The Role of Digital Labor in Producing Everyday Consensus for Majoritarianism in India

Bibliographic Data

ID12075909
AuthorsFathima Nizaruddin (corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume47
Issue4
Pages628-648
Publication date2025-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueNew Political Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0739-3148 • E-ISSN: 1469-9931
PublisherRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1215/07393148-11963048
OpenAlexW7115899609
LanguageEN
References cited23

The authoritarian turn in present day India under Modi has been made possible through a consolidation of Hindu majoritarianism which locates certain minorities, especially Muslims, as outgroups. One factor contributing to this consolidation is the circulation of extreme speech and misinformation through digital platforms. The role of the IT cell of Modi’s party, the BJP, in achieving this circulation is well documented. Several other actors and constellations contribute to such circulations, the case of a section of hyperlocal digital news portals in the state of Uttarakhand in India that are not necessarily run by BJP sympathizers being an example. This case shows how in a context where insecure low quality employment in the informal sector is the norm, precarious conditions for digital labor set by platform capitalism opens up space for actors like the rightwing BJP government in Uttarakhand to influence specific creator cultures. When the state itself is a source of disinformation which targets outgroups, this influence enhances the circulation of majoritarian narratives at the grass roots which in turn strengthens the entrenchment of authoritarianism

Authoritarianism · Capitalism · Consolidation (business · Context (archaeology · Corporate governance · Digital media · Narrative · State (computer science · South Asian Cinema and Culture · South Asian Studies and Conflicts · South Asian Studies and Diaspora