Language Press in Assam: Changing Phizog in Neo-Cyber Age Communicator Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 20 Assamese language media concentrates on local politics, scandals, scams, intrigues, etc. but seldom inform the public about the important policy decisions or trends at the center or international arenas that threaten their vital interest. Dr. Ankuran Dutta* Associate Professor and Head Department of Communication and Journalism, Gauhati University Dr. Anupa Lahkar Goswami** Assistant Professor Department of Communication and Journalism, Gauhati University Abstract Newspapers have always played an indelible part in formation of a society through strengthening public opinion and spreading information about the who’s who of the larger society. From a broader outlook it can be said that newspaper is one of the mediums that establishes the world in human mind. Though it faces tough competition from the electronic media and digital social media, yet from the growing number of newspapers in the region, it is seen that it still stands like a colossus. In Assam, newspaper journalism started in the 19th century with the publication of “Arunodoi Sanbad Patra”, a joint venture of three Christian Missionaries - Nathen Brown, Oliver T Cutter and Miles Bronson. From the time when “Arunodoi” was published in 1846 till date, many dailies, weeklies and periodicals have been published in Assam. Although some of these have been short lived, yet their contribution for the development of Assamese language, Assamese journalism and the Assamese society at large cannot be denied. Gradually with the change of time newspaper journalism also underwent changes and the basic formats of newspaper also changed. Soon competition between print media and electronic media started and the supremacy of one upon the other had become a topic of debate, which is still continuing and may continue for centuries. The newspapers have been taking the advantages from unhealthy competition among the language television channels. Here a course correction is also necessary where it has been observed that often Assamese language media concentrates on local politics, scandals, scams, intrigues, etc. but seldom inform the public about the important policy decisions or trends at the center or international arenas that threaten their vital interest. It is these percales that often comment as patriotism, amounting to shortage of analysis where public also show little patience to examine the matters. These result in lack of formation of public opinion RQ FULWLFDO LVVXHV DQG VRPHWLPHV XQGHU WKH LQÀXHQFH RI PLGGOH FODVV vested interests, helps create a mass hysteria on certain issues. A strong but uninformed and prejudiced public opinion is formed without any divergence of news and without stimulating debate. Keywords: Assamese, Press in Assam, Newspapers in Assam, Arunodoi, Media of Assam Introduction Communicator Assam media has a 164-year-old heritage, going back to the publication of Arunodoi LQ $VVDPHVH LQ  E\ WKH $PHULFDQ %DSWLVW 0LVVLRQ PDNLQJ LWVHOI WKH ¿UVW RI its kind in the region. The Assam Tribune is over 76 years old and is the highest circulated English daily published from the State. The state has 800 periodicals published from Assam, 30 daily newspapers in Assamese, English, Hindi and Bengali. Most newspapers survive only through government advertisements. Among the oldest Assamese daily newspapers is the Dainik Asam (in its 46th year) and the Dainik Janambhumi (in its 39th year) published from several centres like most of the important dailies of the State (Bezbaruah, 2010). Now there are 803 registered newspapers in Assam according to the RNI. Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 The people and the language press in the state of Assam are connected to the core of formation of the identity of statehood. The language press played a crucial role during the pre-independence to the post-independence time, it gave impetus to the language moment in the late eighties and was instrumental in raising voices for autonomy and then again led to integrity at the face of the natural calamities like ÀRRGVDQGHDUWKTXDNHVWKDWKDYHWLPHDQGDJDLQULSSHGWKHVWDWHRILWVFRPIRUWV$OO the milestones and the determining factors in the state of Assam are the result of the language press that has its own distinct character and continues to form opinion and inform the people on everyday issues. The state that once was composed of more diversity before the breaking out of other northeastern states, now has a number of language newspapers than any other northeastern states. 