Making of Selfie Nationalism: Narendra Modi, the Paradigm Shift to Social Media Governance, and Crisis of Democracy

Abstract

The 2014 general elections in India marked a new media beginning. It catapulted Narendra Modi onto the national political scene through his clever use of digital media space as a form of public relations. This article uses rhetorical analysis to analyze 1,230 of Modi’s tweets between April 15 and August 15, 2017. I suggest that Modi’s emphasis on social media governance leads to “selfie nationalism,” a clear break from Mohandas Gandhi’s advocacy of “spiritual nationalism.” Modi’s nationalism is based on a belief in right-wing Hinduism, a relentless advocacy for business, his presentation of himself as both a global leader and a commoner who can identify with Indians of all castes and classes, and his silence on minority rights, poverty, free press, judiciary and legislative processes, and India’s plural religious traditions. I conclude that with the rise of Modi’s brand of “selfie nationalism,” coupled with increasing rural-urban polarization, democracy in India is more akin to what O’Donnell refers to as “delegative” rather than representational democracy.