Preeti Aroon at Foreign Policy ponders why blogging has not caught up in India. A research conducted by MSN into blogging in India argues that

The MSN report says that India’s blogosphere is still nascent with only 14% of the net users blogging actively. It also indicates that content of the blog is almost as trusted as traditional media and that blogs may emerge as the new fourth estate. “Unlike other countries in Asia, Indians don’t like reading blogs written by business leaders as only half of the users were found enjoying them. Bloggers in India are spending more time online with 87% spending up to 5 hours per week reading blogs or updating their blog and 50% of all blogs receive 10 visitors or less a week. Interestingly, men dominate blogosphere in India,” the study says. (read here)

According to Preeti, reasons for the low rate of blogging in India can be put down to the political economy of blogging. She offers the following reasons:

1. Lack of computers and broadband access
2. Low levels of literacy
3. Freedom of speech (there are other alternatives to express ones feelings)
4. Cultural inhibitors

There are 30 million Chinese bloggers in a country with about 126 million Internet users (a 1:4 ratio), while there are only 1.2 million Indian bloggers (source: JuxtConsult’s “India Online 2006″ report).

Subaltern Media verdict: Lack of computers and broadband access