The Dragon’s Voice: How Modern Media Found Bhutan

Bunty Avieson is a journalist, author, and media scholar. She has published three novels, a novella, and travel memoir; her work has been translated into Japanese, German, and Thai; and she has been the recipient of two Ned Kelly Crime Writing Awards. She is the former editorial director of the mass-market women's magazines New Idea and Woman's Day. She currently lectures in the department of media and communications at the University of Sydney.

This is a fascinating account of ancient culture colliding with modern media. Tucked between Tibet and India in the Himalayas, the kingdom of Bhutan is one of the most isolated and beautiful countries in the world. In The Dragon's Voice, Australian journalist Bunty Avieson provides a glimpse of life beyond the country's exotic exterior. As a consultant to local newspaper Bhutan Observer, she admires the paper's strong social conscience, but finds her expectations challenged in a country where spirituality and personal happiness are prioritized over work. Avieson also witnesses the tensions that arise as a Buddhist kingdom makes the transition to democracy. The courtship ritual of "night-hunting" and the nation's first public demonstration become controversial news items, while journalists must overcome traditional social hierarchies to keep politicians accountable. With a unique blend of memoir and reportage, The Dragon's Voice is both a deeply personal story and a vivid portrait of a nation on the cusp of revolutionary change.