India is the largest democracy in the world. Since Independence from Great Britain in 1947, political democracy has taken deep roots thanks to the visionary leaders of the immediate post-independent India. The Indian General Elections involving more than 815 million voters is seen as the greatest democratic exercise in the world. The Indian media have been playing a great role in stabilizing the democratic ethos of the country. In the recent years India too has been a witness to the digital media – 500 million is the number of internet users in 2017. There has been the general assumption that a society drenched in information in a digital age is inherently a democratic one. It was thought that the internet will be an unprecedented democratizing force, a place where all can be heard and everyone can participate equally. This has been the big hope for Indian democracy too. This paper would like to argue that the hope of an emerging digital democracy in India has been belied due to the following factors, among many others: 1) the digital divide is too great to even speak of a digital democracy in India; the internet in fact reflects and amplifies real-world inequalities; 2) a medium with the capacity to empower people has been turned in to a tool of social control; the internet has reinforced the power structures of the real world – not empowered them; 3) capitalism’s colonization of the internet has made the internet an unparalleled apparatus for government and corporate surveillance; a handful of giants – Airtel, Amazon, Google, Facebook, Jio, Reliance, Vodafone, often in collusion with the powers that be, remain the gatekeepers.
Table of Contents
- 1. Clarifying Terms
- 1.1 Challenges
- 1.2 Apparently Emerging
- 1.3 Digital
- 1.4 Democracy
- 1.4.1 Digital Democracy
- 1.4.1.1 Expectations on Digital Democracy
- 1.4.1 Digital Democracy
- 2. Methodology
- 3. Theoretical Framework
- 4. Challenges to Digital Democracy in General
- 4.1 The Political Context of the Arrival of the Internet
- 4.2 Digital Inequality
- 4.3 Gender Divide
- 4.4 Digital Feudalism
- 4.5 Internet and the Common Political Voice
- 4.6 Online Gatekeeping
- 4.7 Capitalism's Colonization of the Internet
- 5. Challenges to Digital Democracy in India
- 5.1 Democracy in India - Description
- 5.2 Elections and Election Commission
- 5.3 Judiciary
- 5.4 The Executive and Cabinet Collegiality
- 5.5 Media
- 5.6 Censorship by Government
- 5.7 Economic Liberalization
- 5.8 Internet User Base in India
- 5.8.1 Digital Divide in India
- 5.8.2 Actual Situation - Statistically
- 5.8.3 Gender Divide Regarding Internet Use in India
- Conclusion
- References
Objective & Thematic Focus
This paper fundamentally addresses the challenges faced by the seemingly emerging digital democracy in India, questioning whether the initial optimistic expectations for digital media's role in politics have been met. It argues that the hope for a truly democratic digital space in India has been undermined by several critical factors.
- Examination of the initial expectations and theoretical foundations of digital democracy.
- Analysis of general challenges to digital democracy, including inequality and power dynamics.
- Investigation into specific obstacles impeding digital democracy in the Indian context.
- Discussion of the digital and gender divides as fundamental barriers to equitable participation.
- Exploration of how traditional democratic pillars interact with the digital landscape.
- Critique of government censorship, economic liberalization, and corporate influence on the internet.
Excerpt from the Book
Expectations on Digital Democracy
Scholars (Hague and Loader 1999; Coleman and Gøtze 2001; Simon, Corrales and Wofensberger 2002; Hindman, 2008; Blumer and Coleman 2009; Hacker, 2000; Akrivopoulou and Garipidis, 2013;Taylor, 2014; Kreiss, 2016; Bartlett, 2018) had the following expectations of new media to be “a force for broadening and deepening democracy” (Flew, 2014: 199) as: 1) Internet would enable horizontal, peer-to-peer and many-to-many communication. 2) Internet would facilitate users to access, share, and independently verify information at little to no cost from potentially limitless range of online global sources. 3) Internet as a global communications medium would not be able to be easily controlled by governments as compared to more territorially based media. 4) Internet enables citizens to form virtual communities of shared interest and commitment, especially through social media. 5) Internet would bestow on the citizens the ability to disseminate, debate, and deliberate on current issues that are not premised upon status rank. 6) Internet empowers citizens to undertake political communication not filtered through political parties, spin doctors, or the established news media outlets (Flew, 2014). Ted Becker and Christa Slaton expressed the hope that “new forms of electronically based democratic political organization will emerge [which] will transform representative government into a system much less responsive to traditionally organized pressure groups and more responsive to a broad base of citizenry” (2000: 81).
