Occasional papers
A series of distinguished research papers by students and scholars on news media, public diplomacy and cyber communications.
Reimagining Media as a Civic Player: A New Operational Plan for Media Organizations in the Digital Age – April 15, 2017
– Nemmani Sreedhar
There is currently a raging debate about the role media plays in a society. There is also a renewed interest in the importance of local media and the role it can play in local civic engagement. Based on a pilot project conducted in the remote tribal area in Southern India, Attappadi, this Graduate Capstone thesis explores an alternate operational plan for media organizations catering to hyper-local communities. The main focus of this thesis is to empower the citizens of a community and to redefine the role of a journalist in that community as an enabler of a vibrant and ongoing discussion among the community members. The paper looks at the current media practices, evolution of technologies, and the way these technologies can be used to alter the operations of a media organization.