On January 19, 2023, the South Asia Center hosted a lecture on the Rise of Authoritarianism and Communication Policy in Bangladesh from Fahmidul Haq, a public intellectual, activist, and Visiting Professor of Experimental Humanities at Bard College.
Abstract:
Authoritarianism is growing across the world and South Asia is no exception. The rise of one party and the repression of opposition in the name of economic ‘development’ and ultra ‘nationalism’– all are very much evident in the political spheres, especially in India and Bangladesh.
This talk analyzes how the recent communication policy reforms ensured controlling the media systems with a background of the recent rise of an authoritarian regime. Haq investigates how the mainstream media, digital platforms as well as film industry of Bangladesh are directly or indirectly under surveillance and censorship, as well as how people’s constitutional right to express their opinions is muzzled by the government.