Salient features of Indian Society- communalism, regionalism & secularism.
Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors
Rumours: Why it spreads – A Sociological analysis
Context: COVID-19 crisis and the ensuing lockdown has led to emergence of unsubstantiated rumours being spread through various media
Do You Know?
Emergence of Nizamuddin (New Delhi) as the hotspot of Coronavirus led to fake news about the origin of disease leading to communalisation of pandemic
In 1984, during Delhi Sikhs pogrom, there were rumours entire water supply was poisoned
During late 18th century Paris, there were rumours that the rich had distributed lethal, contaminated flour to the poor
A rumour is an untested piece of information, opinion, report or story.
Some of the features of rumours are:
It must have an element of truth that makes it believable for the listener/reader.
It neglects reason and is loaded with passion/emotion
Interlinkage between social anxiety & rumours: It occurs in a societal context where there is either an information void or an information overload – usually during a crisis like war, pandemic, social unrest etc.
It is deliberately planted by few but derives authority largely from a mob
Immediate Consequence of rumours
Scapegoating a community (usually a minority) leading to a Polarised society
Social boycott of individual/groups of people
Violence and arson which might lead to lynching and murder.
Why rumours circulate?
Crisis situation leads to anxiety & panic among people.
Psychological inclination: In times of acute crisis, people who are already disturbed often incline towards knee jerk speculation and prejudice.
Passion dominates Reason: An anxious mind neglects all evidence and instead surrenders to rumours, often in the service of emotional need
Need for an enemy: A group consisting of ‘outsiders’, already distrusted and disliked, becomes an easy target for rumours, ready to be blamed for the crisis.
Cascading effect of rumours: A belief gets entrenched after like-minded people discuss it among themselves leading to easy spread of rumours
Group Dynamics: Rather than face sanction and ostracisation for having different opinion, people find it safer to follow other members of their group.
Lack of scientific temper: A denial by a mistrusted outsider, no matter how great her expertise, only ends up solidifying rumour
Inevitable: Since societies can never be fully informed or secure, rumours are inevitable and in times of acute crisis, they are a menace.
Sensationalization of news: The emergence of commercial news media often sensationalises events for grabbing audience attention.
Anonymous nature of Social Media: The emergence of social media has made the task of spreading fake news by vested interests much easier as they can exploit the open ended nature of internet
Way Ahead
Regulatory laws to check rumours are needed to create deterrence
Community leaders and democratically elected office holders must play a crucial role in halting rumours through regular communication
Long term measures
Depolarising society
Developing scientific temper so as to loosen the grip of prejudice in society
