Alternative media

UNIT 12 ALTERNATIVE MEDIA

Structure
12.0 Introduction
12.1 Learning Outcomes
12.2 What is Alternative media?
12.3 Mainstream Media
12.4 Alternative Media in India
12.4.1 Folk Media
12.4.2 Small-Scale Newspapers
12.4.3 Community Video

12.4.4 Community Radio

12.4.5 Citizen Journalism
12.5 New Media and Alternative Media
12.5.1 Independent New Websites
12.5.2 Social Media as Alternative Media
12.6 Future of Alternative Media
12.7 Let Us Sum Up
12.8 Further Readings
12.9 Check Your Progress: Possible Answers

12.0 INTRODUCTION
This is the last unit of the course in which we shall discuss the concept of
alternative media and explain how it is different from the mainstream
media. We shall examine different forms of alternative media such as folk
media, small scale newspapers, community radio, community video and
citizen journalism and their relevance in the present context. We shall also
look at new media and social media as alternative platforms and examine the
issues related to credibility of the content on social media. The section on
future of alternative media throws light on the usage of technological
advancements which can change the alternative media discourse and lead to
appropriate action by concerned authorities.

12.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

After reading this unit you should be able to:

 define alternative media;

 compare the business model of mainstream media with alternative
media;
 discuss different forms of alternative media; 201
Media and  describe the relationship between new media and alternative media;
Contemporary
issue and
 discuss the future of alternative media in India.

12.2 WHAT IS ALTERNATIVE MEDIA?

Let us first try to understand the meaning of the word „alternative‟. According
to the Oxford English Dictionary alternative (in this context) means available
as another possibility or different from what is usual or traditional. When do
we look for alternatives in our lives? We generally look for alternatives in our
lives when we are dissatisfied with the current option available to us. For
example, if you are disappointed with the performance of your mobile phone; you
start looking for alternative mobile phone or any other alternative arrangement
which can enhance the performance of your mobile phone.

Similarly, alternative media is „another possibility to the mainstream media‟.

Alternative media can be any medium - newspaper, magazine, newsletter,
radio, TV, films, new media, wall paintings, graffiti, street art which provides
an alternative to the mainstream media. In other words we can say when the
mainstream media creates discontent and dissatisfaction; the audience look
for alternative sources of information (media) which provides them
relevant information and different interpretation. They either become the
producer or the consumer of the alternative media.

In their book “Manufacturing Consent” Herman and Chomsky (1998) have

mentioned the evolution of radical press in first half of the nineteenth century
in Great Britain. “This alternative press was effective in reinforcing class
consciousness; it unified the workers because it fostered an alternative value
system and framework for looking at the world” which encouraged them to
collective action. At one time this radical press became a threat to
mainstream media as well as to the legislature. Alternative media differs in
content, production and distribution from the mainstream media. It should be
noted here that alternative media should not be seen as opposite to the
mainstream but considered as a platform where opinions of all shades and
pluralistic views are accommodated. The alternative media aims to voice
different opinions rather than enunciating only popular or adverse opinion of
the mainstream media.

While discussing the concept of „gatekeepers‟ in previous units you would

have read that gatekeepers in mainstream media have their limitations as well as
vested interests for highlighting, down playing or even ignoring particular
issue. In contrast, the alternative media provides freedom to voice different
opinions to surface which are rejected or downplayed by mainstream media.

German philosopher and sociologist Jurgen Habermas, outlined the concept

of „public sphere‟ which is conceived as a social space in which different
opinions are expressed, general problems discussed, and collective solutions
developed, that may even influence political action. A vibrant public sphere
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is the central arena for societal communication, however, what are the Alternative media

discourses and who participates and voices their opinions in the public
sphere is a key issue. Habermas‟s public sphere has been replaced by virtual
world wherein a great deal of discussion and debates have influenced
political action. Recently, India Against Corruption, Nirbhaya movement are
a few classic examples of public discussion and debate which lead to political
action. Even individual tweets to ministers lead to political action and follow
up.

