1. MEDIA LITERACY: CRITICAL AND INFORMED
CITIZENRY
MEDIA, DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIAL CHANGE
BY
DR. SWATI JAYWANT RAO BUTE
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
National Institute of Health and Family Welfare
Baba Gang Nath Marg, New Delhi – 110067

2. BEFORE YOU LEAVE HOME IN THE MORNING, EVEN BEFORE YOU
FINISH YOUR SECOND CUP OF COFFEE, YOU ARE GOING TO BECOME
AN EAR AND EYE WITNESS TO EVERY MAJOR WORLD EVENT – AS IT
HAPPENED WHILE YOU SLEPT, AS IT HAPPENS NOW…. THIS IS THE
MORNING BRIEFING SESSION THAT WILL ARM YOU WITH INFORMATION
TO MEET THE DAY MORE FULLY THAN ANY CITIZEN HAS EVER BEEN
ARMED BEFORE…… (ANNOUNCEMENTS MADE AT THE LAUNCH OF
NBC MORNING NEWS PROGRAM “TODAY”)

3. IN INDIA, THE ORIGIN OF MEDIA WAS FOR EDUCATION, THE
CORE OBJECTIVE WAS TO EDUCATE PEOPLE BY USING
DIFFERENT TYPES OF MEDIA (PRINT, RADIO AND ELECTRONIC)
FOR THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRY AND
TO BRING UNDERPRIVILEGED PEOPLE IN THE MAINSTREAM OF
DEVELOPMENT.

4. IN NINETIES ECONOMIC LIBERALIZATION OF INDIAN MEDIA MARKET
HAS GIVEN OPPORTUNITY TO THE GLOBAL PARTNERS TO ESTABLISH
MEDIA HOUSES AND TELECAST PROGRAMS AND HAS ALSO GIVEN
BIRTH TO THE ERA OF COMMERCIAL BROADCASTING. NEW
CHANNELS, NEW PROGRAMS AND PROGRAMMING PATTERNS BY
TARGETING DIFFERENT AUDIENCES WITH DIFFERENT CONTENT
REQUIREMENTS WERE STARTED, WHICH HELPED IN MAKING PEOPLE
AS BETTER INFORMED AND VIGILANT CITIZENS.

5. DEVELOPMENT AND SOCIAL CHANGE THROUGH MEDIA LITERACY
THE CONCEPT OF DEVELOPMENT IS OFTEN EQUATED WITH MODERNIZATION,
INDUSTRIALIZATION, SOCIAL CHANGE, PROGRESS AND GROWTH.
DEVELOPMENT AS SOCIO ECONOMIC PHENOMENON IS SEEN AS
NECESSARY, EVEN INEVITABLE, AS GOOD AS SALUTARY. (KEVAL J. KUMAR,
MASS COMMUNICATION IN INDIA, SECTION – V, MASS MEDIA, CULTURE
AND DEVELOPMENT, 2004)

6. TODAY INDIA HAS OVER 600 TV CHANNELS; 100 MILLION PAY
- TV HOUSEHOLDS; 70,000 NEWSPAPERS; AND PRODUCES
OVER 1,000 FILMS A YEAR. GROWING DIGITIZATION AND
HIGHER MEDIA CONSUMPTION SPECIFICALLY IN YOUNGER
POPULATION IS GIVING CHANCE TO PRODUCE NEW PROGRAMS
TARGETING THE CONSUMERS AND INVEST MORE IN THE
MARKET, THIS GROWTH GIVING TREMENDOUS OPPORTUNITY
TO BOTH INDIAN AS WELL AS FOREIGN INVESTORS.

7. WITH THE INCEPTION OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND CITIZEN JOURNALISM
NOW READERS AND AUDIENCES ARE TAKING PART IN REPORTING
LOCAL NEWS, IN DEBATES ON BURNING ISSUES AND EXPRESSING
THEIR VIEWS ON DIFFERENT SOCIAL NETWORKING PLATFORMS AND
THIS WHOLE PROCESS IS HELPING AND EMPOWERING THEM AND
SOMEWHERE ALSO GIVING US SIGNS OF MAJOR SOCIAL CHANGES.
SOCIAL MEDIA ALSO PLAYED VERY IMPORTANT ROLE IN RECENT
POLITICAL PROTEST HAPPENED IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES AND IN
INDIA.

8. WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE?
AS EARLY AS 1958, DANIEL LERNER HAD ARGUED IN HIS SEMINAL
BOOK - THE PASSING OF TRADITIONAL SOCIETIES “NO MODERN
SOCIETY FUNCTIONS EFFICIENTLY WITHOUT A DEVELOPED SYSTEM
OF MASS MEDIA” (P. 55).

