The Dark Side of News Fixing: The Culture and Political Economy of Global Media in Pakistan and Afghanistan

This book explores the role of fixers in global news production, highlighting their risky pursuits in Pakistan and Afghanistan borders, leading to the deaths of local reporters. It analyzes the fixer's relationship with militarization and their perceived expendability, tying them in a symbiotic relationship with global markets and wars. It serves as a vantage point to observe the connection between regional wars and commercial media and the transformation of local journalists into daily wage earners in a global media shift toward neoliberalism.

Format: Hardback
Length: 240 pages
Publication date: 02 November 2021
Publisher: Anthem Press

This captivating book delves into a four-decade-long regional contribution to global news production, offering a local journalist's perspective. It sheds light on the risky endeavors of fixers, who enable global media to access remote regions and perilous caves along the borders of Pakistan and Afghanistan, resulting in the tragic deaths of local reporters in the context of the U.S.-led war on terror. Through meticulous analysis, the book explores the fixer's role in the context of militarization, highlighting its significance only during periods of heightened violence or crises. The value of fixers, emerging in times of scarcity or war, is intrinsically linked to the fear of extinction, as they are often perceived as expendable due to the necessity of finding work. This vulnerability or perceived expendability establishes a symbiotic relationship between fixers and the global market and global war. This book serves as a pivotal vantage point, unveiling the intricate connections between regional wars and commercial media, as well as the transformation of local journalists into daily wage earners in the global media landscape, where neoliberalism reigns supreme.

Weight: 518g
Dimension: 159 x 236 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781839981371