Abstract

This thesis examines the impact of a Bangladeshi agriculture based educational TV show, Hridoye Mati O Manush-Soil and Men in Heart (SMH), on increasing its urban audience’s knowledge about agriculture, and promoting an equitable view of farmers. Bangladesh is an agricultural country, and the industry is mostly run by rural farmers. The urban population is separated from this industry, leading to an information divide between the urban and rural populations on topics about farmer issues, such as the challenges that prevent farmers from advancing in the industry. There has been limited research about the influence of television media on the urban audience’s knowledge and views about agriculture and farmers. Surveys and interviews were conducted in order to study the impact of SMH on its urban audience. A total of 111 surveys and 9 interviews were collected and analyzed from Dhaka, the urban capital of Bangladesh. The analysis is significant because it suggests that the urban audience of SMH is positively influenced for its knowledge of agriculture and farmer perception. Thus, SMH has a strong impact on its audience for increasing awareness about Bangladeshi agriculture, challenges and successes. Moreover, the urban audience has more of a realistic and equitable view about farmers than those who do not watch SMH. Hence the findings of this study are expected to contribute to the growing scholarship on urban-rural linkage, and how the television media influences its audience about agriculture and farmers.

Advisor

Atay, Ahmet

Second Advisor

Mariola, Matthew

Department

Communication Studies; Environmental Studies

Disciplines

Education | Educational Methods | Film and Media Studies | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Keywords

Bangladesh, television media, agriculture, farmers, perception, urban-rural

Publication Date

2014

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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© Copyright 2014 Nileema H. Khan