Name: Mukesh Kumar
Country: India

Year: 2023
Volume: Volume-8, Issue-2 (July-December)
Page Number: 93-104

ABSTRACT
This study analyzes the “Letters to the Editor” (LTE) sections of small Hindi newspapers in India. The letters section is a crucial part of the newspaper and can be described as a „platform for debate‟ that gives voice to the readers. The letter's section is a platform for the opinions of individual readers. Letters are a „barometer of local feeling‟ and represent the opinion of the community The research finds that LTE columns widely recognized as platforms for public debate and readers feedback are unevenly implemented: only 12 of 23 examined small newspapers carried an LTE section. Overall,
LTEs when present function as democratic fora that strengthen reader paper ties, surface accountability issues, and occasionally seed news agendas; however, their limited adoption, national issue bias, and participation gaps constrain their potential to reflect grassroots priorities in small Hindi newspapers.

Keywords: Letters to the Editor, Small Hindi Newspaper, Jürgen Habermas‟s concept of the public sphere, agenda-setting theory.