use of social media, political parties and leaders reach a greater demographic, especially the youth or any other targeted audience. With the steep increase of social media user worldwide, it has become a key tool for political parties to endorse their political ideologies and to generate mass support and Facebook and Twitter being the most widely used social media platforms. From the information on these social media platforms, the public can gain knowledge about the political parties and hence establish their political efficacy (V, PK, MC, 2015). Facebook and WhatsApp also have one of their largest markets in India. With the use of social media, there are political discussions and discourse with the participation of political leaders and the users(public). Therefore it can be said that social media has the power to not only inform but can mould and change people’s preferences and opinions about political parties and leaders.

Word count: 733

References

Chaturvedi, A., 2020. BJP Top Spender On Political Ads On Digital Platforms. The Economic Times. Available at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/bjp-top-spender-on-political-ads-on-digital-platforms/articleshow/69351792.cms

Iyenger, R., 2019. India’s Last Election Saw Social Media Used As A Tool. This One May Make It A Weapon. CNN. Available at: https://edition.cnn.com/2019/03/11/tech/indian-election-whatsapp-twitter-facebook/index.html

Mampatta, S., 2020. BJP Accounted For Over 80% Of Election Advertisements On Google: Report. Business-standard.com. Available at: https://www.business-standard.com/article/technology/bjp-accounted-for-over-80-of-election-advertisements-on-google-report-119052201445_1.html

Pal, J., 2020. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/04/30/social-media-is-key-battleground-indias-elections-modi-is-currently-king/

During elections, political parties leave no stone unturned with their campaigns. These campaigns require strategic marketing techniques to win votes with a majority. Over the years, these strategies have evolved with trial and error and digital advancements. Politics around the world has shifted towards using digital media mainly using social media platforms and search engine optimisation, as a dominant part of campaigns. However, in India old and traditional campaigning is also still prevalent which includes politicians personally going to their respective constituencies, assuring the needs of people, handing out giveaways, giving speeches and portraying one as the most suited to bring about positive change. Building an image is extremely crucial and a  prototype for any politician. The fundamentals of that politician are what brings in the votes. 

Original source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/buzz-around-dmk-as-team-prashant-kishor-hits-tamil-nadu-streets/articleshow/59519696.cms

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Kishor. Original source: https://theprint.in/opinion/why-winners-pick-prashant-kishor/364081/

In the Indian political arena, political leaders are seeking guidance from political strategist for gaining populist votes and electoral victories. Prashant Kishor is one of the most successful political strategies in India and is known as an election magician. He is known for curating the most ideal campaign strategies with the use of digital and social media. He is responsible for creating the ‘Modi wave’ in the 2014 Lok Sabha election along with his party (Bharatiya Janta Party). He has also worked alongside Nitish Kumar in 2015 and was delegated as his party, Janta Dal United’s Vice President and worked towards the success of Captain Amrinder Singh of Congress in Punjab in 2017 after having lost two previous assembly election (Dutta, 2018). Most recently, he mentored Arvind Kejriwal’s political action committee and win the Delhi assembly election, 2020. His success rate is almost 100% when it comes to creating suitable political campaigns for leaders to win elections. He has a well-built agency called I-PAC which consists of lawyers, media experts, financial managers and web specialists. By using the phenomenon of social media and using strategies aimed at the interest of the youth.

Word count: 319

References

Social media has evolved immensely over the past few years, it is now not only used for communication but a universal digital platform. This evolution has also changed the way we perceive and see news. All of the news channels are available on social media platforms and have applications which can be downloaded on smartphones. The digitalisation of news has also changed how journalists share and inform the public through social media platforms. News-gathering in India has come a long way. Social media has changed the way journalists produce news. Journalists also use social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter as a news source and to circulate their work. Sharing and posting links to news articles written themselves or their news channel is also a way to interact with the viewers. 

