News Channels Framing the Anti-Dam Protests in Assam—An Analysis

The north-eastern state of Assam is today witnessing the contours of a new peasant movement spearheaded by the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), a farmers' resistance protesting against the ongoing and proposed construction of mega dams in the north-east region. Led by RTI activist Akhil Gogoi, KMSS has today emerged as an influential pressure group in the state sparking a widespread public discourse on issues ranging from land rights of farmers and forest dwellers to environmental conservation, from the dam-development debate to the efficacy of an alternative developmental paradigm. Recognizing that the media are critical ingredients in any social movement and that the quality and nature of media coverage strongly influence how movements are perceived in the public eye, this paper analyses the media framing of the KMSS-led anti-big dam protests in Assam between December 2011 and March 2012 by two leading TV news channels of the state, 'Newslive' and 'DY 365'. The divergent frames employed by Newslive and DY 365 clearly reinforce the popular perception that different media organizations employ different interpretative frames to circulate certain selective ideas to their audiences.