Proactive or reactive? A comparative study of BRICS media narratives in China and India

This comparative study analyses how Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) is represented in the media of China and India, the coalition's two most populous and influential members. While BRICS has been extensively examined in political science and international relations, its communicative dimensions remain underexplored. To address this gap, the study introduces a proactive - reactive analytical lens to capture how media frame BRICS along a continuum, from a driver of change to a response to external crises. A quantitative content analysis of 2556 articles published between 2020 and 2024 in China Daily, People's Daily Online, The Hindu, and The Times of India was conducted. Articles were coded for type, focus, topic, news geography, and proactive/reactive orientation. Findings reveal a clear divergence. Chinese outlets were more likely to adopt a proactive orientation, emphasising institutional innovation, multipolarity, and collective advancement, particularly around BRICS summits. By contrast, Indian news organisations more often framed BRICS in reactive terms, focusing on crisis diplomacy and balancing imperatives. The proactive-reactive dimension offers a comparative lens for understanding how divergent media systems narrate global governance, underscoring both the possibilities and limits of South-South communication.