Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s penchant for using social media to address the public directly has apparently caused a rift with India’s mainstream press. Mahima Kaul reports
India’s Modi bypasses mainstream media and takes to Twitter
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Mahima Kaul
Mahima Kaul
Mahima Kaul is a Fellow at Observer Research Foundation, Delhi and writes about internet/media governance, inclusion and security issues.
India’s social media “peace force”
Indians have organised online to stop social media postings looking to incite communal tension. Will it work, and is it a threat to free expression? Mahima Kaul reports
India obsessed with social media role in elections
Indians, ever a chatty lot, are obsessed with the idea of being obsessed with social media. Mahima Kaul reports
India’s public service broadcaster at center of political row
The India media is the subject of the news yet again. This time though, the private news channels — the usual suspects – are only reporting the news. Instead, the latest war of words among politicians has thrown the public service broadcaster, Doordarshan, into the limelight. Mahima Kaul reports
India fails to throw weight behind NETmundial
India was among the few governments that did not sign the NETmundial outcome statement. But why does it seem that the world’s largest democracy is not putting its weight behind a “bottom-up, open, and participatory” multistakeholder process? Mahima Kaul reports
India’s elections: Hate speech and the “greatest show on Earth”
Electioneering for the Indian elections of 2014 has reached a fever pitch. Political parties seem to be indulging in the same hate speech, communal politicking and calculations that work to polarise the electorate and garner votes. Mahima Kaul reports
Controversy surrounds India’s biometric database
Questions about the security of India’s giant biometric database continue to be raised by privacy advocates, Mahima Kaul reports
As internet matures India faces a choice on governance
For many years, the Indian public in particular, had very little interest in who controlled the internet and decisions taken at a structural level that shaped its future. Mahima Kaul reports on how that’s changing.
Cricket cheering uncovers faultlines between Kashmir and India
Improbable as it may seem, but 67 Kashmiri university students were briefly charged with sedition for cheering for Pakistan, and celebrating its win over India, during an Asia Cup cricket match in early March. Mahima Kaul reports
Penguin India’s pulping of controversial title roils authors
Indian authors and columnists have condemned Penguin India’s decision to pulp all remaining copies of American author Wendy Doniger’s controversial book. Mahima Kaul reports
India: Parliament TV blacks out during debate over controversial bill
For the first time in its history, the lower house of Indian parliament passed a law as important as creating a new state – by reorganising Andhra Pradesh into two states; Andhra Pradesh and Telangana – away from the media glare and the public eye. Mahima Kaul reports
India enters the sousveillance age
Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s erstwhile chief minister, gained popularity among ordinary citizens because of his tough anti-corruption stand. His antics and strategies to grab media attention didn’t disappoint either. Mahima Kaul reports