Changing news cultures in transregional contexts: a study of Kerala migrant journalists in the Middle East

This dissertation investigates how Indian migrant journalists in the Middle East negotiate the different journalism cultures to produce news. Specifically, the study focuses on migrant journalists from the southern Indian state of Kerala working in the United Arab Emirates. Drawing on in-person interviews, the study challenges traditional interpretations of the public service function of journalism. Rooted in the experiences of Western developed nations, traditional views suggest that journalism’s public service role is to serve democracy by monitoring government power. The dissertation reveals that, rather than following a top-down approach whose locus of attention is the political system and its myriad intermediaries, the public service function can also be fulfilled on a more horizontal plane. Journalists can take a grassroots approach as they actively help underprivileged community members to resolve personal crises such as employment loss or medical emergency by writing about them and marshalling public support.