Role of Traditional Folk Arts as Media of Mass Communication: A Study with Special Reference to Coastal Karnataka

While the advantages of modern mass media are well conceded and accepted, significance of folk media cannot be relegated to the background. Today more than ever before, there is a need for striking a balance between the folk media and modern mass media to obtain the goals of growth and development. It is not a marriage of convenience, but a marriage of two realities. One is inseparable from the other in the context of communication and change in rural areas. Therefore, folk media have their own distinct role to play in a complex and heterogeneous society like India, which needs to be recorded and analyzed in greater detail. In this book the researcher has tried to identify the folk arts of Coastal Karnataka, their special qualities, use of folk arts in mass media, impact of mass media on folk arts, use of folk arts in development communication, their merits and demerits, problems of folk artists and their future and other issues. He has some suggestions for effective use of folk arts in mass media as well as in development communication. The researcher has hope that it will be a reference material for future researchers in this field.