Professor Göran Bolin inaugurated the event, highlighting Dr. Sulehria’s continuation of Herbert Schiller’s critical legacy and the revival of political economy approaches to global media. Associate Professor Per Ståhlberg praised his insightful scholarship, noting the book’s relevance to ongoing debates about media, power, and cultural influence. Dr. Sulehria detailed his Media Sub-Imperialism theory, illustrating how India, Turkey, and South Korea dominate regional markets, export popular media like South Korean films and Turkish dramas, yet remain embedded within global media hierarchies. He emphasized how sub-imperial media often reproduces Hollywood’s cultural and ideological frameworks while constraining freedom of expression and democratic alternatives.
The launch, attended by faculty, PhD scholars, students, and members of the Swedish-Pakistani community, concluded with a dinner celebrating intellectual exchange and cross-cultural dialogue. Published by Palgrave Macmillan, the volume includes contributions from eminent scholars such as Toby Miller, Oliver Boyd-Barrett, and Lee Artz, offering interdisciplinary perspectives on media power, globalization, and authoritarian dynamics. The book also provides comparative case studies, critical analyses of media policies, and insights into the rise of the Global South as both a cultural and economic actor in global media networks, making it a landmark contribution to contemporary media studies.