Certain radical groups of Maoists and Naxals publish their newspaper and
enunciate discontent in the society; Awami Jung, known as Jung, is one such
internal journal of the Maoist party in India. Some student groups/unions at
University or college level also exploit different forms of alternative media to
express their views and dissent in the system. The Student federation of India
publishes „Student Struggle‟ monthly in English and „Chatra Sangrash‟ in
Hindi and many other in regional languages to spread their voice and unite the
students for social transformation. Internationally, Julian Assange‟s Wiki Leaks is
a popular example of exposing the misdoings of various Governments and
Corporate sector. Democracy Now! is independent award-winning news
programme hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzales in the
United States of America. It is a national programme which is distributed
through various online and offline media platforms (refer to
http://www.democracynow.org for more information).

Seema Mustafa, senior journalist and political commentator views that

alternative media is smaller in comparison to mainstream media but “it can
connect with the rural, is committed to the poor and the oppressed and reports
the truth”. She believes that in the past quarter century media has undergone
tremendous changes and “the takeover of the corporates has resulted in a total
disconnect of the real India from the mainstream media”, hence the need for
alternative media.

Berrigan‟s (1979) identifies two critical concepts of alternative media: access

and participation. Access refers to the availability of communication tools
and resources for local community members to express themselves
collectively or individually, irrespective of geography, class, ethnicity, or
gender. Participation on the other hand focus upon two aspects , the
involvement of the community in media processes of design, production, and
implementation as well as the level of peoples engagement, ranging from
tokenism to full ownership of processes on the other (Fairbairn 2009; Berrigan
1979). Several scholars also point towards the locally and culturally relevant
content of Community media as its defining aspect.

Audiences‟ identification with the producers of local content of community

media builds trust and credibility of content.

Carpentier, Lie and Servaes identify the following characteristics of

alternative media with reference to mainstream media:
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Media and  Small scale and oriented towards specific communities, possibly
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issue disadvantaged groups, respecting their diversity;
 Independent of state and market;
 Horizontally structured, allowing for the facilitation of audience
access and participation within the frame of democratisation and
multiplicity;
 Carriers of non-dominant discourses and representations, stressing the
importance of self representation.

They further advocate a rhizomatic view of community/ alternative media as

it tends to cut across borders and build linkages and connections among civil
society, other community media, the state and the market, to serve the interest
of the community they serve without losing their identity and diminishing the
rigidities and certainties of public and commercial media organisations and
highlighting the fluidity and contingency of community media organisations.

Listed below are some alternative media platforms. You may browse their
websites to get acquainted with their functions and activities:

 Woman‟s Community Radio

 World Pulse Magazine
 GAMCOTRAP
 NYC Grassroots Media Coalition
 Black Music Radio or Pirate Radio
 Indy Media
 OneWorld.net
 Jay‟s Leftist & “Progressive
 Community Broadcasting Online
 Australian Community Radio and Television
 Alternative Radio
 The Common Dreams News Center
 ZNet and the Alternative Press Review
 Global Voices Online
 Good News Agency

In the light of above discussion, we may define alternative media as “a small-

scale, independent, grassroot media which encourage alternative discourse to
highlight the marginalised section of society.” It is people‟s media which is
run largely by community for the benefit of their own community. Thus,
alternative media is by the people, for the people, and of the people.

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 Alternative media
12.3 MAINSTREAM MEDIA
Herman and Chomsky (1997) have compared mainstream media to elite
media, “sometimes called the agenda-setting media because they are the ones
with the big resources, they set the framework in which everyone else
operates”. They emphasised the five filters of propaganda model which have
trapped the media professionals so much that no one is able to see the
biasness in the reports. These filters are:

 The ownership pattern: who owns media, its size, type of ownership,
wealth involved, and profit making;
 Dependency of mainstream media on the advertising revenue;
 Relying on information provided by government, business and expert
by mainstream media (at times funded and approved by them);
 Flak and enforcers; and
 Anti-communism as control mechanism.

The ownership pattern of mainstream media plays crucial role in defining its
content which serve the interest of dominant ideology of the system. The
mainstream media is big media and demand huge resources which corporate
houses are best placed to cater. Generally, corporate houses run mainstream
media but there are some exceptions in our country where mainstream media is
controlled by families and politician and political parties too. The mainstream
media runs on a business model and the latest trends reflect a growing tendency
to maximise the profit. With the intervention of corporate culture news has
been turned into a commodity, which like any other product in market needs
to be marketed, packaged and presented in scintillating way to the audience. This
commodification of news is largely centred around the personal views of the
prime time television news anchors. This trend has further eroded mainstream
media‟s role to express alternative views and dissent voices.