21 However it would be unfair to simply culminate the entire process of struggle of the language in such a brief form and hence a chronicle of the language press seems pertinent at this point of time tracing the formation, growth and evolution of the language press and understanding its adaptability in the era of internet seems appropriate. Newspapers in Assam To begin with, in Assam, newspaper journalism started in the 19th century with the publication of “Arunodoi Sanbad Patra”, a joint venture of three Christian Missionaries- Nathen Brown, Oliver T Cutter and Miles Bronson. From 1846, since the times of “Arunodoi” to till date many dailies; weeklies; periodicals have been published in Assam1. Gradually with the changes of time the newspaper journalism underwent change. The basic formats of newspaper also changed with continuous competition between SULQWPHGLDDQGHOHFWURQLFPHGLD¿JKWLQJRYHUVXSUHPDF\RQDQ\EXUQLQJLVVXHV ‘Arunodoi’: The Journey Begins With the intent of preaching Christanity, two Christian Missionaries Nathan Brown and Oliver T Cutter set their foot in Assam in the year 1836. The very next year (1837) they were joined by another American missionary Miles Bronson in Sivasagar Assam media has a 164-yearold heritage, going back to the publication of Arunodoi in Assamese in 1846 by the American Baptist Mission, making LWVHOIWKH¿UVWRI its kind in the region. Communicator Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 22 ZKLFKZDVWKH¿UVWSODFHWKH\ODQGHGRQWKHIHUWLOHUHJLRQRI$VVDP2OLYHU&XWWHU EURXJKWKLVRZQSULQWLQJPDFKLQHDQGTXLWHMXGLFLRXVO\VHWWKHSUHVVLQWKHEDQNRI river Dikhow of Sivasagar, establishing the famous Baptist Printing Press2. Though motivated with the intent of religious preaching, this joint venture, laced with a noble outlook resulted in the birth of ‘Arunodoi’LQWKH¿UVWQHZVSDSHU or news magazine of Assam. In its initial stage, the newspaper was christened as ‘Arunodoi Sangbad Patra’, but in 1851 it was renamed as ‘Arunodoi’. It featured religious context apart from daily news with a line written in the bottom of the last SDJHUHVRXQGLQJLWVXQLTXHQHVVZLWKWKHVWDWHPHQWµDevoted to religions, science and general intelligence’3. Contribution towards Assamese language: Browsing through the pages of history, it has been found that, the year when Christian Missionaries came to Assam (1836), Assamese language was to a large extent abolished from schools, courts etc. of Assam. The British very strategically introduced Bengali as the medium of instruction due to logistic designs. Though the missionaries were Non-Assamese, their contribution to establish Assamese language through ‘Arunodoi’ could not be undermined by the Assamese people4. According to late Radhika Mohan Bhagawati, an eminent Assamese editor the medium of people’s communication is language. So, the missionaries contributed immensely to establish the Assamese language through ‘Arunodoi ‘. The time when ‘Arunodoi’ was published (1846), the Assamese language was not established as a formal medium of communication. But the missionaries tried to establish and standardized the language through their enormous publication ‘Arunodoi’. (December 21, 2005) Adding to this, Dr. Maheswar Neog had stated, “Missionaries by publishing Assamese grammar, dictionaries, text books, science books, magazines and newspapers made ‘Arunodoi’ last for thirty glorious years. This made Assamese language get back its own position”.5 The missionaries LQWKHLUTXHVW for religious penetration succeeded in establishing Assamese language through ‘Arunodoi’ resulting in the re-establishment of Assamese language in schools and courts in 1873. Concerning the lifespan of Arunodoi there are different opinions. The reason for these differences is because of the fact that all the copies of Arunodoi are not available. The printing press of Arunodoi was sold to Assam Company in the year 1882. So many scholars agreed that Arunodoi had been published up to 1882. But in the book of Mrs. S.R. Ward’s ‘A Glimpse of Assam’ published