Understanding and unlocking community capability:

Role of local media in Sundarbans

health system ecology Shibaji Bose, Upasona Ghosh, Rittika Brahmachari,

Sabyasachi Mandal

HSR Cape Town, 3rd October 2014

The Sundarbans……

Triple betrayal

Geography

Climate

History/Politics

4.5 million people

• on 54/106 islands

• Subsistence agriculture and

forest /river products

• Chronic poverty

• Double burden of disease

• Sub-optimal health care

system

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Objectives

To explore:

1. Quantity and quality of reporting on human health

in the Sundarbans

2. Community’s perceptions on role of local media in

representing and influencing their health needs

3. Local journalist’s perceptions of community

health needs and demands

4. Political economy influencing media reporting

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Content Analysis:

1 mainstream English, 1 mainstream Bengali, 3 local news papers for 6

months on the basis of Audit Bureau of Circulation, 2013

Focus Group Discussions:

8 FGDs with community members in 2 geo-climatically vulnerable blocks

(4 FGDs in each block)

Informal Ethnographic Discussions:

10 discussions in tea stalls, news paper circulation points, local clubs,

etc. in 2 geo-climatically vulnerable blocks (5 discussions in each block)

In-depth Interviews:

15 in-depth interviews with journalists and editors of local level news

papers across two geo-climatically vulnerable blocks

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Methodology: Quantitative and

Qualitative Approaches

Findings

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Type and reach of print media in the study

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Types of print media in Sundarbans

Language State Sundarbansmainland

Sundarbans remote islands

Mainline daily English x x

Mainline daily Bengali x x

Local weekly Bengali x x

Local fortnightly Bengali x x

Magazine quarterly Bengali x x x

‘We rarely get to see a Kolkata newspaper. The local reporters and the local newspapers are the main source of our news’- Community FGD, remote island

‘One of the biggest chunk of our circulation is in G-plot- the remotest part of

Sundarbans’- Editor, local newspaper

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Health News Content

‘We try to write about the

most tiny things like doctors not coming regularly because we know that has an affect for the people of this island’ –Editor, Local fortnightly

‘The state media seem to get

interested if there are large scale child deaths. They then drive down in droves”- CBO Head, Namkhana block

Local

Mainline

PI: Pan India

‘The tigers are the first citizens of Sundarbans. More money perhaps is spent

on them than for the children of the islanders’ – Doctor working in the

Sundarbans

Health vs Conservation agenda

Mainline news media panders to the interest of its core city

audience in West Bengal and India in disproportionately covering

conservation issues vs. local livelihood concerns of the

Sundarbans archipelago

Local media also provides considerable coverage of Project

Tiger, but also covers links to the livelihood of the islanders

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‘We do provide news about tigers but we also cover how livelihood of the

fringe population is being gradually affected due to these policies’ – Editor of

a local weekly

News roles: Local media in between

community & mainline news

Community trusts local media more than mainline media due to coverage

of local health news, which attracts local readership

Local media also follows mainline media emphasis on sub divisional &

district level events and on higher level decision making in health: state

ministers, annual budgetary allocation in health, NRHM schemes

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‘’Daily problem of access (health infrastructure, nature of local jetties) are

highlighted by the local papers. They best understand our problem becausethey reside in Sundarbans’- FGD respondent, remote island

‘we try to complement local health news with health reportage in mainlinenewspapers as opinion leaders in the islands are interested to know what ishappening at the decision making level’ – Editor, local news paper,Namkhana Block

‘they at least try to travel to the spot and doing a bit more research whereasthe mainline guys just get it though the wire…it’s very difficult to trust them.” -FGD participant, remote island

Political economy:

mainline vs. local mediaMainline Local

Ownership Large scale corporation Self-entrepreneurship by well

known community actors

Financing Revenue model based on full

scale marketing & advertising

Low subscription figures & ad

revenues uncertain and on

credit

Influence of

editorial

board/management

Favors political news over

health news;

Bias towards private sector

Less of a gatekeeper

Focus on public health sector

Political influence &

associations

Some serve as outlets for

multi-national corporations &

big political parties

As community actors they are

highly influential and not

impartial; bias towards

dominant community

Printing costs Runs on subsidized newsprint;

Economies of scale

High printing costs, mostly

from Kolkata

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Summary of findings and next steps Mainline media are corporate entities remotely connected to the

disadvantageous community in vulnerable pockets who are not

the ‘audience’ for their ‘product’

Local media has more quantity & better quality coverage of local

issues, including health & enjoys more community trust

The local media is more embedded in the community but also a

polarising force: people appreciate the local coverage but not

always the political views

Next steps

Orienting local journalists on community health issues & MCH

Creating a common platform with local media, community

organizations and leaders for health dialogues to link

information to action

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Thank you

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