Information, Medium & Society: Twenty-second International Conference on Publishing Studies

Abstract

The onset of 21st century marked the advent of global revolution in media industry. In Pakistan, especially, this century revolutionized news and entertainment media. Previously there were only three to four channels. The media industry has boomed with ever increasing number of channels for entrainment and news since the dawn of 21st century. With this immense increase in demand for the content, it was highly improbable for the audience, channel owners and even for media authorities to regulate the content being shown on these channels. As a result the channels started airing entertainment content without any sense of responsibility. Since the viewers for these entertainment channels were and are mostly women, so they got affected by the post truth promoted by these channels the most. The effects of Post-Zia Islamization were still there, so those truths were easily bought, when those channels promoted the idea feminine mystique repeatedly with strong emphasis and without hesitation - an idea that was not only remote to an extent, it rather promoted the idea of mystique. This paper takes 4 most popular TV serials as case study from last 18 years with the gap of 5 years each and theorizes their post truth characteristics while taking into account Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique. It also takes into account, slightly, the dramas produced previously, which were not so adamant with the portrayal of that mystique in order to draw a comparison. It also analyzes the data collected through primary research in this context.