Course Description: The course aims to expose the students to the nature and potential of communication for holistic social development.
Course Contents: What is Development Communication; understanding concepts: development; communication; its beginnings. Why development communication? Role of media in changing the development scenario. Dominant paradigm and alternate paradigm of development communication. Understanding concepts such as: Self-reliance, dependence, cultural identity, decentralization, participation, modernization, industrialization etc. Diffusion of Innovations, Trickle Down, Dependency Theory, Liberation Theology, Participatory Communication. Freire’s contribution to Dev Com. Mass Media effects; technology and development with special reference to communication technology — economies of technology, politics of technology, socio-cultural aspects; Neil Postman’s Technopoly; alternative Development; participatory Development. Ten recent trends in Dev Com; emerging creative ways of communications in development; environment and quality of life: challenges for communication and development; development journalism and new media; women in information technology; Development Journalism today. Examples of Right to Information and other movements of empowerment strategies; institutional perspective; panchayatiraj system as a development model; MGREG Act and development; slum development; child survival and health-care in India — communication policies; early warning systems and village communication networks; SEZ and development; SEZs in China and India; centre-state govt media divisions, their functions and policies.