Media case study on Italy

Abstract

DEMO: India-EU MaP - Developing Evidence based Management and Operations in India-EU Migration and PartnershipThe paper discusses the representation of the Indian community in the Italian press. Taking into account articles from national and local newspapers published in the last three years, the author analyzes the ways in which the press generally depicts Indian immigrants in positive and sympathetic tones, noting that this comes at the price of a widespread essentialisation. Such simplifications are particularly evident in press reports dealing with Indian culture and religion, and in analyses of the gender rules and roles governing the private and family life of Indian people. The relatively recent character of Indian immigration to Italy, the low-profile and often isolated lives Indian people lead, mixed with common sense notions and stereotypes about Indians, at times hinder balanced representations of this community. Several efforts in this direction are nonetheless visible in many of the articles analysed in this paper