9. MEDIA IN INDIA WORKS AS FOURTH PILLAR OF THE DEMOCRACY,
INDIAN MEDIA IS ENJOYING FULL FREEDOM IN REPORTING NEWS AND
PROGRAMS; THERE IS NO PRESSURE OR CENSORSHIP ON THE MEDIA
IN DELIVERING THE INFORMATION WHICH MATTERS FOR DEMOCRACY.
BUT MEDIA IN INDIA IS STILL IN THE INCEPTION PHASE AND
SOMEWHERE LACKING THE MATURITY WHICH IS REQUIRED IN
DEALING WITH THE SENSITIVE ISSUES. MEDIA SHOULD NOT WORK AS
A MEDIATOR BUT SHOULD WORK AS AN ATTENTIVE WATCH DOG OF
THE SOCIETY WHILE DEALING WITH DIFFERENT ISSUES.

10. TO DEVELOP SUCH KIND OF CULTURE OR AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE
MEDIA KNOWS IT’S DUTIES TOWARDS THE NATION AND THE PEOPLE
IS NOT ONLY THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MEDIA HOUSES BUT ALSO
THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MEDIA INSTITUTES WHICH PRODUCE
MEDIA PROFESSIONALS. FOCUS SHOULD BE GIVEN ON MAINTAINING
SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL ETHICS IN THE PROFESSIONAL
ENVIRONMENT.

11. IT IS ALSO NECESSARY FOR THE MEDIA INSTITUTE TO UPDATE THE
CURRICULUM OF MEDIA COURSES. IN THIS CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
WHERE HUGE MARKET IS OPEN FOR BOTH PRODUCERS AND CONSUMERS,
EVERYBODY IS FREE TO SELECT WHAT THEY WANT TO SEE; TODAY
AUDIENCES AND READERS ARE MORE AWARE AND INTELLIGENT.

12. TO FULFIL MARKET DEMAND PRODUCERS ARE ALSO EXPERIMENTING WITH
ALL THE AVAILABLE RESOURCES AND TALENTS. IN SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES IT
IS THE MAJOR RESPONSIBILITY OF MEDIA INSTITUTES TO PROVIDE SPECIFIC
TRAININGS - TRAINING FOR GETTING FAMILIAR WITH THE NEW TECHNOLOGY
WHICH IS IN USE, TRAINING FOR UNDERSTANDING AND KNOWING WHAT
AUDIENCES WANTS AND HOW THEY SELECT THE CONTENT AND THE
PROGRAM, TRAINING FOR INCREASING STUDENTS UNDERSTANDING IN NEW
AREAS AND ISSUES WHICH ARE EMERGING SUCH AS
HEALTH, ENVIRONMENT, BILATERAL ISSUES, INTERNATIONAL POLITICS AND
DIFFERENT CULTURES.

13. AUTHENTICITY AND FACT FULLNESS IS THE FIRST PARAMETER OF
ANALYSING ANY NEWS ITEM AND IF REPORTERS ARE LACKING IN THIS SKILL
DEFINITELY IT INDICATES AN ALARMING CALL FOR THE PROFESSION. BY
PRODUCING SUCH KIND OF CONTENT AND STORIES THEY ARE NOT ONLY
PASSING WRONG INFORMATION BUT ALSO SOMEWHERE MISLEADING THE
AUDIENCES AND ALSO DEGRADING THE DIGNITY OF THE MEDIA PROFESSION.

14. THAT IS WHY IN THE ACADEMIC PROGRAMS MORE FOCUS SHOULD BE
GIVEN ON INCULCATING THE HABIT OF RESEARCH BEFORE
REPORTING ANY TOPIC OR ISSUE WHICH IS DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY
RELATED WITH THE PUBLIC INTEREST.

15. IT IS ALSO A RESPONSIBILITY OF THE UNIVERSITIES AND MEDIA INSTITUTES
TO FOCUS MORE ON ACADEMIC RESEARCH PROGRAMS ON DIFFERENT
AREAS AND ISSUES BASED ON THE FREEDOM OF PRESS AND TO
STRENGTHEN MEDIA AS AN FOURTH PILLAR OF DEMOCRACY IN TRUE
SENSE.

16. BY DOING THIS INDIAN MEDIA INDUSTRY WILL NOT ONLY COME OUT
AS AN MORE POWERFUL INDUSTRY WORKING FOR ESTABLISHING AND
STRENGTHENING DEMOCRATIC VALUES BUT ALSO MAKING PEOPLE
AS AN MORE INFORMED AND CRITICAL CITIZENRY.

17. THANKS