India plays an increasingly important role in the processes of globalization. The extraordinary role of India in the production of culture is matched by its role in refashioning the communications technology industry. Mumbai becomes a new media capital; Bangalore redefines information chains. Not accidentally, the field of communication studies in India is changing as well. Yet there is no fully functioning Indian Communications Association and little in the way of considered and formal review of contributions to the field.
In an effort to create a new coherence and a new salience for this subject, a small group of ICA members is organizing a preconference that will help map the area of communication and culture studies in India and gather some of the leading and emerging scholars in the field.
The preconference, to be held May 19 – 20, is designed to promote greater awareness of the impact of India on global pathways, and to encourage research opportunities and foster partnerships between scholars and practitioners.
The preconference will be organized around three panels, which will address the development of communication studies in India; issues of technology, governance and development; and a discussion of scholarship about India. The preconference will also feature paper presentations from emerging scholars on a diverse range of issues, including media and cultural representations, gender, issues of nationalism and culture, and structural questions of governance, including the impact on minorities.
The program is organized by the Center for Global Communication Studies, Annenberg School for Communications, University of Pennsylvania and the Center for Culture, Media and Governance, Jamia Milia Islamia University. The planning committee includes Biswajit Das, Radhika Parameswaran, Monroe E. Price and Aswin Punathambekar.