Unlikely Bedfellows? the Media and Government Relations in West Bengal
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Unlikely Bedfellows? The Media and Government Relations in West Bengal (1977-2011) Indrani Lahiri Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Stirling Division of Communication, Media and Culture School of Arts and Humanities March 2014 © Indrani Lahiri 2014 Abstract This thesis examines the relationship between the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Front Government and the media in the provincial state of West Bengal, India, during the thirty four years (1977- 2011) period when the party was in government. The main aim of the thesis is to investigate the relation between the CPI (M) led Left Front Government and the media in West Bengal (1977-2011), the role of the media in stabilising or destabilising the Left Front Government, the impact of neoliberalism on the Left Front Government and their relation with the media, the role of the media in communicating developmental policies of the LFG to the public and finally the role which the mainstream and the party controlled media played in the public sphere. These questions are addressed through document research of CPI (M)’s congress and conference reports, manifestos, press releases, pamphlets, leaflets, booklets; and interviews with the CPI (M) leadership and the Editors and Bureau Chiefs of the key newspapers and television channels in West Bengal. The findings are contextualised within a broader discussion of the political and historical transitions India and West Bengal have gone through in this period (chapter 4). This is the first study looking at the relationship between the media and the CPI (M) led Left Front Government over a period of thirty four years (1977-2011). The thesis finds that neoliberalism in India had considerable effects on the CPI (M), the media and their relationship. The research finds a continuous effort from the mainstream and the party-controlled media to dominate the public sphere leading debates in order to seek some form of political consensus in order to govern. The media in West Bengal were politically divided between the left and the opposition. The research finds that this generated a market for political advertisements and political news contributing to a politically polarised media market in West Bengal that assisted in generating revenue for the media. The findings also suggest that the media contributed to rather than played a determining role in destabilising the Left Front Government. Finally the research finds that the CPI (M) had an arduous relation with the media since 1977 when the party decided to participate in the parliamentary democracy. The LFG and the mainstream media entered into an antagonistic relationship post 1991 contributing to a politically polarised media market in West Bengal. ii Acknowledgements The four years of journey shaped my vision and developed my critical eye. I received enormous support and encouragement from amazing people without whom this journey would not have been complete. The four years of continuous keyboard work was not enough for this thesis to meet the objective. My experience at st University of Stirling has been fascinating and ever cherishing since 1 February 2010. I am thankful to the Division of Communication, Media and Culture for having me as a research postgraduate student. From the cold wintery morning to the warmth of the Scottish sun, I have always felt at home. I have experienced how the creation of a framework and the implementation of it to research can be immensely human and exciting. I have learnt to be independent but structured, patient but eager to turn the passion into reality. It cannot be argued but that the most significant person in this journey was my supervisor Prof. Matthew Hibberd. His enduring support, encouragement and precious suggestions made me walk through this incredible journey and unknown path. He supported me through the many ups and downs of my life. Apart from the academic skills that I developed under Matthew, my precious learning was to say ‘No’ to distractions. I can definitely say that this is the journey which assisted me in realising how a supervisor can establish oneself as the friend, philosopher and guide. The continuous encouragement and enduring support received from my second supervisor Dr. Marina Dekavalla contributed towards the fulfilment of this project. Her sincere guidance taught me that I need to question everything that possibly I can to produce a quality research. I am also thankful to Dr. Jairo Lugo for supporting me in the initial one year. I am especially indebted to Dr. Richard Haynes for extending his earnest support and encouragement from day one. I would like to extend my gratitude to all the member of staffs and colleagues in the division who have made me confident through the journey. I have learnt to be methodical and patient. I am extremely grateful and would like to extend my thanks to the School of Arts and Humanities for their support and encouragement for participating in seminars