in 1884 clearly mentions that – ‘this useful little sheet came to an end in December 1880’6. Growth of Newspapers in Assam 7KHPLVVLRQDULHVLQWKHLUTXHVWIRUUHOLJLRXVSHQHWUDWLRQVXFFHHGHGLQHVWDEOLVKLQJ Assamese language through ‘Arunodoi’ resulting in the re-establishment of Assamese language in schools and courts in 1873. After two decades and half of ‘Arunodoi’, the religious head of Auniati Satra, Satradhikar Dattadev Goswami went to Kolkata and brought a printing press and established it in Majuli, the river island of mighty Brahmaputra and published ‘Asam Bilashini’ in 1875. This newspaper could be Communicator The Auniati Satra was also the initiator of ‘Asom Tara’ in 1888, an Assamese magazine edited by Sridhar Baruah that lasted for two years. In between the year 1885, saw the birth of another monthly newspaper ‘Asam Bondhu’, which was published from Nagaon by renowned writer of Assam, Gunabhiram Baruah who ZDVWKHPDLQSLOODUEHKLQGWKLVSXEOLFDWLRQ%ROLQDUD\DQ%RUDDQRWKHUOLWHUDU\¿JXUH of those days was the editor of ‘Mou’ which started in December 1886. 23 Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 FUHGLWHG WR KDYH EHHQ WKH ¿UVW $VVDPHVH QHZVSDSHU VWDUWHG E\ DQ $VVDPHVH $ government servant Krishna Kanta Bhattacharya published the second publication after 30 years in Jorhat which stood out for its distinctive style. He was a nationalist and supported Gandhi for ‘Swaraj’. In the year 1921 he stopped the publication ZKHUHWKH*RYHUQPHQWLPSRVHGD¿QHRI5VZKLFKOHGKLPWRFORVHWKHSUHVV DQGSD\WKH¿QH%XWWKDWGLGQRWGHWHU.ULVKQD.DQWD%KDWWDFKDU\DZKRSXEOLVKHG the paper sneaking inside the press locking it from outside and circulated the papers to villages through vegetable vendors setting a record in the history of Assamese newspaper (Barua, 1999). In 1900, an English weekly named ‘Weekly Chronicle’ was published and edited E\6DFKLQGUD6LQJKDQGODWHULQWKH\HDUWKH¿UVW%HQJDOLQHZVSDSHUµAssam Mihir’ in Assam was published from Guwahati. Chidananda Choudhary of Barpeta was the establisher and editor of this monthly newspaper. This lasted only for one year while during the same time from Srihatta ‘Srihatta Prakash’ was published in 1876. In 1880, another Bengali newspaper ‘Paridarshak’ was published from Srihatta with the joint efforts of Bipin Chandra Pal and Radhanath Choudhary. Even Bipin Chandra Pal edited this newspaper7. ,QWKH¿UVWHYHUELOLQJXDOQHZVSDSHURI$VVDPZDVSXEOLVKHGIURP*XZDKDWL Hem Chandra Baruah was the editor of this newspaper. This paper has some distinctive features)LUVWO\LWZDVWKH¿UVWQHZVSDSHUSXEOLVKHGIURP*XZDKDWL6HFRQGO\LWZDVWKH ¿UVW ELOLQJXDO QHZVSDSHU SXEOLVKHG ERWK LQ (QJOLVK DQG $VVDPHVH 7KLUGO\ IURP WKHYHU\EHJLQQLQJLWZDVWKH¿UVWZHHNO\QHZVSDSHUDQGLWZDVWKH¿UVW$VVDPHVH newspaper edited by an Assamese etymologist. According to Pandit Hemchandra Goswami, the contemporary Assamese prose literature follows the tune of ‘Assam News’.” And he claimed to have learned to write up in Assamese only after reading and observing the writing text of ‘Assam News’8. In Guwahati 1894, Kaliram Baruah launched another bi-lingual weekly newspaper ‘Assam’ which continued till 1901. The Dawn of 20th century saw the publication of ‘Assam Bonti¶IURP7H]SXUE\0RWKXUD0RKDQ%DUXDKDVWKH¿UVWHGLWRURIWKLV newspaper. Later editors include some great literary assets of Assamese literature one of them being Padmanath Gohainbaruah. ‘Assam Bonti’ which had the great VLJQL¿FDQFH RI EHLQJ SXEOLVKHG IURP WKH QRUWK EDQN RI WKH %UDKPDSXWUD EHIRUH independence which continued close to about 40 years. In the year 1872, WKH¿UVW%HQJDOL newspaper ‘Assam Mihir’ in Assam was published from Guwahati. Communicator Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 24 After the decline of ‘Assam Bonti’, a new milestone was set in the history of newspaper journalism in Assam with the publication of ‘Asamiya’ in 1918. Chandra Kumar Agarwalla, another jewel from the legendary Agarwalla family of Assam guided this newspaper. This newspaper could be attributed to have initiated the modern Assamese journalism, in the true sense of the term. During non-cooperation movement the newspaper played a momentous role. A panel of assets of Assamese language and culture were the editors of this newspaper, like Sadananda Duara, Maheswar Baruah, Amiya Kr. Das, Harendra Nath Baruah, Lakhminath Phukan, Ananda Ch. Baruah, Hem