Title: Representation of child abuse in Indian news media: confronting the ethical interface

Authors: Koyel Basu

Addresses: Department of Political Science, Jangipur College, Affiliated to Kalyani University, West Bengal, 742213, India

Abstract: Childhood is that nascent stage of life that naturally progresses towards adulthood. Children are the voices of tomorrow budding into adulthood. Their minds are impressionable. Their experience of childhood is never monolithic. Therefore, media plays a very important role as an influencer. It can be a powerhouse of information spreading positivity or a dysfunctional abyss, which might draw children in a whirlpool of darkness. However, in an age of information warfare and increase of digitisation, in modern times, media is playing truant with its child audience. The paper explores the following questions - what does representation of childhood in India mean and what are its implications? How children are represented in modern Indian media? How narratives are built around them? Whether these narratives are augmenting child development or leading to chaos in their lives or their families? In the past decades, we have come across media manipulation while reporting of child abuse.

Keywords: representation; media; childhood; child abuse; ethics.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHRCS.2025.142876

International Journal of Human Rights and Constitutional Studies, 2025 Vol.12 No.1, pp.59 - 73

Received: 22 Jun 2023
Accepted: 10 Jul 2023
Published online: 30 Nov 2024 *