With reference to Herman and Chomsky’s propaganda model, this article analyzes the Indian elite English-language dailies’ strong criticism of the Gujarat government for failing to protect Muslim victims of the riots that engulfed the state in 2002. The propaganda model claims that media in capitalist societies consistently serve the interests of corporations and state powers, while its liberal–pluralist critics argue that the model does not do justice to media’s complex functioning. In exploring if the model can be applied to free market capitalist economies in developing countries, such as in India, this article analyzes the English-language national dailies’ critical stance as opposed to the vernacular-language newspapers’ supportive posture. This article argues that the different positioning of the dailies reflects the dissent among ruling elites, which Rajagopal (2001) refers to as a ‘split public’. Nevertheless, the model remains relevant because a contiguous and homologous space between media institutions and dominant powers is still discernible as different factions align with different media outlets. The Gujarati-language dailies reflected the views of local/regional businesses and power centres, while the English-language dailies with a national circulation were concerned with larger agenda of protecting India’s reputation as a favourable business destination that was being damaged by the breakdown in law and order.
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