Senior journalist, P. Sainath argues that “it depends on what the media
presume as their social role. Today for instance, the media see their role as a
representation of the corporate world as it believes in its ideology. In a
different time, in a different period, Indian journalism was a child of the
freedom struggle”. He also points out that “increasingly the media now
function as stenographers to the powerful”. According to him the Indian
media is politically free but they are hemmed in the profit making and still
ruled by the elite ideologies.

Scholars working in the area lay stress not only on the alternative media
content but also on the alternative corporate structure or an alternative
business model which supports the objective of alternative media and does not
dilute the content and information. They argue that the business model should
not be profit-centric but focused on social change and development.

Thus it can be argued that mainstream media stands for status quo while
alternative media roots for change. When the mainstream media fails to 205
Media and perform its responsibilities, a vacuum is created in the society wherein
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issue people long for authentic information without prejudices of the media house.
The alternative media aims to address the information needs of audience and
provide them information reflecting alternative opinion and perspectives.

Check Your Progress: 1

Note: 1) Use the space below for your answers.

2) Compare your answers with those given at the end of this unit.

1) Define alternative media.

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2) Why mainstream media is also known as elite media?

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3) List five areas on which alternative and mainstream media largely differ.

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12.4 ALTERNATIVE MEDIA IN INDIA

In India, the concept of alternative media is still evolving and is seen more as
an anti-establishment and radical media. Sainath, however, argues that the
existence of alternative media in India can be traced back to our pre-
independence days when Indian media acted as the alternative media to the
ruling British media. At that time, many underground press and radio stations
were functional; many small regional language newspapers were regularly
published in support of the nationalist movement to topple down the British raj.
The states with high literacy rates such as Kerala were able to establish regional
newspapers and presses which contributed to the national awakening.
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In this section, we shall look at some alternative media forms in India such as Alternative media

folk media, street theatre, small newspapers, community video and radio
among others.

12.4.1 Folk Media

Folk media is considered to be the most important alternative media in the
rural India. It is the oldest form of entertainment and information in our
country. Folk media took its shape and form as per the culture of a region. For
instance, Nautanki from UP, Bhavai of Gujarat, Tamasha of Maharashtra, Jatra
from West Bengal, Rajasthan‟s famous Puppetry show, Ramleela and
Rasleela are performed in various states. In modern India in various cities and
colleges Nukkad Natak or Street Play became prominent folk medium to
reach out to people with social messages.

Street plays have evolved a lot since past three decades and have become
voice of various radical groups. In 1940‟s, one of its kind alternative medium
was started in the form of Indian People‟s Theatre Association (IPTA) by
the Communist party of India, which still exists. The primary objective of
IPTA was to bring social reforms and to act against British repression. They
disseminated their messages through the medium of theatre and made people
aware about their rights and responsibilities. IPTA highlighted the issues that
were ignored by the national media in the wake of the freedom struggle. Many
popular names, including KA Abbas, Dr. Homi Bhabha, Ismat Chugtai, Sahir
Ludhianvi and many more were members of IPTA and they worked hand-in-
hand with common people to bring about change. The Government of India
after independence realised the prominence of folk/traditional media and
established Song and Drama Division. This unit works at grassroot level and
promotes Government programmes and policies through live and direct folk
performances.

Feminist author Urvashi Butalia (1993) in her case study, “Women and
Alternative Media (India) discussed various alternative platforms available to
women in India. She highlighted how Kerala Shastra Sahitya Parishad
(KSSP) had used Yatra as an outreach tool for engaging the audience by using
various tools such as public speaking, puppetry, songs, plays, posters etc.
“Save Narmada Yatra” was a campaign on similar lines against building of
Narmada and Saradar Sarovar Dam in Central India. Another medium was
street theater, a play – “Om Swahs” by Delhi based women group „Stree Shakti‟
against dowry highlighting the plight of women who could not bring enough
dowry.

Activity-1

Identify a folk media of your region and explain how it acts as an

alternative medium.

