#mediapopulism

Overview of Media Landscape

India has a flourishing media scene, including many platforms that operate in multiple languages. Mass media in India consists of many different platforms such as television, radio, newspaper, magazines, and the internet. Spanning the entire country, there are a total of 197 million households with a television. India’s most popular media company is the Times of India (TOI). The Times of India, a privately owned daily newspaper, is known by many as the most trusted news outlet amongst the Indian people. According to the 2019 Edelman Trust Reporter, the general population looked at globally, has a collective feeling of distrust towards the government and the media outlets. However, in both 2018 and 2019, India has shown trust towards its government and media outlets. The public feels informed and up to date on current events and seems to have a proper understanding of the news. As for social media, according to Statista, the leading social media site across India in May 2021 was Facebook, with a 77.58% market share by page traffic. Surprisingly enough, the next most popular site is Instagram with a 9.18% market share by page traffic.

Status of Press Freedom and Challenges to Journalism 

Within India’s news system, there have been recent setbacks regarding their rankings in the Press Freedom Index. In 2020, India was ranked 142nd out of 180 countries according to the French NGO Reporters Without Borders organization. This ranking was said to be because of India’s Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) having greater control of the media. Freedom House, which is a United States-based NGO, deemed India as “partly free” from government-controlled media, but their report stated an increase in the harassment of journalists under Narendra Modi’s administration. Reporters Without Borders looked into Modi’s tightened grip on the media and found that in 2020, four journalists were killed in connection to their work, making India “one of the world’s most dangerous countries for journalists trying to do their job properly”. Their lives are put in danger as they are exposed to police violence, ambushes by political activists, criminal groups, or corrupt local officers. Modi has worked to purge all news surrounding “anti-national” thoughts from the public stage.

Media and Populism

Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, is the newfound populist leader as of 2019. Similar to many leaders worldwide, the growing popularity of social media as a news outlet is recognized as an effective source to tap into. Modi is seen on Instagram, with 65.5 million followers, Twitter, with 75.7 million followers, and Facebook, with 46 million followers. As each platform provides a different way of communication, Modi has tapped into each and effectively communicates with his followers and Indian people. On Instagram, he updates with regular photos and videos with corresponding captions. Twitter provides quick 150 word updates, being able to post several “tweets” per day. Facebook, being the primary social media site, according to Statista, gives Modi the ability to live stream events and post updates on his page. Overall, Modi is able to project his nationalist viewpoints through social media as he presents himself as “both a global leader and commoner who can identify with Indians of all castes and classes” (Rao, 166).