Book launched

LAHORE: A book titled “Expression of Masculinities on Pakistani Television” written by Fatima Bilquis and Sara Tahir, was launched Wednesday at a hotel.

The writers told The News that the widespread i.e. mass reach of the media makes it an indispensable tool for reinforcing the ideologies of the dominant class. Thus, in line with the political economy of its ownership, production and consumption, the media becomes a significant site for charting out the dominant cultural scripts in circulation within a particular society.

The popularity of Pakistani TV dramas- the watching of which is often times a family affair as well as the importance of news channels in disseminating information to the masses, means that there is a lot to be gained from analysing these mass cultural mediums.

In addition, the rise of the Pakistani film industry facilitated by the opening of cinema halls in urban centres such as Lahore and Karachi lends even more significance to a study of Pakistani media in shaping cultural beliefs and societal norms.

This report intervenes to provide an in-depth analysis of media content, relegating the focus on media’s political economy to the background.Bilquis Tahira, Executive Director of an NGO said, “We have been working since our inception, a strong proponent of gender equality and women’s empowerment. The systemic marginalisation and domination of women hold back the society where it is practised from reaching its full economic, social and cultural potential.

Despite this evidence, however, women’s participation in the public sphere has been limited in Pakistan, where women continue to be underrepresented in the labour force, political parties and academia.

We have sponsored multiple types of research on the message men and boys receive about gender and masculinities. We appreciate the professionalism of technology for people initiative of Lahore University of Management Sciences which made this research possible.”