Summary of Chapters
1. Clarifying Terms: This chapter defines key concepts such as "challenges," "apparently emerging," "digital," and "democracy," including a detailed look at "digital democracy" and its initial expectations.
2. Methodology: This section outlines the research approach as a descriptive-explanatory study, aiming to define terms and analyze cause-and-effect relationships related to challenges in digital democracy in India.
3. Theoretical Framework: This chapter explores various theories of democracy, positing that the Elitist Theory of Democracy is most pertinent to understanding the digital divide and power dynamics in a digital age.
4. Challenges to Digital Democracy in General: This chapter discusses universal obstacles to digital democracy, including digital inequality, the gender divide, the concept of digital feudalism, online gatekeeping, and the colonization of the internet by capitalism.
5. Challenges to Digital Democracy in India: This extensive chapter delves into the specific hindrances to digital democracy within India, examining its democratic system, electoral processes, judiciary, executive, media, government censorship, economic liberalization, and the prevailing digital and gender divides.
Conclusion: The conclusion reiterates that the internet's initial promise of democratizing politics has been largely unfulfilled, particularly in India, due to factors like corporate power, government surveillance, data breaches, and persistent societal inequalities.
Keywords
Democracy, Digital Age, Internet, Gatekeeper, Social Media, Technology, India, Digital Divide, Inequality, Governance, Political Participation, Surveillance, Digital Feudalism, Censorship, Economic Liberalization
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the basic topic of this paper?
This paper fundamentally addresses the challenges faced by the seemingly emerging digital democracy in India, questioning whether the initial optimistic expectations have been met.
What are the central thematic areas?
The central thematic areas include the definition and expectations of digital democracy, general and India-specific challenges to its realization, the impact of digital inequality and gender divide, and the influence of gatekeepers and capitalist forces on the internet.
What is the primary objective or research question?
The primary objective is to describe and explain the various factors that have undermined the hope of an emerging digital democracy in India.
Which scientific method is used?
The paper employs a descriptive-explanatory study method, defining key terms and analyzing cause-and-effect relationships to understand the challenges to digital democracy.
What is covered in the main part?
The main part of the paper covers clarifications of terms, theoretical frameworks of democracy, general challenges like digital inequality and feudalism, and detailed India-specific challenges spanning elections, judiciary, media, censorship, economic liberalization, and digital and gender divides.
Which keywords characterize the work?
The work is characterized by keywords such as Democracy, Digital Age, Internet, Gatekeeper, Social Media, Technology, India, Digital Divide, Inequality, Governance, Political Participation, Surveillance, Digital Feudalism, Censorship, and Economic Liberalization.
How does the paper describe "Digital Feudalism"?
The paper describes "Digital Feudalism" as a social and economic arrangement on the internet, akin to historical feudalism, where platform owners (lords) expropriate value from content providers (serfs) who work on their platforms, leading to vast disparities in power and rewards.
What role does government censorship play in Indian digital democracy?
Government censorship is identified as a significant roadblock, with evidence of website blocking and surveillance, contradicting the ideals of a truly democratic online space in India.
What is the significance of the "digital divide" in India, according to the paper?
The digital divide in India is highlighted as a major challenge, characterized by unequal access to technology between urban and rural areas, rich and poor, and men and women, exacerbated by economic inequality and hindering genuine digital democracy.
What are the implications of capitalism's colonization of the Internet on democracy?
Capitalism's colonization of the Internet has turned it into an apparatus for government and corporate surveillance, with powerful tech giants acting as gatekeepers, thereby reinforcing existing power structures rather than democratizing the online space.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Francis Thummy (Autor:in), 2022, Challenges to the Apparently Emerging Digital Democracy in India, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1667599
