Reporting the Raj The British Press and India, c.1880-1922 [Paperback]

This book is the first analysis of the dynamics of British press reporting of India and the attempts made by the British Government to manipulate press coverage as part of a strategy of imperial control. The press was an important forum for debate over the future of India and was used by significant groups within the political elite to advance their agendas. Focuses on a period which represented a critical transitional phase in the history of the Raj, witnessing the impact of the First World War, major constitutional reform initiatives, the tragedy of the Amritsar massacre, and the launching of Gandhi's mass movement. Asserts that the War was a watershed in official media manipulation and in the aftermath of the conflict the Government's previously informal and ad hoc attempts to shape press reporting were placed on a more formal basis.

Dedication, prefatory statements and acknowledgements

List of tables,iIlustrations and appendices

List of abbreviations

1. Introduction

PART I: The Networks of Information and Communication

2. Communications and the Indian Empire

3. Fleet Street and the Raj

PART II: Information Management and Imperial Control

4. Empire and news management: India and the London Press c1880s-1914

5. War and government publicity

6. Edwin Montagu, publicity and news management at the India Office, 1917-1922

PART III: Case Studies 1917-1922

7. 'Bringing India to the fore': selling Indian constitutional reforms to Britain, 1917-1918

8. Managing the Crisis? Fleet Street, government and the Jallianwallah Bagh massacre, 1919-1920

9. Ambassador of Empire: The Prince of Wales tour, Fleet Street and Government Publicity, 1921-1922

10. Conclusion

Appendices

Bibliography

Index

Chandrika Kaul is Lecturer in Modern History at the University of St Andrews