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BJP ensured Modi was in 75% of all photos in newspapers’ front page before 2014 polls

BJP’s visual featuring focused on making sure that at least 40% of all photographs in newspapers were of Narendra Modi.

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The communications media is immensely influential in disseminating information, forming attitudes and opinions, and motivating people’s behaviour, including voting decisions. There are three types of mass media used for visual political communication: print media comprising newspapers and magazines, broadcast media such as TV and radio, and new media based on Internet news portals and websites. All these play an important role in creating vital political messages that can inform, educate and influence the target group. Photographs and still images play an important role in print and new media.

When used strategically, photographs can not only augment the message but can also compel the people to receive that message, since photographs draw more attention than plain text, no matter how compelling the argument is. The strategic use of images may play a significant role in political campaigns by allowing greater visibility of the leader and create a greater interest about the leader in people. All this leads to better audience retention, resulting in better engagement with the party.

It is evident from the above that the strategic use of photographs in print news media can create a favourable image of the leader among the mass and get tangible results.

Greater Visibility 

The first major theme that emerged from the data analysis was that of ‘greater visibility’. The patterns clearly showed that BJP was pushing towards a greater number of photos for both the party leaders and the party as a whole. Narendra Modi enjoyed a lot of photographic coverage, and more than 20% of the strategic placement in the newspaper—that is, on the front page—was accorded to him to get maximum exposure. The following figure shows the model of greater visibility at play in BJP’s communication during the 2014 election campaigning in the newspapers.

Greater Interest 

The second major theme that emerged from the data was that of a ‘greater interest’. Most of the photographs featuring BJP or its leaders were interesting. What made the pictures interesting was strong body language, varied facial expressions and the right variety in tone of the photographs. Strong body language and facial expressions in photographs have been proven to make the pictures more interesting and attractive. The following figure depicts the model of greater interest applicable to the BJP-related pictures appearing in the newspapers during the election campaign of 2014. The ‘funnel model’ depicts the three characteristics combining to generate greater interest.

Greater Focus 

The third theme that was formed using the data was that of ‘greater focus’. During the campaign, the BJP made it clear that Narendra Modi was the primary candidate of their party by ensuring that out of all the photos involving BJP, Modi featured in more than 40%. This was important in building a better association with the readers. The following figure shows how the BJP’s visual featuring focused on ensuring that at least 40% of all photographs were of Narendra Modi.

The grounded model of role of images in effective political communication 

The three thematic models obtained from the analysis ensured better retention of the brand, better engagement with their target audience and better association with the readers of the newspapers. This led to a greater impact, which improved the chances of BJP of winning the election while also ensuring greater public participation towards voting for the party. The following figure represents action–effect relationship between strategy items and audience response. This model of photographic communication is applicable to political communication as well as non-political visual communication.

Testing the grounded model 

To ascertain that these findings were, in fact, part of a consistent strategy, a sample of two more newspapers—Jansatta and Navbharat Times—was taken, this time of the national language. Six random dates were picked and the prima facie quantitative attributes analysed. Using the same methodology, similar results were obtained which indicate the validity of the model and the theory.

BJP maintained an average of 3.1 photos and Modi featured in 75% of all photographs. Of all photographs on the front page, 46% were of the BJP for best coverage. The numerical data obtained from the test supported the values proposed by the model.

Developing a model of effective image-based political communication plan 

The analysis in the previous section was supplemented with focus interviews with photo editors in newspaper journalism to try and understand some factors that can impact editorial selection processes mentioned earlier in the chapter.

The six factors could, in effect, be divided into content factors and visibility factors. These together have an impact on the way audiences (including photo editors) consume the content. Beyond the quantitative factors of visibility (frequency, placement, occurrence, etc.), the study has also emphasized qualitative attributes of photo content (central party figure, body language, tone, etc.), which can influence quantitative outcomes.

Visibility factors:

    • A greater number of photographs
    • Greater presence on the front pages
    • Constant flow of information/greater frequency

Content factors: 

    • A single representative of the party
    • Strong body language
    • Variety and flamboyance in tone

While visibility factors are the ones that first jump out at the viewers and create the first impressions in line with the priming and framing theories described at length in earlier chapters, it is the content factors that first influence the editors for the visibility factors to be what they are, before doing their bit for the readers. BJP could have used these indicators to devise a strategic photographic package that was picked up by the newspapers. The newspapers then themselves had a role to play in pushing out the visibility factors in terms of placement, structuring and frequency to the end readers.

Apart from these, other organic factors that could also have influenced the editorial selection on the part of the newspapers included similar elements and themes repeated across the first- hand action and official party communication such as quotes, overall campaigns, billboards, public appearances and rallies, the person’s body language on stage/in action, etc.

  • Content tone: innovation in campaigns—newsworthy quotes and campaigns
  • Repetition: backed up by billboards and press release photographs
  • Greater number of public appearances and rallies
  • More engaging and flamboyant body language in action

This model depicts how the several factors come together for an effective photographic communication plan for political campaigns—both on part of the readers, symbolized by the cognitive flows and supported by cognitive and communication theories and on part of the editorial selection.

This excerpt from Farhat Basir Khan’s The Game of Votes: Visual Media Politics and Elections in the Digital Era has been published with permission from Sage India.

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1 COMMENT

  1. A voter getting up on the wrong side of the bed may and will jepordize your prediction. Behaioal extrapolation of any sort is a BS. Remember the nobel prize for”nudging” economic policies???

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