Coping with Hate: Exploring Indian Journalists’ Responses to Online Harassment

ABSTRACTIn India, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) employs a digital army of right-wing supporters to harass journalists who are critical of the party's Hindu-nationalist ideology. As a result, the country's press freedom rankings have significantly declined over the past decade. While scholars have examined the discursive strategies used by online Hindu nationalists against journalists, how reporters cope with these attacks remains unknown. This study investigates how Indian media professionals perceive the personal and professional consequences of harassment for themselves and the coping strategies they use to combat digital hate. In-depth interviews with 24 journalists reveal that they employ mechanisms such as strategic social disconnection, formation of alliance networks, and working for non-profit news sites and international media organizations to overcome the effects of social media harassment. The analysis also highlights that commercial media that are subservient to the Modi government failed to protect their reporters, while independent media outlets provide much more support to their employees. The findings underscore the need for social media companies to promptly respond to content flagged by journalists and allocate additional resources to moderate hate speech in India's local languages to safeguard journalists from sustained online abuse.KEYWORDS: Narendra ModiHindu-nationalismhate speechjournalismIndiaonline harassment ‌ Disclosure StatementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Notes1 The Sanskrit word Bhakt literally means "devotee." The term has been used to refer to Narendra Modi's supporters as Modi Bhakts—which implies devotees of Modi or Modi fans who blindly defend his actions and policies.2 Hindutva means Hinduness. It denotes the Hindu-nationalist ideology, which considers India a Hindu country (Hindu Rashtra).3 RSS is the most important Hindu-nationalist organization. Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is the political offshoot of the RSS.4 Patrakar is a Hindi word for journalist.