Vol. 6, Issue 2, Part C (2024)

This study examines the problems, potentials, and policy needs of small Hindi newspapers in India defined by the RNI as titles with circulations up to 25,000. Drawing on a literature review and in-depth interviews with editors/owners of 38 newspapers across 19 Indian states/UTs (including Press Council nominees), the research situates small papers as crucial democratic intermediaries that localize information, scrutinize grassroots governance, and often pioneer investigative revelations overlooked by large chains. Despite their civic value and rising registration figures, small newspapers face structural disadvantages: high newsprint costs, thin revenues, technological lag, limited professional staffing, and inequities in government advertising (DAVP) and outdated RNI categorization that allows large chains to compete within the “small” bracket. Findings underscore that local papers retain strong audience trust and relevance, and that digital affordances can extend their impact if supported. Policy recommendations include establishing a Small Newspaper Development Corporation; concessional/ subsidized newsprint quotas; transparent, time-bound, bias-free ad disbursal, enhanced representation of small papers in the Press Council of India; reformed RNI classification treating chain editions as a single unit; bank credit and PPP support (treating small papers akin to cottage industries); mandatory physical verification to curb publication fraud; and structured journalism internships to professionalize local newsrooms. Implemented together, these measures can secure media plurality, strengthen local accountability, and sustain small Hindi newspapers as engines of democratic participation.