Prejudice Premium and Narrative Risk: What to read in Western media’s headlines

‘Colonial arrogance still survives in the Western elite media’. Thus read a social media comment following a Norwegian newspaper publishing a cartoon depicting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a snake charmer. 

It was neither the only time nor the only leader portrayed in a racist or bad light by the Western media. Due to its global reach, the Western and European media often wields its influence to portray non-Western or developing countries (‘other countries’) and their leaders with certain framing. This prejudice benefits the Western countries, but creates a narrative risk for the other countries. It inflicts a real financial cost on the non-Western rising powers. Prejudiced media coverage negatively impacts the decisions of the potential investors and reflects geopolitical and cultural asymmetry. Let’s understand the ‘Prejudice Premium’ and ‘Narrative Risk’, and how the non-Western and developing countries are responding to prevent the associated costs.