A & Q session between Arnab Goswami and PM Modi. Original source: https://twitter.com/hashtag/questionsarnabdidnotask

On the other hand, along with being a news provider,  journalists also receive ample amounts of hate that maybe illogical some depending on the topic of the news, bias to a certain political party or religion, sexism, etc. A journalist is also part of the public, a fellow citizen who has the same rights and freedom of expression as everyone which is also valid on social media platforms. However, a journalist should exhibit unbiased news and that fits the standard of public discourse on social media platforms (Panneerselvan, 2017). For instance, the very well know Indian news journalist Arnab Goswami, who also owns his own TV channel which was established in 2017, is known for reporting fake news and newspeak in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government. Arnab Goswami and his channel have many a time spread hoax news and hate propaganda and have eluded after fake allegations especially to the opposition parties. Recently he and his network made put some severe accusations on Congress party president, Sonia Gandhi which were false. As a result, several members of the Congress party filed FIRs from many states for the groundless allegation (Bhattacharya, 2020). This says a lot about how journalists should speak their thoughts and prepare their work. 

Original source: https://indianprinterpublisher.com/blog/2018/11/26/freedom-of-expression-in-indian-journalism-a-reality-or-myth/

Another interesting policy one of the biggest news houses follow is that every journalist that posts anything on their social media is to be treated as part of their professional work and the company has the ownership of it. The media house is Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. which is one of India’s largest media publication groups.  This policy also included not sharing personal political inclinations or preferences on any post made by an individual of political or governmental power (Kohli, 2017). News agencies around the world have their own policies restricting and informing their journalists about their conduct on social media platforms. Journalists posting about their political views could backfire at them if they publish articles about politics, readers may think they are biased or other such unfavourable tags.  

Word count: 474

References 

Bhattacharya, T., 2020. Arnab Goswami Crosses All Limits Of Civility. National Herald. Available at: https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/opinion/arnab-goswami-crosses-all-limits-of-civility

Kohli, K., 2017. As Social Media Heat Rises, Media Houses Worry About What Journalists Are Tweeting. The Wire. Available at: <https://thewire.in/media/social-media-policy-journalists-twitter-facebook-times-of-india

In recent years, stand up comedy has picked up massively and has gained recognition in India. While some Indian stand up comedians may talk about topics that are not necessarily controversial, some of the comics have used their voice to humour Indian politics. Political authorities do not usually take political comedy positively or light-heartedly. There are a number of individuals and comedy group that are using comedy to describe the political arena in India. Indian comics are adopting western comedy traditions and are trying to bring the essence of true freedom of speech into India without the audience taking offence. However, there is a long list of things that Indians and Indian politicians take offence for especially about topics like religion, politics, sex and the list goes on. Many believe that the bold political statements and disagreements that political satirists articulate are what most journalists should be doing (Grewal, 2020). Some also believe that stand up comedians are doing the oppositions job and are declared as ‘urban nasals’ by the media. 

Indian comedian, Kunal Kamra. Original source: https://www.connectedtoindia.com/i-cant-think-of-a-single-joke-that-wouldnt-offend-someone-comedian-kunal-kamra-5870.html

A notable reason for the increasing popularity of political stand up comedy is the youth in India. The reason being biased and questionable news and conventional media and how the younger generation seeks other, less mainstream sources of the news. But rather news that would be presented in a comical way by an individual without filters or bigotry (Dhawan, 2019). Stand up comedy in India has the majority of its presence on YouTube, while cumins are also seen performing at comedy clubs, bars, etc. Kunal Kamra is one of the most well-known stand-up comedian known for his abrasive political comedy. His comedy mainly revolves around Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, Republic TV anchor Arnab Goswami and people who spread Right-wing propaganda. Kamra is an outspoken comic who fully practises his right to freedom of speech. Even though the constitution guarantees every individual the right to free speech and expression, regardless of that it is often infringed upon by the state to protect their interest and maintain their goodwill amongst the masses. His peers have talked about politics in the past but he has led the way for talking about politics, expressing dissent and challenges the authority raw and without a filter. Due to which he got evicted by his land-lady and also received death threats, which he tweeted about with humour. Along with stand up comedy, he also had a hit show on YouTube where he has interviewed prominent politicians, activists and journalists about the current political state of affairs, critiquing the current Modi-led government and other socio-political topics (Kelkar, 2018).