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Media and
Contemporary
12.4.2 Small-Scale Newspapers
issue
Initially, alternative media in India was largely limited to the small
newspapers and magazines circulated by some radical groups. Khabar
Lahariya is one such newspaper started by a Delhi based NGO -”Nirantar” in
2002. It is an eight page weekly publication from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar
written in multiple local dialects and it covers the functioning of panchayats,
government, schools, hospitals, social issues, civil issues in the region. Women
from the marginalised sections of society with little or no formal education are
provided training to report, edit, design, illustrate, and take photographs for the
newspaper. They even distribute newspaper via small shops, teas stalls and
block headquarters. According to khabarlahariya.org “it has 40 members,
Khabar Lahariya team sells 6000 copies across 600 villages of Uttar Pradesh
and Bihar to a readership of 80,000 per week. Khabar Lahariya began as the
only Bundeli newspaper in India and now has editions in Bhojpuri, Awadhi,
Hindustani and Bajjika”.

12.4.3 Community Video

On similar lines, in 2007 Appan Samachar, an all-women community news
channel was started by Mr. Santosh Sarang in Ramlila Gachi, Muzafarpur,
Bihar. The village girls were trained to undertake various activities related to
news production on their own. The 25-minute news capsule was exhibited in
haats using projector. Urvashi Butalia (1993) highlighted the contribution of
Cendit – a Delhi Based group and Self-employed Women‟s Association
(SEWA), a woman‟s group based in Ahmedabad. Cendit on one hand was
making videos for women keeping their way of story-telling (Swang) and
modeling them in the video so that the video was not alien to them. On the
other hand, SEWA, a large trade union of women workers in the informal
sector in Gujarat were given training in video production which empowered
them to shoot their own routine issues and exhibit them.

Social campaign videos are still shown in cinema halls and on television but
digital media has given it a new impetus.

12.4.4 Community Radio

All India Radio has a wide network of radio stations connecting the urban
and rural parts of the country. Being a public service broadcaster it
incorporates regional and people-centric programming. While private radio
stations are entirely devoted to entertainment. Community Radio Stations
(CRS) fill this gap created by public and private radio stations and emerge as
an effective alternative broadcast medium and as the name suggests, the CRS
serve a certain community.

CRS operate in an area of 5-10 km radius and aim to function for the
betterment of the society by democratising information. The CRS are largely
owned and operated by Universities, NGOs, independent media practitioners
and media groups (which are not part of any big corporate). They broadcast
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content which is useful for the people residing in that community and Alternative media

highlight social issues ignored by the mainstream radio stations. Community

radio programming is aimed at social development keeping the information
needs of the community of that area in mind.

The Community Radio Guidelines 2006 stress that “the programmes of

community radio should be of immediate relevance to the community and
focus should be on issues relating to education, health, environment, and
agriculture and rural and community development. And fifty per cent of the
content should be generated by the participation of local people in the
community in local language and dialect”. For instance, discussions and
debates in studio, phone-in programmes, traditional music promotion etc.
The essence of such people generated content is that they know the pulse of
the audience and can contribute in making a content rich programme. Though
the content produced in all the media platforms discussed above may be
amateurish but expresses the spirit of the alternative media. Thus, community
radio can be termed as peoples‟ medium which is for the people by the people
and of the people.

In 1998, The Deccan Development Society (DDS), an NGO working with

poor, rural, dalit women in the Zaheerabad area of Medak district in Andhra
Pradesh, had set up a CRS with assistance from UNESCO. Gurgaon ki Awaaz
Samudayik Radio Station is another CRS in Gurgaon (Delhi NCR) which
caters to the marginalised sections, migrant labourers from different states
and villagers in the corporate hub of Gurgaon. The content is produced by
villagers in popular languages and dialects such as Hindi, Haryanvi and
Bhojpuri. Music programmes of wide range are aired from musical to
discussion and debates in chaupal style keeping in mind the needs and
understanding of the marginalised sections in the area.

12.4.5 Citizen Journalism

The Indian broadcasting sector is now majorly dominated by the private
players and corporate houses. The Government control has become less with the
increase in 24X7 television news channels in past few decades but these
private broadcasters also repress the alternative voices instead of articulating
them. Dasu Krishnamoorty, former journalist and academician (2003) in a
post - “Defining alternative media in Indian context” stressed on the
weakness of mainstream media of not fulfilling the role of mass
communication and informing the society. He said that government and
mainstream media both do not pay much heed to the public opinion and
alternative media should provide training to its manpower against mainstream
media rather than the government.

