Media and youth: Radio listening and television watching patterns of meitei pangalchildren in Manipur

Change is the law of nature and in course of time the media landscape of a society changes. Today, though television assumes greater importance as a cultural tool, radio still remains an important communication tool for villagers. This holds good for the indigenous Manipuri Muslim community, the Meitei Pangals who are living a conservative life in rural areas of Manipur. In the last few decades the Meitei Pangal community has witnessed socio-cultural change in various aspects including the media consumption patterns. Some of the findings in respect of media uses and preferences of the Meitei Pangals suggest that there are negotiations between audiences and media. The findings also include prevalent suspicion on television's impact on work culture and education of children. Besides, the study reveals how audience organise time and space to accommodate radio and television into their busy daily lives while acknowledging radio as a more innovative medium than television. These inferences are drawn from an in–depth qualitative audience study of two Meitei Pangal villages namely Chongtham and Keibung in Thoubal district of Manipur. Established on 15^th August 1963, the All India Radio, Imphal station, the only radio station in the valley of Manipur, plays an empowering role by encouraging audience participation. Age is an increasing factor in media consumption in rural society where the young are more familiar with their communication options than their elders. This paper critically analyses how Meitei Pangal children use radioin their everyday lives.Though they are attracted to television they acknowledge radio as an important medium in rural Manipur.