Article
Slum-Pups No More’: Rescuing India’s Slum Children
Journal of Intercultural Communication Research
(2012)
Abstract
Indian poverty is often portrayed abroad in a manner that upholds imperialist frameworks of Orientalist deviance, while simultaneously endorsing a White interventionist rhetoric. Third-world children constitute an especially vulnerable victim category. This study compares Indian and international news coverage of two child stars in the blockbuster Slumdog Millionaire who were living in a slum during production, taken to Hollywood for the Academy Awards, and then returned to the slum. Findings reveal that although Indian coverage focused on the two children's stardom at the cost of ignoring other slum children's contributions, Western coverage promoted an interventionist rhetoric that emphasized the spectacle of poverty.
Keywords
- Orientalism,
- Slum Children,
- Poverty,
- Western Intervention
Disciplines
Publication Date
2012
DOI
10.1080/17475759.2011.626061
Publisher Statement
Taylor & Francis Online
Citation Information
Mary Grace Antony. "Slum-Pups No More’: Rescuing India’s Slum Children" Journal of Intercultural Communication Research Vol. 41 Iss. 1 (2012) p. 17 - 36 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/marygrace-antony/13/