The citizen journalism related videos broadcast on the private national news
channel can also be considered as alternative media. The CNN-IBN broadcasts
a special programme called Citizen Journalist wherein the video shot by
common citizens of the country on any social issue or human rights violation
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Media and etc. can be sent to the TV station which can telecast it, if found relevant. The
Contemporary
issue issues picked up by citizens are generally related to their neighbourhood but also
have relevance for other sections of society. These days many newspapers also
publish a column contributed by citizen journalists and all these initiatives
can be considered as the alternative media.

Activity- 2

Listen to community radio broadcast in your area for a week and analyse
its content. In your opinion, is the community radio an alternative
medium of information keeping in view the points discussed above?

Check Your Progress: 2

Note: 1) Use the space below for your answers.

2) Compare your answers with those given at the end of this unit.

1) Define citizen journalism.

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2) How community radio station is different from the mainstream radio station?

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12.5 NEW MEDIA AND ALTERNATIVE MEDIA

With the advent of New Media, the difference between the mass media,
personal media and alternative media has blurred. New media can be
considered as mass media as well as personal media; however, the proponents
of alternative media consider new media as an important alternative media
which allows people to voice their opinions. With the arrival of social media;
also known as Web 2.0, it includes those websites which enable users to create
and share content, the differing voices have got a new platform bringing about
a sea change in the very concept of alternative media. Now one does not need
to be part of any radical group or any student union, as a commoner too you
can voice your differences with the system through blogs, social networking
sites, micro blogging sites etc.
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Alternative media very much involves the various mass media forms; it Alternative media

reaches the masses and generate asymmetrical interaction. Whereas the

content of the alternative media is „de-professional‟; it is not presented
professionally as it is in mass media. As you are aware, the mainstream media
is run by highly skilled professionals whereas alternative media lacks skilled
professionals. Therefore, the content is de-professional and the presentation of
the content may not be up to the standard. This is considered to be one of the
biggest weaknesses of the alternative media but this pushes it out of the
clutches of dominant ideology and powerful interest groups. The alternative
media aims to provide alternative views and serve the society by informing and
educating the masses not by serving the needs and desires of the corporate
sectors and pressure groups. It is in contrast with mass culture propagated by
mass media and in addition to de-professional content, alternative media
also has lower budgets and operational costs in comparison to mass
media.

12.5.1 Independent New Websites

New Media as alternative media has recorded significant growth in the past
decade. The reason behind this is low fixed cost involved in venturing in this
media. It has lowered the entry barrier for the young entrepreneurs to start
their own media shops. Moreover, it is the convergent point of all the media
as it amalgamates print (text, pictures), radio (audio) and TV (video) into one
which makes it more interactive. The instant nature of new media has diluted
delayed feedback nature of the other mass media. Many freelance journalists
have started their own websites which act as an alternative to the mainstream
media. Some such websites are goodnewsindia.com, infochangeindia.com
and Lokmanch a Hindi language website that voice dissent against the ruling
class. Even Khabar Lahriya had launched its website http://khabarlahariya.org
where they also upload videos, audios and pictures related to their news reports.
Merinews.com, launched in 2006 is the India‟s largest citizen based news
portal which allows citizens to express their, views on any topic. Its editorial
team further scrutinises the reports submitted by the citizens and has started
publishing its city specific tabloid.

Activity- 3

Compare the number of articles per day in an alternative media website

and a main stream media website on the following parameters:

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Media and
Contemporary Parameters Alternative Media Website Mainstream Media
issue
Website

Education

Health

Human rights

Gender

12.5.2 Social Media as Alternative Media

Social media has provided platform to individual citizens to participate in
contemporary debates and discussions. People now also rely on Twitter for
breaking news than the news channels. To them, Twitter is the place where
one gets different opinion that may not find a place in dominant mainstream
media. Half a decade ago many important, controversial stories would have
been buried by the mainstream media but now with the power of social media it
is not easy to suppress information.

