BRICS 2026: Debate Grows Over How International Media Framed India Through Delhi Images
The criticism has focused on photographs accompanying BRICS-related reports from outlets including The New York Times, France 24, Al Jazeera and Germany's DW.
A debate has emerged over the visual framing of India in some international media coverage of the 2026 BRICS Summit in New Delhi, with critics arguing that repeated use of photographs showing ordinary street life risks reinforcing outdated stereotypes about poverty and inequality.
The criticism has focused on photographs accompanying BRICS-related reports from outlets including The New York Times, France 24, Al Jazeera and Germany’s DW. Several of the images showed cyclists, motorcycle riders or pedestrians passing BRICS signs and summit branding in New Delhi.
In one New York Times report published ahead of the summit, the lead photograph showed a motorcycle rider passing a large BRICS flower wall in the Indian capital. The photograph was credited to Reuters photographer Francis Mascarenhas.
Critics on social media have described some of these visual choices as “poverty porn” and questioned whether repeatedly placing images of ordinary or informal street life alongside BRICS branding creates an “ambition versus reality” narrative about India.
An online analysis also pointed to similar imagery used by France 24, Al Jazeera and DW. However, the criticism remains a debate over editorial selection and framing, rather than evidence that the publications deliberately staged photographs or coordinated their coverage to portray India as a poor country.
The photographs themselves show genuine scenes from Delhi. Cyclists, motorcycles, pedestrians and informal workers are part of the city’s everyday life, and their presence in a photograph does not by itself establish editorial bias. The question being raised is instead whether such images are representative when used repeatedly alongside coverage of an event intended to showcase India’s growing role in global diplomacy and the economy.
Critics argue that international coverage could also have highlighted other aspects of contemporary India, including its technology sector, manufacturing capabilities, digital infrastructure, modern urban development and expanding role in global trade and diplomacy.
The imagery debate also coincided with a separate political controversy inside India over how parts of Delhi were presented ahead of the summit.
Opposition politicians accused the government of using curtains, barricades and other measures to screen some low-income settlements from routes used by foreign dignitaries. Congress MP Pawan Khera, among others, alleged that the measures were intended to hide poverty from visiting leaders. These claims were part of a political dispute, and should not be treated as independently established evidence of the government’s intent.
The two controversies produced an unusual contrast: some critics of international media coverage objected to the emphasis on poorer or informal parts of Delhi, while opposition politicians simultaneously accused authorities of trying to prevent foreign visitors from seeing those same realities.
The debate took place against the backdrop of India’s hosting of the 18th BRICS Summit on September 12 and 13. The summit brought together the expanded 11-member BRICS grouping under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
Leaders adopted the New Delhi Declaration, which covered cooperation on global governance, trade and finance, technology and artificial intelligence, climate and energy, as well as international conflicts. The declaration also called for a more representative international system and greater participation of developing countries in global institutions.
The summit was also significant for India-China relations. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited India for the first time since 2019 and met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the summit. The two leaders discussed maintaining peace along the border, resolving differences through existing agreements and improving economic and trade ties, including concerns over trade imbalances and supply chains.
The summit therefore served two purposes for India: it was a major diplomatic gathering involving some of the world’s largest emerging economies and an opportunity to present the country as a significant player in the changing global order.