Alternative News Media and Critique of Mainstream Journalism in India: The Case of OpIndia

Abstract

“Alternative news media,” that explicitly position themselves against mainstream media have emerged as an increasingly visible aspect of media systems globally including in India. And although such media can espouse left/right political positions, in the Indian context, such outlets are supportive of right-wing politics of the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In this article—drawing on rhetorical approaches—we explore the efforts of OpIndia, the most-visited right-wing news site in India to critique and correct the country’s mainstream news outlets through a textual analysis of 576 articles contained in the site’s Media Fact Check section.