Social media gives platform to the citizen to become a producer through their
blogs, tweets, status updates, articles etc. Earlier it was difficult to think of
owning one‟s own newspaper or television channel because of heavy fixed costs
involved. But now the new media and especially social media have made it
easier for the young journalists to become entrepreneurs.
You may ask the questions - how many people have access to social media? Is
it still not an urban and elite-centric media? How many times has any rural
centric issue become the most debatable issue on social media? Has it
become a promotional tool lately? All these questions are relevant and at
times social media does end up being a promotional tool rather than being a
platform for discussion and debates. The credibility and authenticity of the
content on the social media websites is also under question. At times,
information uploaded in haste leads to serious consequences. There is a need‟
to cross check the facts before completely believing them. Even if an
individual uploads something on social media it is very important for the
producer to be socially responsible and sensitive.
Egyptian Revolution is said to be one of the mass movement triggered by
social media. In 2011, in Egypt, the socio-political-economic condition was
extremely depressing that general masses with the help of social media shook the
government in power. The mainstream media of Egypt was under the state
control. People chose to voice their dissent through social media; Twitter and
Facebook were used rigorously to organise mass agitations and
demonstrations against the government at Tahrir Square which resulted in the
resignation by Hosini Mubarak from presidency and the powers were
transferred to the Armed forces of Egypt. Later, the Supreme Court convicted
him to life imprisonment for the failure to stop killings during the first six
212 days of Egyptian revolution-2011.
 Alternative media

Closer home, Anna Movement of 2011 or India Against Corruption

(IAC), is credited to be one mass movement which was initially engineered by
the social media of India later joined by the mainstream media and set the agenda
for coming months. In December, 2012 the infamous Delhi gang rape in a bus
led to media uproar and social media again became a tool to unite people for
Nirbhaya Movement. This had pressurised the legislature to amend the rape
law of the country. Yet another example of social media phenomena was the
support to Jallikattu in January, 2017 in Tamil Nadu wherein numerous
Tamilian supporters gathered at famous Marina Beach in Chennai to lend their
support to save their tradition and culture. Jallikattu is a bull taming sport held
during Pongal, it was banned by the Supreme Court. Large share of this
movement goes to social media and mobile messaging applications.

Check Your Progress: 3

Note: 1) Use the space below for your answers.

2) Compare your answers with those given at the end of this unit.

1) List some issues involved in the use of social media.

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2) What is difference between independent news websites and social media?

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Activity-4

Make a Facebook Page as your „neighbourhood alternative media‟. Give a

suitable name to the page along with a logo as profile picture and
complementing cover picture. Write about the neglected but important issues
regarding your surrounding which are generally ignored by the mainstream
media. Post articles regularly with apt pictures and videos. You may ask
your neighbours and Facebook friends to read and participate.
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Media and
Contemporary 12.6 FUTURE OF ALTERNATIVE MEDIA
issue

The future of alternative media depends upon on each one of us - users,

journalists as well as media channels. It needs to be analysed whether
journalism is aimed to serve the society and people through journalistic
writings or the interests of corporate houses. P. Sainath says that he will
participate in the mainstream media and raise pertinent issues as he does not
want to make it easier for the corporate and will also continue his support for
alternative media. It is important for the journalists to understand the roles
and objectives of media and focus on the developmental and human rights
issues.

Apart from the duty of journalists the future of alternative media also lies in
future communicating mediums. In last one decade the new media has totally
changed the way we communicate. Now not only journalists but the common
person has also got an imperative tool to voice their dissent. As discussed in
the previous section, New media has given very affordable medium like
websites, blogs, micro blogs, social networking sites which can function even
without the support of advertising. The future of alternative media lies in the
way new media is used by the netizens and how the course of technology
changes from here. With pocket internet and ipads people are now using web
like never before though it is still accessed by the urban class and there is a
strong need to reach out to the rural population.

One such example is of CGNetSwara founded in 2008 which uses

technology wisely and has emerged as an important alternative medium of
communication. CGNet stands for Central Gondwana Net, and swara means
“voice” in Sanskrit. According to its website- “it is a voice-based portal, freely
accessible via mobile phone that allows anyone to report and listen to stories of
local interest. Reported stories are moderated by journalists and become
available for playback online as well as over the phone”. CGNetSwara
discusses the issues related to the tribal community in Central Gondwana
region which is neglected by the mainstream media.