Ch. Mahanta, Padmadhar Chaliha, Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla and Jogendranath Borkakoti (Dutta, 2005; p. 436). After 8 years of Chandra Prasad Agarwalla (1938), in January 1946, under the editorship of Devakanta Baruah, ‘Asamiya’ became a daily as ‘Dainik Asamiya’ which lasted for a decade. Asom Kesori fame Ambikagiri Roychoudhary in 1935 published a weekly named ‘Deka Asom’. The newspaper intended to unite a community and preserve it and its contribution towards Assamese society is incomparable. With the death of Ambikagiri Roychoudhary the publication of this newspaper was also stopped. Dr. Sunil Pawan Baruah said that, ‘Deka Asom’ will act not as an inspector but rather a sterilizer of ills of the society. The newspaper played a very important role in Assamese journalism and at the same time molded the public opinion against this vital problem of the region that is the immigration problem. It should be noted that after a long period a powerful movement was started in Assam against foreign nationals. The fact should be admitted that ‘Deka Asom’ under the leadership of Ambikagiri Roychoudhary actually started this campaign for the preservation of the people’s identity of Assam at the initial stage (Barua, 1999). Simultaneously in Dibrugarh a very prominent city of Assam, ‘The Times of Assam’, ZDVWKH¿UVWIXOOÀHGJHG(QJOLVKGDLO\SXEOLVKHGIURP-DQXDU\E\5DGKDQDWK Changkakoti, an elite from Dibrugarh who laid a model for establishing journal and newspaper industry in the state. Poet literate Kamala Kanta Bhattacharya and Mahadev Sharma established the famous fortnightly ‘Asom Hitoshi’ in 1925 which was short lived but emancipated ideas on ‘Swaraj’ which proved very valuable to the readers.(Barua, 1999). Some short lived newspapers Some short lived newspapers “The 1902- “The Eastern Herald”, a weekly English newspaper was published by a noted DGYRFDWHRIWKRVHGD\V%0LWUD+HZDVWKH¿UVWHGLWRURIWKLVZHHNO\ Eastern Herald”, ‘Citizen’ ‘The Advocate of Assam’ ‘Nagarar Kotha’ ‘Pratibha’, ‘Asom Sevak’, 1904- ‘Citizen¶ZDVSXEOLVKHGE\.DOLQDWK5R\DVLWV¿UVW(GLWRUµCitizen’ lasted only for two years. 1903- Victoria Press of Guwahati started ‘The Advocate of Assam’ under the editorship of Mathuram Baruah. This paper lasted up to 1912. It was a nationalist SDSHUDQGIRUWKH¿UVWWLPHDGYRFDWHGWKHSULQFLSOHRI6ZDUDMDQG6ZDGHVL,WWULHGWR serve the interest of the people and tried to point out the loopholes and shortcoming of the Indian government. 1935- ‘Pratibha’, a weekly newspaper, was brought out from Guwahati, under the editorship of Rohini Kumar Choudhury. 1937- ‘Asom Sevak¶ZDVSXEOLVKHGIURP*XZDKDWL,WSOD\HGDYHU\VLJQL¿FDQWUROH in freedom movement. Infact, it represented the ideals of the Congress Government, XQGHUWKHHGLWRUVKLSRI¿UVW'HEHQGUDQDWK6DUPDKDQGODWHUE\%LMR\&K%KDJZDWL (Barua, 1956). Communicator 1935- A newspaper was published every alternate day- ‘Asom’ was founded by 5DGKDNDQWD+DQGLTXHDQGZDVHGLWHGE\UHQRZQHGPXVLFLDQFRPSRVHU.LUWLQDWK Sharma Bordoloi. Later on both of them published ‘Asom Rayij’ from Jorhat. Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 1935- Mofuzul Hussain, edited a newspaper named ‘Nagarar Kotha’. 25 Contribution of Tea Industry in Newspaper Journalism The tea and the state of Assam are intrinsically related. While it provided momentum to the sleepy economy of the state, it also supported and promoted in the development of Newspaper journalism. In 1930 renowned tea planter Sivaprasad Baruah started the weekly called ‘Batori’7KLVQHZVSDSHUZHQWRQLQWREHFRPHWKH¿UVWHYHU daily published in Assam. In August 12, 1935 when ‘Batori’ transformed itself to ‘Dainik Batori’, and was later published from Jorhat town, Thengal Tea Estate and ZDVHGLWHGE\IUHHGRP¿JKWHU1LODPRQL3KXNDQ Nandeswar Chakraborty, another tea planter of Assam, started in 1939 ‘Tarun Asom’ IURP 'LEUXJDUK 7DUXQ %KDWWDFKDU\D ¿UVW HGLWHG WKH QHZVSDSHU IURP 'HFHPEHU  %HQXGKDU 6KDUPD D YHWHUDQ IUHHGRP ¿JKWHU KLVWRULDQ DQG ZULWHU WRRN WKH charge of the editorship. Also acute shortage of news-print during the time of World War- II was one of the important causes for the downfall of the newspaper. In spite of the short tenure ‘Tarun Asom’ made a mark in the history of Assamese journalism (Barua, 1956). The Modern Age of Newspapers While journalism in its various forms did make