Syllabus note
Note: This chapter is not part of the CBSE Class 12 Sociology syllabus for 2026-27 (CBSE has deleted it). Students of other boards should check their board’s latest syllabus.
1Definitions
All definitions in one place
Mass mediaForms reaching very large audiences at once: TV, newspapers, films, magazines, radio, ads, video games, CDs
Imagined communityBenedict Anderson’s term for a nation whose members feel connected though they will never meet
InfotainmentA mix of information and entertainment in news content, to hold varied reader interests
Soap operaA serialised, continuous story with no fixed ending, told through familiar recurring characters
2Key dates and figures
1440Johann Gutenberg develops modern printing technique (Europe)
1821-76Early Indian newspapers: Sambad-Kaumudi (1821), Bombay Samachar (1822), Shome Prakash (1858), Times of India (1861), The Statesman (1875)
1883Ilbert Bill agitation: colonial censorship of the nationalist press
1920sRadio begins via ham clubs, Kolkata and Chennai
1947Independence: AIR has 6 stations, 280,000 sets, population 350 million
19505,46,200 radio licences in India
1957AIR acquires Vividh Bharati
1959TV introduced experimentally, rural development
1975Emergency declared; SITE begins (-1976); Doordarshan’s first 4 cities
1977Democracy and free media restored
1982Colour TV: Asian Games, Delhi
1984-90Hum Log, Buniyaad, Ramayana, Mahabharata
1991Gulf War popularises CNN; Star-TV launched; 1 state channel in India
1992Zee TV launched
1996-99STAR Plus’s Hindi conversion (“Aapki Boli. Aapka Plus Point”)
2002Private FM radio arrives: no political news allowed
2006-16Newspaper circulation: 39.1 million → 62.8 million copies/day
2020Doordarshan broadcasts 35+ channels; about 900 private TV networks
TodayAIR: 480 stations, 681 transmitters; India: world’s 2nd largest TV market (TRAI, 2015-16)
3Named people, papers and channels
| Category | Names to remember |
|---|---|
| Scholars/leaders | Benedict Anderson (imagined community); Jawaharlal Nehru (“watchdog of democracy”) |
| Persecuted nationalist papers | Kesari (Marathi), Mathrubhumi (Malayalam), Amrita Bazar Patrika (English) |
| Top Hindi dailies (2016) | Dainik Jagran (3.92 mn), Dainik Bhaskar (3.81 mn) |
| Eenadu | Founder Ramoji Rao; launched 1974; district dailies from 1989 |
| FM channels & owners | Radio Mirchi (Times of India), Red FM (Living Media), Radio City (Star Network) |
| Village FM example | Raghav FM Mansoorpur 1: Raghav Mahato, Bihar |
| Reality shows | Kaun Banega Crorepati, Indian Idol, Bigg Boss |
| Films using radio | Rang De Basanti, Lage Raho Munna Bhai |
4Recap
Quick Revision
- Media’s growth interests sociologists for 4 reasons: history, dialectical relationship with society, need for formal organisation, and unequal access (digital divide)
- Colonial era: radio state-owned, press monitored; Ilbert Bill (1883) triggered censorship
- Independent India: Nehru’s “watchdog” call; radio and TV both began as state development tools
- Emergency (1975-77) was print media’s gravest post-Independence test
- Globalisation: national markets became one global market; media forms fused; print media grew, not declined, in India
- TV localisation (STAR Plus) and community radio (Raghav FM) are the two “reach the local audience” case studies to remember
More for this chapter