According to a report in livemint.com “The portal comprises four

components: callers, who give missed calls to the portal phone number to
either report or listen to news; a server that returns the call and collects and
stories the audio bytes; moderators, who publish the byte on the website; and
website visitors, who can be either journalists from the mainstream media
who want to cover a certain story, non-governmental organisations that want to
extend support, urban activists who follow reported stories, or local
authorities who want to address grievances”. The impact of this alternative
medium is also visible at grassroot level; many of the caller problems are
resolved as administration is forced to look into the matter, once it is
highlighted by the citizens.

Radio Pitara, a start up, founded in 2016 utilises ICT for rural
communication. It is a free of cost service wherein an individual needs to give
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a missed call on a toll free number from his/her mobile number and in return, Alternative media

they get a call back and information and entertainment based content is
played.

Activity - 5

Visit the websites of above organisations and analyse their activities from
the perspective of alternative media.

12.7 LET US SUM UP

In this unit we defined the term alternative media “as a small-scale,
independent, grass root media which encourage alternative discourse to
highlight the issues concerning the marginalised sections”. We examined
different forms of alternative media available at the grassroots level for
addressing the information needs of people who do not have access to
mainstream media or are unable to relate with it. We also looked at some new
media platforms such as merinews.com, khabarlahriya.org, cgnetswara.org
and social media platforms such as: Twitter and Facebook wich give outlet to
different point of views.

From the discussion a strong need for alternative media was traced to give
impetus to grassroots journalism and highlight the issues of the marginalised
sections. For facilitating development and aiming to be a pluralistic society; it is
imperative that more such platforms are introduced. The mainstream media
should also focus on such issues and resist the pressures of corporate houses,
political parties and think beyond TRPs and advertisements. We need to find
ways to marry technology with content generation and distribution so that the
alternative media reaches out to a wider audience and becomes relevant and
remains independent. More liberal and social thinkers are required to take the
baton of alternative media forward.

12.8 FURTHER READINGS

1) Atton, C. (2015), The Routledge Companion to Alternative and
Community Media, Routledge

2) Carpentier, N, Lie, R. & Servaes J. (2007), Making Community Media

Work in Jan Servaes Edited Communication for Social Change, Sage
Publications: New Delhi

3) Chomsky Noam, Herman S. Edward (2002), Manufacturing Consent.

Pantheon Books

4) Denis McQuail (2011), Mass Communication Theory, Sage Publications,

New Delhi

5) Howley, K. (ed) (2010), Understanding Community Media, Sage

Publications: Thousand Oaks. 215
Media and
Contemporary 12.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: POSSIBLE
issue
ANSWERS
Check Your Progress: 1

1) Alternative media can be defined as any media platform run by people for
people and of the people.

2) Mainstream media is known as elite media since it is owned by powerful

corporate houses which largely cater to the needs of the elite class.

3) The alternative and mainstream media mainly differ on the following areas:

a) Mission
b) Content generation
c) Content distribution
d) Budget and operational cost (Advertisements, subscription cost)
e) News as commodity v/s social good
f) Role of gatekeepers

Check Your Progress: 2

1) Citizen journalism is a platform promoted by private television news

channels and newspapers wherein citizens report about any incident in their
neighbourhood with a video footage or photograph with a small write-up.
This platform has been adopted by new media as well.

2) Community radio stations mainly differ on following parameters:

Parameters Community Radio Station Mainstream Radio Station

Coverage 5-10 km Very wide

Ownership NGO/ University/ Corporate/ Government

Individuals/group

Content Community specific, locally Entertainment based (private

produced, Focus on radio); Infotainment (public
infotainment radio)

Target Group Community Masses

Advertisements Negligible Largely runs on advertising

revenue

Size Small group Large organisations

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Check Your Progress: 3 Alternative media

Limited access, largely urban and elite centric, use as promotional tool,
credibility and authenticity of the content are some of the issues involved in
the use of social media.

Some differences between independent news website and social media are
enumerated below:
Parameters Independent News Social Media
Websites
Ownership Individual/small groups Owned by big groups/
companies
Content News (focus on news Can be about anything
filtered by mainstream
media)
Reach Masses Limited to followers/ Network
Content Professionals Users
Producer
Use Information, Education Information, Entertainment,
Education, Promotion
Engagement Low High
level

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