Original source: https://in.mashable.com/culture/10891/watch-stand-up-comic-kunal-kamra-drag-arnab-goswami-for-his-nationalist-style-of-journalism

Comedy sting operation (Arnab Goswami and Kunal Kamra)

https://twitter.com/kunalkamra88/status/1222109025812320257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1222109025812320257%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheprint.in%2Fopinion%2Fnewsmaker-of-the-week%2Fwaah-kunal-kamra-waah-a-comedians-standup-act-kick-starts-a-liberal-heckling-wave-in-india%2F357211%2F

Word count: 442

References 

Dhawan, H., 2019. Pollitical Comedy Is Booming - Times Of India. The Times of India. Available at: <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-times/pollitical-comedy-is-booming/articleshow/68544518.cms

Grewal, K., 2020. Waah Kunal Kamra Waah: A Comedian's Standup Act Kick-Starts A Liberal Heckling Wave In India. ThePrint. Available at: https://theprint.in/opinion/newsmaker-of-the-week/waah-kunal-kamra-waah-a-comedians-standup-act-kick-starts-a-liberal-heckling-wave-in-india/357211/

Internet trolling in recent years has become very prevalent on social media platforms and the internet in general. There can be trolls made about celebrities, or public/ political figures or anyone on this planet. Trolling is done with the purpose of creating chaotic situations by composing or illustrating controversial statements. It can be defined as causing dissonance by having harm comments on sensitive topics, causing people distress, posting arguable content on the internet and social media networking platforms (Hanson, 2018). Internet trolling can cause trouble and distress for individuals, companies, etc. as news travels fast on the internet and the internet never forgets.  

Original source: http://www.socialsamosa.com/2020/01/delhi-politics-memefied-troll/

Trolling in the world of politics is also eminent, especially during the time of elections. It happens in ample amounts on prominent social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter. There are troll and meme pages on these social media channels which have a large number of followings. Furthermore, these trolls and meme get shared and become viral on the internet. Political trolling can be defined as using slander, criticism, falsehood, misinformation, fallacy and illogical notions to subvert or sabotage the opposition to feel superior on the internet and therefore the political sphere. These also go to the limits of caste and religion which cause heated debates but the main motive of the trolls are for laughs, money and superiority (Kohli, 2013). Recently, for the Delhi assembly election in January 2020, the three main parties standing for election, Aam Adami Party, Congress and Bhartiya Janta party were trolling one another on Twitter from their official accounts. The content of these trolls were parodies of popular Bollywood film and songs, advertisements, classic video games, etc. However, these memes/ trolls were light-hearted and merely just harm-less digs at each other.

Original source: https://thelogicalindian.com/news/abuse-sexism-indian-women-politicians-19438 

We individuals are the creators of trolling on the internet but also bare the brunt of it. Some people may take memes and trolling light-heartedly while some make take offence and feel targeted. In some cases, repeated trolling can also cause mental distress and a feeling of low self-esteem and confidence. For example, generally, the type of trolling on Facebook is on the basis of physical characteristics or on the basis of religion and ethnicity (Denner, 2019). Twitter is another platform which is known for trolling. During the general election of 2019 in India, an Amnesty International, India report (Amnesty India, 2020) statistically talked about online trolling and abuse on twitter against Indian women in politics. 1 out of 7 tweets sent to an Indian women politician was either abusive or problematic. Amidst women, those that were Muslim or from scheduled castes and other backward classes were targeted even more and received the majority of the racial or caste-based slurs. Moreover, women politicians in India receive even more ambiguous abuse online than women politicians in countries like USA and UK. The context of this abuse includes rape threats, promoting violence on the basis of religion and caste, nationality, death threats and other such antagonistic and cruel content ( Jebraja, 2020). Being a woman in Indian politics comes with a lot of baggage, especially around the time of elections as they are considered softer targets.

Word count: 522

References 

Kohli, K., 2013. Congress Vs BJP: The Curious Case Of Trolls And Politics | India News - Times Of India. The Times of India. Available at: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Congress-vs-BJP-The-curious-case-of-trolls-and-politics/articleshow/23970818.cms

Jebraja, P., 2020. Women Politicians Trolled More: Amnesty India. The Hindu. Available at: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/women-politicians-trolled-more-amnesty-india/article30631355.ece

Hanson, J., 2020. Trolls And Their Impact On Social Media | James Hanson.  Unlcms.unl.edu. Available at: https://unlcms.unl.edu/engineering/james-hanson/trolls-and-their-impact-social-media

Amnesty International India. 2020. Trolling Verified: Troll Patrol India’S Findings On Online Abuse - Amnesty International India. Available at: https://amnesty.org.in/trolling-verified-troll-patrol-indias-findings-on-online-abuse-twitter/