Mediating marginalization: Caste diaspora and the Australian media landscape

This study investigates how caste-based marginalization is represented across different types of media within the Australian context. Drawing on Steven Vertovec’s theory of transnationalism, we conduct a thematic analysis of traditional Australian news media, Indian diasporic newspapers and digital platforms. Our findings reveal that while caste and Dalit issues are discussed across media types, their framing and narrative construction vary considerably. Traditional Australian media often frame caste as a historical or cultural phenomenon, with limited engagement with the lived experiences of Dalits in Australia. In contrast, diasporic media and digital platforms reflect a broader range of narratives, including resistance and resilience, though often focusing on events in India rather than the host country. The framing of caste practices as ‘subtle’ in the host country, here, Australia, reveals a significant gap in media engagement with these issues and a lack of exploration into their impact on lower-caste communities within Australian society. We argue that these representational differences are shaped by the transnational nature of caste and the degree of diasporic participation in content creation. Ultimately, this study highlights the complex intersections of caste, migration and mediated identity, revealing both the persistence and transformation of casteism within diasporic communities and the representational gaps in the Australian media landscape.