raise its head time and again creating a fertile ground for professional journalism in Assam, the modern form of journalism that we encounter today can be wholly attributed to the publication of ‘The Assam Tribune’ with the sincere devotion and efforts of Radhagobinda Baruah and journalist Laxminath Phukan. On 8th August 1939 in Dibrugarh. This announced the arrival of a new and important chapter in the trend of English newspaper in Assam, with ‘The Assam Tribune’ becoming very popular within a very short span of time. In its nascent years it came out as a weekly. However after completing eight glorious years, on 11th of August 1946, ‘The Assam Tribune’ shifted to Guwahati. In that very same year, on 30th of September, it also secured the position of becoming WKH ¿UVW (QJOLVK GDLO\ WR KDYH EHHQ SXEOLVKHG IURP $VVDP 7KLV QHZVSDSHU KDV The modern form of journalism that we encounter today can be wholly attributed to the publication of ‘The Assam Tribune’. Communicator Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 26 tremendously contributed to the Assamese society, politics and culture. It has, raised its voice against the grouping policy of the British cabinet mission in 16th May 1946 and till date it continues to be a mouthpiece for democracy. Even keeping in tune with the modern journalism, a Bengali weekly named Janashakti was published from Silchar in the 1920s founded by Bipin Ch. Pal and Dr. Sundari Mohan Das which contributed a lot to the struggle for Independence in India (Dutta, 2007). 7KH¿UVW+LQGLQHZVSDSHULQ$VVDPZDVSXEOLVKHGIURP'LEUXJDUKµPrakash’, in the year 1919 where noted social activist, Biseshwar Dutta Sarmah was its editor. In WKH¿UVW+LQGLZHHNO\µNabajagriti’ was started from Dibrugarh, however, it survived for a span of one and a half year. During the ‘Quit India Movement’ in 1942, ‘Karo ya Maro’ was published from Kolkata, which was translated into Assamese. Pandit Dhyan Das translated the language and connected with the readers. Meanwhile, Viswanath Gupta published ‘Akela’ from Azad Hind Press, in Tinsukia, XQGHU WKH HGLWRUVKLS RI 6KLYDQDUD\DQ 6KDUPD LQ  ZKLFK FHOHEUDWHG LWV ¿IW\ glorious years as a weekly (Jhajhari, 1998; pp. 577-587). Some Landmarks in Assamese Press ‘Janambhumi’ a premier newspaper from Jorhat, 1947, kept publishing and has a NHSWLWVÀDPHEXUQLQJHYHQWRGD\,WVIRXQGHUZDVWKHJUHDWIUHHGRP¿JKWHU'HEHVZDU Sharma and this was the oldest of the existing Assamese newspapers with ‘Moinar Mel’ as its attractive highlight. The paper got published from its own press i.e. the Janambhumi Press from where ‘The Eastern Clarion’ was also published. Kanak Ch. 6KDUPDZDVLWV¿UVWHGLWRUDQG+HPDQWD%DUPDQLWVFXUUHQWHGLWRU 'XWWD  Ganatantra a daily from Ganatantra Press, Nagaon was found in the year 1962 by the IUHHGRP¿JKWHU3XUQDNDQWD6KDUPD,Q.DQDNVHQ'HNDWKHSUHVHQW3UHVLGHQW of Asom Sahitya Sabha, brought a fortnightly paper ‘Agradoot’ from Mangaldai, which was later shifted to Guwahati and was brought out weekly in 1973. By 1974, it was brought three days a week and by 6th October 1995, ‘Dainik Agradoot’ was brought out. In 1969, a weekly newspaper ‘Weekly Express’ was published on the Republic day, with Hem Barua as the founder editor. Some Landmarks in Assamese Press ‘Janambhumi’ Ganatantra ‘Weekly Express’ Sentinel’ ‘The Sentinel’ under the aegis of its existing editor Prof. Dhirendra Nath Bezbaruah, served for the 22 years from 1983 under Omega Printers and Publishers Pvt. Ltd. from this publishing house, a short lived ‘Saptahik Prahari’ which came out under the editorship of Shankar Rajkhowa in 1985. This same publishing house came out with newspapers like ‘Ajir Asom’ as an Assamese daily in 1989, under the editor Radhika Mohan Bhagawati , and ‘Samoy Prabha’ a Bengali daily, under the editorship of Sukumar Bagshi which later closed down in 2004. A Hindi edition of ‘The Sentinel’ was published in 1989 with Radhika Mohan Bhagawati as the editor and as the executive editors, Mukesh kumar and Chandreshwar Singh who respectively took the responsibility. Surjya Hazarika’s, ‘Natun Dainik’ was published from Chandra Prakash, a publishing house of repute, Guwahati in 1988 and lend a powerful voice to the print media of the state. 