MEDIA DISQUISITIONS: Contemporary Media Discourses of 21st Century

This book is an attempt to capture a few of the infinite narratives, click, tweets, frames that are constructed, shared, created and disseminated by media. It is a collection of essays written in the due span of time to understand, experience and narrate a few observations, information and knowledge, which was acquired by the author while exploring growing possibilities in media, with special reference to the national security. It constitutes different chapters, which endeavour to shed light on various aspects of media and its related dimensions. The beauty of media studies is that it can't be appreciated in the close structures of thinking, or in a defined curriculum. It is something, which is akin to brimming water making it ways in all directions. It is a labyrinth, layered and an extension of the complex human mind. An extension, which has human creativity at one side of the spectrum and artificial intelligence on the other side. The only way to understand and appreciate this phenomenon is to understand that there is a way through this maze, which helps humankind to create a common understanding despite infinite differences. The book will provide an opportunity for its readers to get a glimpse of the intricate world of media and its various dimensions.

An individual in possession of a laptop with an Internet connection and owing allegiance to the so-called Caliph or Khalifa, whether in Bengaluru, or London, or New York or Paris, can actively propagate the thoughts of the Islamic State and seek recruits for the ISIS militia by exploiting the vulnerabilities of social media. A skilled hacker can intimidate leaders as well as ordinary citizens and manipulate social media to project the power of the Islamic State.