Mass Media, Mass Society & Federal Elections: Does Delhi Durbar Matter Any More in the General Elections?

Abstract

The question constantly arises about the importance of the performance of the central government in the general elections as compared to the state governments. How the mass media influence the electoral behavior of the Indian voters? The expansion and penetration of media in India makes it a crucial factor in influencing electoral arena. The study is based on the data of National Election Survey(NES)-2004 conducted by Lokniti of CSDS and statistical tool and techniques have been applied to find out the influence of media exposure on a voter while casting her preference in the general elections amidst growing level of the federalization of Indian Polity.