1951- With a motto of ‘ahinsa param dharma’ newspaper named ‘Shantidoot’ came into existence. Its editor was Tarani Das. From 2nd October 1954 it was renamed as ‘Dainik shantidoot’ under the editorship of Devendra Sharmah. Due to various reasons in 1956 its publication was stopped (Barua, 1999). Communicator Some eminent newspapers Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 The beginning of the 90’s saw Assamese journalism witness some remarkably LQÀXHQWLDOHYHQWVZLWK7LODN+D]DULNDDVWKHFKLHIHGLWRUDQG$MLW%KX\DQDVWKH editor, Jayanta Baruah brought out ‘Sadin’ in 1988, trailing its success the ‘Asomiya Pratidin’ was brought out. The existing editor is Haidar Hussain, and executive editor is Manjit Mahanta. The present editor of ‘Sadin’ is Anuradha Sarmah Pujari. 27 1963- Under the editorship of eminent litterateur Chandra Prasad Saikia, a three days weekly was published from Guwahati. The name of the newspaper is ‘Asom Batori’. But in 1970 this newspaper was last published. 1968- Famous publisher Dattabaruah and Company published a weekly ‘Nilachal’. Doyen of Assamese literature Homen Borgohain edited this newspaper. Till 2001 it continued to be published. 1989- ‘Budhbar’ an unconventional weekly was published under the editorship of Parag Kr. Das. But this newspaper could not last long. All these papers have greatly contributed to the growth of Assamese Journalism, paving a new way for the development of language as well as the society. Understanding the evolution and shifting role of the language press from theoretical perspective: After going through the chronicles of the language press, what is evident is that the Assamese middle class have largely been successful in mobilizing and leading all the various ethnic groups and the laboring masses of Assam over decades. But for the PLGGOHFODVVWKHLURZQHFRQRPLFDQGSROLWLFDOLQWHUHVWFRPH¿UVW7KLVIDFWRUFRXOG be attributed to the Agenda setting concept of the Mc Comb and Shaw (1968) where the language press has issues that address concern that is not entirely representative of the condition of the state. A course correction is also necessary. Assamese newspapers concentrates on local politics, scandals, scams, intrigues, etc. but seldom inform the public about the important policy decisions or trends at the center or international arenas that threatened their vital interest. It is these percales that often passes comment as patriotism. There is a shortage of analysis and the public also has little patience for analysis. As a result the public fails to form opinions about critical issues. Sometimes SUHVVXQGHUWKHLQÀXHQFHRIPLGGOHFODVVYHVWHGLQWHUHVWVKHOSVFUHDWHDPDVVK\VWHULD All these papers have greatly contributed to the growth of Assamese Journalism, paving a new way for the development of language as well as the society. Communicator Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 28 on certain issues. A strong but uninformed and prejudiced public opinion is formed without any divergence of news and without stimulating debate. This often leads to emergence of the knowledge gap theory propounded by Tichenor, Donohue and Olien in the 70’s where important issues are sometimes overlooked in the absence of valuable information. When the freedom movement under Mahatma Gandhi was launched then Assamese newspaper, which were not numerically large, particularly ‘Asom Bilashili’, it also tried to guide and inspire the Assamese people and very often it anger the suffer of the British ruler. At the dawn of freedom Assam had the fortune of having the ¿UVW(QJOLVKGDLO\QHZVSDSHUµWKH$VVDPWULEXQH¶ODXQFKHGLQ,QWKHVDPH year the ‘Dainik Asamiya’ also came under the leadership of Devakanta Baruah. Then Assamese press embarked the empowerment of new path. When the ‘Natun Asamiya’, was launched under the leadership of Harendranath Baruah it gave a new direction to the Assamese journalism. We must remember that through ages, press in Assam, the editorial policies has been made for the advancement of the society, advancement of Assam, advancement of the country, and welfare and well-being of humanity. Modernity in journalism in Assam whether it is reporting, editing, layout or printing system has come out only in the later part of 20th century. Earlier it was in the crude way, even most popular Assamese daily ‘Natun Asamiya’ was published or printed in sheet machines. In Assamese dailies particularly reporting is yet to grow