India Election 2014: First Reflection

Authors: Thorsen, E. and Sreedharan, C.

Editors: Sreedharan, C.

Publisher: Centre for the Study of Journalism, Culture & Community

Place of Publication: Poole

Abstract:

The 2014 Indian General Election was the world’s largest exercise in representative democracy. With 834 million registered voters, some 1,700 national and regional parties, and 8,251 candidates, the voting spanned nine phases over more than a month to cover all 543 constituencies in the country. The election produced unprecedented news coverage in the Indian media, a flourishing landscape of some 410 news and current affairs TV channels, 250 private FM radio stations, and more than 12,500 newspapers and 81,500 periodicals. The growth of online news and social media in India added a new dimension to the mediaenvironment.This book is an intervention into the debates surrounding the 2014 election, with particular emphasis on marginalised voices and the plethora of poll discussions that played out on social media. With contributions from scholars and journalists from India, UK, US, and Australia, it brings together media practitioners and academics to scrutinise the mediation of the“world’s largest election”by both legacy and social media.

Source: Manual

Preferred by: Chindu Sreedharan