Contestations and Transformations: the Shared Religious Space of Jhule Lal in Sindh, Pakistan

Syncretic and shared religious spaces have long been perceived as reflections of tolerance. This does not imply that tolerance is completely liberated from multiple clashing components and the coexistence of interfaith practices do not suggest that hostility is entirely missing. In recent times, a transformation is taking place at the shared space of the Jhule Lal by the dominant religious group. However, there remains an appearance of tolerance at the shared space of the Jhule Lal among believers of both Islam and Hinduism, which blinds the observer of the deep internal contestation and process of transformation between both Sindhi Hindus and Sindhi Muslims who revere the same saint of the Jhule Lal. A syncretic space does not simply absorb different religious groups, and by studying the practices, rituals and interactions of the custodians, visitors and devotees at the shrine, this paper aims to unearth the processes through which shrine is contested in multiple identities, discourse (written, textual, verbal) authority, and belief systems.

Newspaper’S Quest for Survival in the Era of Digital Disruption: the Case of the Daily Nation

This study sought to find out the effect digital disruption has had on the Daily Nation Newspaper, while also looking at the strategies the publication has put in place to ensure its survival. The study was guided by the following: (a) The changes and challenges posed by digital disruption on the newspaper and how this has affected its operations, (b) The strategies employed by the newspaper to respond to disruption and (c) The effectiveness of these survival and growth strategies. The study was guided by two theories – Disruption Innovation Theory and Media Economics Theory. The researcher used a Qualitative Research Approach, with the research design being a case study. The researcher employed in-depth interviews as data collection methods. The respondents for this study were experienced journalists and editors, who shared their experiences, while in the newsroom on how the disruption manifested itself and how the newspaper adapted to it. The findings of the study were varied. Briefly, they include Daily Nation’s intent on changing how they report their stories – with the main idea being coming up with exclusives and in-depth stories that consumers can pay for, the publication’s focus on retraining key staff, including hiring individuals with key digital skills to navigate this new dispensation, encouraging skill development and hiring multi-skilled employees. From the findings, it is clear that the future of newspapers is going digital. The researcher recommends that Daily Nation, however, needs to further scale up the publication of more exclusive content. The publication should equally explore new ways of telling its stories as well as invest more in improving technology used to deliver its information. But this process should be gradual. From the study, it is clear that diversification of revenue sources is the way to go. Business wise it sounds a great idea, but ethically, what should the media house do when one of the sponsoring organization is caught up in a scandal? This is an area future researchers should explore.