The print, electronic and broadcast media in Asia are doing better than ever before. More and more newspapers and magazines are sprouting in countries such as India, China and Malaysia. Also TV channels are broadcasting to viewers from around the world, plus radio stations have been flourishing for the past few years.
This is in dramatic contrast to developments in the West -- particularly the United States -- where the twinned phenomenon of media mergers and a migration of readers to the Web has resulted in a decline of media empires. Newspapers seem to be shutting down almost weekly; advertisers and sponsors are favoring high-traffic Web sites.
Which English-language newspaper has the largest circulation in the world? The Times of India. Which non-English language newspaper sells millions of copies daily? Japans Asahi Shimbun, and Manorama Malayalam in Kerala, followed closely by the Chinese-language edition of the Worker's Daily. Which magazine has mushroomed into one of the worlds largest media conglomerates? India Today. These and other media outlets are also paying more attention to the Middle East, particularly to the Gulf countries that supply oil to satisfy the seemingly limitless thirst of China and India in their drive toward accelerated economic growth.
Topics:
•What kind of media -- print, electronic, TV, radio -- haves grown in recent years in China and India?
•What explains this growth? What drives demand?
•Beyond literacy, what are the factors that explain the deepening craving for media products? A thirst for news? Education? Entertainment? Analysis?
•While Asia's two big emerging economies -- India and China -- have had varying degrees of Western colonial experience, how are they able to culturally sustain the presence of Western media input in their economies?
•What about the regional media in Asian countries? We ordinarily tend to look at English-language media, but regional-language media are growing rapidly. What explains this?
•Are some Asian societies more receptive to media scrutiny than others? Why?
Moderator:
Tayeb Kamali, Vice-Chancellor of the Higher Colleges of Technology ( UAE )
Speakers:
Andrew H. Malcolm, Member of the Editorial Board, Los Angeles Times
Abdulla Al Madani, Academic Specialist in Asian Affairs
Chua Huck Cheng, Chief Editorial Writer, The Straits Times
Dilip Cherian, Consulting Partner, Perfect Relations
Jonathan Fenby, China Director of the research company Trusted Sources ( China )
N RAM, Editor-in-Chief, The Hindu
