Vice-President M. Hamid Ansari will release a copy of the relaunched Frontline magazine at a function here on Thursday.
A debate on “The Indian Constitution’s Mandate: Whither Sovereignty, Socialism, Secularism and Democracy” is scheduled after the magazine is released. The panellists for the debate are All India Congress Committee general secretary Digvijay Singh, author Arun Shourie and eminent economist and political commentator Prabhat Patnaik. It will be moderated by the former Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu & Frontline, N. Ram. The debate will be followed by a 30-minute question and answer session with the audience.
According to Frontline Editor R. Vijay Shankar, since its inception in December 1984, the magazine has created a distinct space for itself in the Indian media landscape as a serious and committed chronicler of social, political and economic issues of our times.
“While Frontline has created a niche for itself in the Indian media scene, which has won for it the steady support of a substantial number of loyal readers over the last 27 years, we felt the need to reach a wider audience, particularly the younger generation. Hence, the relaunch,” he said.
Assuring readers that while retaining the serious character of the magazine and its thrust on long-form, analytical journalism, the slightly altered version of Frontline would have some new features and columns to appeal to a wider readership.
An attempt to explore uncharted territories in terms of themes, issues and topics, while making the magazine relevant and attractive to an increasing readership, will be made. “The core strength of the only English news and views fortnightly in the country has been focus on contemporary topics with succinct analysis of the backdrop and how they are expected to play out. The new version would retain this character and offer much more,” Mr. Vijay Shankar said.
He maintained that with its in-depth reportage and incisive analyses of contemporary events, the magazine had successfully promoted its own brand of high quality long-form journalism at a time when the information overflow from multiple media was often found wanting in nuance and analysis.
“The magazine has been unwavering in its focus on the lives of the marginalised, deprived and downtrodden sections of the people of India. In the post-liberalisation era, the magazine has been consistent in its objective assessment and critical evaluation of India’s growth story,” he said
He said the magazine had consistently focused on the flip side of India’s development trajectory that favoured only a privileged segment of society, the so-called shining India. Frontline ’salternative perspectives and threadbare analysis of issues of development, economic policy and politics has earned it respect not only in India but internationally as well.
