Media and citizenship in India: heteronomy and autonomy in the Indian journalistic field

Since 2014, India has experienced a shift towards a new phase of democracy, often described as an “ethnic democracy.” Political theorists argue that this phase promotes a Hindu conception of the nation, contrasting with the secularism embedded in the Indian Constitution, and is marked by attacks on ethnic and religious minorities, particularly Muslims. Some media scholars suggest that controlling mass media has been a crucial strategy in generating public consent for hegemonic Hindu nationalism and contend that the media’s subservience to political elites extends beyond the current government to previous political elites, such as the Gandhi dynasty. They challenge Bourdieu’s idea of a field governed by its own rules, asserting that in India, political and economic forces often align to impose conformity, indicating weak rational-legal authority. However, this paper argues that such views overstate media subservience and homogeneity. Instead, this paper provides evidence of diverse representations within mainstream media, demonstrating that there is scope for ideological contestation and adherence to professional norms. This study employs content analysis to examine media portrayals of the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests, using frame analysis as the theoretical framework.