Punjabi University research: Electronic media played the role of king-maker in Punjab during 2014 Lok Sabha elections
Kanwar Inder Singh/ February 26,2023
Recent research conducted at the Department of Political Science, Punjabi University, Patiala has brought into light how electronic media played the role of king-maker in Punjab during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The role of this medium was very important in terms of making every bit of information reach the voters quickly and clearly. Through the research, the government has been suggested to formulate appropriate policies to curb the misuse of this medium.
The research conducted by researcher Sandeep Kaur under the supervision of Prof. Narendra Kumar Dogra was based on a survey in which 1200 people were interviewed from four different Lok Sabha constituencies out of total 13 Lok Sabha constituencies of Punjab. These four constituencies included Amritsar from Majha region, Hoshiarpur from Doaba region & Sangrur and Bathinda from Malwa region.
Prof. Narendra Kumar Dogra said that 46.83% of the total people selected during the survey said that the role of this medium for providing easy and timely information was commendable. This meant that a large number of people depended on this medium to get a lot of information communicated by political parties. It is worth noting that such information has the potential to play a major role in determining the voting choice/preference of the common voter.
Researcher Sandeep Kaur said that during the research almost half of the people also felt that the Television emerged as the easiest platform compared to other media tools in terms of communication, presentation and analysis of events related to election campaigns. She said that according to the research, 40.33 percent people in Majha region and 41.67 percent people in Doaba region were directly influenced by the electronic media campaign/strategy of political parties. In the region of Malwa, the rate of those affected by such a strategy was 48.50 percent.
Punjabi University research: Electronic media played the role of king-maker in Punjab during 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Based on the findings of this research, it is strongly suggested that since there is a possibility of usage of electronic media by political parties to a much greater extent in future elections, the government should formulate appropriate policies and issue instructions in this regard to prevent misuse of this medium.
Vice Chancellor Prof. Arvind congratulated the researchers on this research and said that if Punjabi University conducts standard and standardized research in subjects like political science, it will definitely help in the formulation of many public policies. It will increase the credibility of the people towards this university if there is commitment to work for public interest.
(royalpatiala.in News)
