The Role of Press in the Politics of Knowledge in Development: Challenges of Creating ‘Alternatives’ in Media

Abstract

Media is an integral part of any society. In modern societies where it has grown so much, it becomes very important to pay attention to the role of media in constructing the social. This article discusses how the role of press in establishing the hegemony of the modern-industrial west works through the politics of news, establishing the hierarchies in the politics of knowledge in general and therefore also in the project of development. It argues that in post-colonial societies, the latter includes a process of marginalization of already existing knowledge systems, for long and more commonly referred to as ‘traditional knowledges’. Exploring initiatives in creating counters to mainstream media, the article also invites a problematization of the category of ‘alternative media’ as a true alternative presenting peoples’ perspectives on development.

Promicanje skrbničke demokracije kao projekta socijalnog inženjeringa političko intelektualnoga pokreta

“…100 However, at this point, "the only chance remains for progressive forces to make positive effects in dragging the society in one direction by getting organized outside the parliament." 101 In his final article in Yön, which he wrote as a farewell article concerning a political context where conservative parties repeatedly won elections, Doğan Avcıoğlu, 102 who considers conservative parties as internal elements of imperialism, argues that "This is a great misfortune and a great handicap, which must be changed, one way or another, for the populist and nationalist forces." Stating that one of the main pillars of the 1961 regime is the Parliament, Mümtaz Soysal 103 argued that nation was in a political impasse by claiming that "Parliament as it is today does not have the assertiveness and the power of action to radically change the destiny of the nation."…”