Inequalities in the public sphere: emergence of community television in India

The article of record may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14631369.2012.638803Economic restructuring in the 1980s opened the doors to the previously state- dominated television sector in developing countries. In India, unexpectedly, the resulting competitive setting produced multiple channels targeting various local ethnicities from below along with national-level expansion involving transna- tional corporations from above in a process now known as localization. While the plurality of channels translates into growth of the public sphere, this paper examines the reasons behind the uneven growth of community media, which cannot be explained by the community’s size or economic resources. Some community channels extend their reach into the national arena while others lag in media development implying unequal political participation in the communicative system. What are the institutional reasons behind such variations in a multiethnic setting? The paper also examines whether the development of ethnic media reflects the redistribution of power taking place in the political arena or is it an independent development with implications of its own

Sri Lanka and the Belt and Road Initiative: A Balancing Act in the Indian Ocean Region

Sri Lanka's salient position in Beijing's global ambitions is reflected in the availability of the Chinese resources for its economic and defence modernisation. The country's strategic proximity to China's commercial sea routes and its positive reception to the BRI provides Beijing with an opportunity to illustrate the promise of mutual benefits offered in its initiative. Meanwhile, Colombo's acceptance of China's investments relies on an economic strategy that seeks to modernist its infrastructure and naval operations that would secure the new economic growth sectors as a IOR state. As Beijing advances its geo-economic objectives across three continents, important questions emerge regarding the impact of the BRI on the existing political and economic arrangements. Sri Lanka offers an informative case study towards understanding the initiative’s implementation, the resulting escalation of rivalries in the IOR, and national responses in the new setting. The ripple effects of the BRI developments present new dilemmas and weighs heavily on state decisions for a country that finds itself in the center of great power rivalry