and conferences. I extend my sincere regards to the Stirling Graduate Research School and Stirling Media Research Institute for their directions and support. I am extremely thankful to the Charles Wallace Trust, Student Development and Support Services, University of Stirling, Punjab National Bank and Barclays Bank PLC for their generous financial support to undertake this project. iii I am also indebted to all the interviewees for providing me their consent and precious time to interview them. My special thanks to Dr. Sharmila Maitra, Late Kanak Ray, Khokon Ganguly, Shekhar Kanti Das, Ananda Ghosh, Samyabrata Dutta, Shauvik Basu and Bomkesh Chakraborty for their support, time and insights. A big thank you and regards to Helen Wynd and family. They have made my life easier and have been family abroad. Finally I would like to thank my family for their support and love all through the years. My heartfelt love to my Baba (Father), Maa (Mother), Kou-Maa (Mother-in-Law), Jethu, Saibal Lahiri, Krishanu Bhattacharya and Bikash Chandra Das for their encouragement, perseverance and love. I owe a lot to my grandfather Late Dr. Dhirendralal Lahiri for his inspiration. Last but not the least my thanks to Koushik for his patience, encouragement and love throughout my PhD journey. iv Author’s Declaration This thesis represents the original work of Indrani Lahiri unless explicitly stated otherwise in the text. The research upon which it is based was carried out within the Division of Communication, Media and Culture, School of Arts and Humanities at the University of Stirling, under the supervision of Professor Matthew Hibberd and Dr. Marina Dekavalla during the period February 2010 to February 2014. Total Word: 79,842 v Acronyms APL Above Poverty Line BBC British Broadcasting Corporation BPL Below Poverty Line CBS Columbia Broadcasting System CITU Centre of Indian Trade Unions CMP Common Minimum Programme CNN-IBN Cable News Network- Indian Broadcasting Network CPI (M) Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI (ML) Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) CPI Communist Party of India CU Calcutta University DNA Daily News and Analysis ECI Election Commission of India FB Forward Bloc FDI Foreign Direct Investment ICSSR Indian Council of Social Science Research IMF International Monetary Fund IRS India’s Readership Survey LFG Left Front Government LPG Liberalisation Privatisation Globalisation MLA Member of Legislative Assembly MRUC Media Research Users Council NBC National Broadcasting Company NDTV New Delhi Television Limited NEP New Economic Policy NIP New Industrial Policy NRS National Readership Survey NRSC National Readership Studies Council NWICO New World Information and Communication Order PCI Press Council of India PDS Public Distribution System PRIs Panchayat Raj Institutions PSE Public Sector Enterprises PTI Press Trust of India RNI Registrar of Newspapers for India RSP Revolutionary Socialist Party SC Supreme Court SEBI Securities and Exchange Board of India SEZ Special Economic Zone TB Tuberculosis TMC Trinamool Congress TNC Transnational Corporation TOI The Times of India UFG United Front Government UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization UPA United Progressive Alliance WB West Bengal WTO World Trade Organisation vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Acknowledgement iii-iv Author’s Declaration v Acronyms vi Introduction 1-9 PART I: Literature Review and Methodology Chapter 2 Literature Review 11-51 Chapter 3 Methodology 52-75 PART II: The Contextual Chapter Chapter 4 West Bengal and the Left Front Government and the Media in India 77-124 PART III: Findings Chapters Chapter 5 The Policies of the CPI (M) led LFG in West Bengal 126-163 Chapter 6 The Relation of the CPI (M) led LFG with the Media 164-217 Chapter 7 The Media Viewpoint on the CPI (M) led LFG 218-261 PART IV: Discussion and Conclusion Chapter 11 Discussion 263-285 Chapter 12 Conclusion 286-291 Appendix I 292 Appendix II 293 Appendix III 294 Appendix IV 295-297 References 298-368 Bibliography 369-381 vii Chapter 1 Introduction 1 The CPI (M) led Left Front Government (LFG) in West Bengal , was overthrown by the landslide election victory of the Trinamool Congress and Indian National Congress alliance on May 13, 2011. The LFG had been elected 2 in power by the state electorates for seven consecutive terms since 1977. This thesis explores the relationship between the LFG and the media in the state of West Bengal from 1977 to 2011. The analysis of this relationship makes a significant contribution to understanding how the left articulately manages to operate their media in a postcolonial semi feudal and semi capitalist society like West Bengal in India to challenge the mainstream liberal media. I. OVERVIEW 3 The Left Front was and remains a coalition of ten parties headed by the largest coalition partner, Communist Party of India (Marxist). This coalition participated in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly election and came to power in the provincial state of West Bengal for the first time in 1977.