up. Most of the daily newspapers are trying to grow up their circulation by using the system of mildly or hardly the yellow journalism process. And this has harmed the society and this is harming the causes of journalism. The Electronic and the print media in the state have never been at loggerheads, since both have their own respective space as well as their set of loyal readers and viewers. Earlier print media was the initiator of news, but now electronic media breaks the news 12 hrs prior to the print media. This surely does not take away the prominence of the newspaper but rather it remains a credible source of information without the element of dramatic narration that is a characteristics of the electronic media. In print media, we can analyze the news items, we can form opinions, we can publish detailed discussions, we can write inner stories and this adds to the gravity of the existing print media. The Electronic and the print media in the state have never been at loggerheads, since both have their own respective space as well as their set of loyal readers and viewers. Changing Phizog in Neo-Cyber Age: The present scenario of the language press in Assam can be categorized from different angles. With the changing paradigm and the competition with the electronic media and more particularly the web-based media, the language press have been struggling ZLWKWKHKLJKO\ÀXFWXDWLQJUHDGHUVKLSK\SHUFRPSHWLWLRQRIWDULIIIRUDGYHUWLVHPHQWV and increasing expenses of printing. The following are a few points to be considered for the survival of the language press in Assama) Internet friendly: Almost all the language newspapers of Assam, particularly newspapers in Assamese, Bengali and Hindi have their internet editions. Here c) Newspaper still a credible source of Information: From most readership survey conducted, the newspapers of Assam are considered as more credible source of news in comparison to that of television channels and website. This attribute of the newspaper should be made an asset and they can afford to stay away from the clutches of fake news. Communicator b) Regionalism dominates content: The contents of Assamese newspapers are KLJKO\LQÀXHQFHGE\HPRWLRQVDQGUHJLRQDOLVP7KHUHVKRXOGEHDFKDQJHLQWKH contents to attract the general reader to adopt a global outlook. Often excessive viewing of the regional channels with over dramatic representations and usage of terms provoking regional sentiment leads to the cultivation of such strong emotions. Here the cultivation theory of George Gerbner (1956) can be applied. In the wake of this, regionalism can dominate the content of the regional newspapers but they can afford to be more analytical in terms of representation of facts. 29 Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 convergence of media is an absolute necessity to cater to the growing demands of the reader. However, they are not searchable in any search engine due to the availability of the image form of the printed newspaper. Except, Asomiya Pratidin, no other newspaper uses Unicode fonts and search ability features. Hence compatibility and convergence of media is an absolute must. d) Printed version and its loyal readership: One of the positive aspect is that due to the socio-economic architecture of the region, people are still more accustomed with the printed version of the newspapers. The rise in the number of neo-literates over the course of time has led to an increasing number of people subscribing newspapers added to the already existing loyal readers. e) No Archive option: Archival features of the newspapers are very poor and LW LV DOPRVW GLI¿FXOW WR JHW WKH QHZVSDSHUV RI D PRQWK LQ WKHLU ZHEVLWHV $V recommended convergence of media is the only existing option to gather the attention of the readers. f) Sustainability of web portals: There is a huge penetration of web news portals in Assam, but their sustainability is a big issue. Here the regional media can coexist and share the content through tie-ups. Often excessive g) Limitations of design: There have been limitations in the aspect of design since a number of stories are accommodated in the pages that tends to takes away the interest of the readers. viewing of the regional channels with over dramatic h) Poor Circulation: The circulation of most language newspapers is very