Media is generally the agency for inter-personal communication. It allows people to communicate messages, thoughts, ideas and views. Along with the Legislature, Executive and Judiciary, the media is one of the four pillars of democracy. This chapter explains what media is, how it is classified, its importance, its role in forming public opinion, its ethics and responsibility, and why it is called the back bone of democracy.
1. Introduction – Traditional and Modern Forms of Communication
Folk Forms of Communication
- Traditionally, India has many folk forms of communicating with people in rural areas.
- Harikatha and koothu were originally a religious media form through which stories were propagated.
- They are a collective form of music, dance, speech and storytelling with comic interludes.
- They had a tremendous effect in communicating messages straight into the hearts of the people. Later, socially relevant messages were also passed through this medium.