poor, although it is recorded with a high readership of the newspapers as they claim, but the real situation is grim. Even reputed newspaper like ‘Ajir Asom’ was closed down by renowned Sentinel group who are designing web newspaper of the same with a very limited contents. representations and usage of terms provoking regional sentiment leads to the cultivation i) Poor pay scales: The wages of the journalists of the language newspapers is too of such strong emotions. low, below the rates of the daily wage workers. This often leads the reporters to LQGXOJHLQXQHWKLFDOSUDFWLFHVDQGHYHQFRPSURPLVHRQWKHTXDOLW\RIUHVHDUFK Hence the paid news system persists despite much resistance by the newspaper bodies. Communicator Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 30 j) Untrained workforce: Most journalists are not trained in media studies and hence there is the difference in the perception of news. In most cases the stories KDYHLQVHQVLWLYHFRQWHQWDQGHWKLFVLVTXLWHRIWHQQRWSUDFWLFHGE\WKHMRXUQDOLVWV leading to unlawful situation. k) Ownership patterns: Most language papers are owned by political leaders and hence they manipulate the news content to suit their interest. Here the gatekeeping is done by the editors which refrain the right kind of news from reaching the masses. l) Competition with the television news channels: Many prominent journalists move towards online medium or television and the news has to compete with the internet counterparts which makes it very challenging for the print. Sometimes they give graphic details and this crosses the limits of ethical practices. This has led to an increasing number of defamation cases leveled against the media owners and most importantly, this has led to aversion towards most media content leading to a total shutdown from information. Here there is a replication of the media effect theory that has led to a shift in people’s behavior and attitudes. Conclusion The challenges to the language press in Assam are not one of a kind, since some common problems are surprisingly similar in most states. What stands out is how Assamese language press still continues to be the most credible and powerful in WHUPVRILQÀXHQFLQJWKHSHRSOH7KHHOHFWRUDWHLVGHSHQGHQWRQWKHQHZVRSLQLRQRI prominent writers who continue to dominate the print and stay aloof from the cyber ZRUOG3HUKDSVLQYDVLRQRIF\EHUZRUOGLQLQHYLWDEOHEXWTXLWHFHUWDLQO\WKLVFKDQJH is likely to withstand some more decades of print domination. What stands out is how Assamese language press still continues to be the most credible and powerful in terms RILQÀXHQFLQJWKH people. Not remaining content with this situation, there has to be an effort to adapt to a friendly web version and brace up to the instant need of news hungry people in the state. Assam is dependent on its language press to a large extent with such a rich historical background, however media convergence seems to be the most viable option so far. End Notes and References 1. Barua ,S.P. (1999) Press in Assam - Origin and Development (Lawyer’s Book stall,), Lawyer’s First Edition. 3. Barua, P C. (1998) Asomor Asomiya aru Ingraji Batorikakot in Asomor Batori Kakot-Alochanir Derso Basaria Itihaas (Celebration Committee of 150 years of Newspapers in Assam, Guwahati) p.237 4. Dutta, A. (2005) Asomor Mudran Madhyam in Sahitya Sanskritir Bibidh Prasanga, Nath, S.K. (ed), (Asom Sahitay Sabha, Sipajhar Session) p. 436 5. Dutta, A. (2007) Asomor Gana Madhyam in Axom Darpan, Deka, Dr. N. (ed), (Bani Mandir, Guwahati) 6. Jhajhari, R. (1998) Asomot Hindi Sangbadikata in Asomor Batori KakotAlochanir Derso Basaria Itihaas (Celebration Committee of 150 years of Newspapers in Assam, Guwahati) pp. 577-587 7. Neog, M. (1983) The Arunodoi 1846-1854, (Asom Prakashan Parishad, Guwahati) pp. .78- 79. 8. Saikia, N. (1998) Arunudoir para Jonakiloi in Asomor Batori Kakot-Alochanir Derso Basaria Itihaas (Celebration Committee of 150 years of Newspapers in Assam, Guwahati), pp.110-115 9. Annexure of the present newspapers are the lists of accredited newspapers and GHULYHGIURPWKHRI¿FLDOZHEVLWHRI-DQDVDQMRJ'LUHFWRUDWHRI,QIRUPDWLRQDQG Public Relations, Govt of Assam on 4th January, 2019. 31 Communicator Barua S.P. (1956) A History of Journalism in Assam (Barti Sahitya Mandir, Morioni) First Edition Volume LIII, Number-4, October-December, 2018 2.