The emotional and media spectacle of global rankings

Just last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to X to celebrate the QS World University Rankings 2026, stating: “The QS World University 2026 Rankings bring great news for our education sector. Our government is committed to furthering research and innovation ecosystems for the benefit of India’s youth.”

The post quickly made headlines across Indian media, including The Economic Times, DesiTalk in Chicago and the government’s official press release.

This is not an isolated case. Global university rankings consistently generate media coverage, shape government messaging and dominate institutional communication strategies.

But how and why do rankings attract such sustained attention – from universities, media and the public alike? And how do commercial rankers, governments and media outlets work together to capture and hold our attention?

The role of emotions in rankings

Much has been written about the commercial side of rankings, their methodologies, who is doing well and why, and their limitations, yet far less attention has been paid to how popular media amplify them.

Most people don’t discover rankings through internal institutional reports. Instead, we encounter them in news headlines or social media posts by commercial rankers or universities – framed as compelling stories, not static data.

Rankings are rarely neutral. They are emotionally charged narratives that invite us to feel something – pride, anxiety, even competition.

Sticky objects

At the centre of this dynamic is emotion. Rankings have become what feminist scholar Sara Ahmed calls ‘sticky objects’ – things that grab and hold attention because they absorb emotional attachments.

The more they tap into pride or fear, the more ‘sticky’ they become. They call not only for our individual attention but also our collective emotional investment.

Rankers understand this well, and they design their strategies to exploit these emotional currents. But they are not the only ones. Institutions, politicians and media actors also contribute to this cycle, actively promoting and debating rankings to shape narratives and gain legitimacy.

Rankings don’t just measure academic performance – they also send a message and stir emotions. Through their ranking, universities and even entire regions are transformed into symbolic carriers of national or institutional pride – or shame. Rankings thus become stages on which identity, authority and legitimacy are performed and contested.

Affective bait

This emotional economy is especially visible in how rankings are disseminated. In higher education, we are familiar with the rhythm: institutional emails, celebratory posts and media briefings.

But this isn’t just about universities – governments and media companies also enter the fray. Rankings become proxies for broader political debates, and rankers amplify these narratives across their own media channels.

Commercial ranking organisations like Times Higher Education and QS have built massive followings on platforms like X, Facebook and LinkedIn. These aren’t just channels for information – they are tools for emotional engagement. Using headlines, emojis, images and hashtags, rankers connect with audiences on a daily basis.

Their posts act as affective bait, drawing users toward their rankings, websites and consultancy services. These social media platforms are where students, faculty and institutions already spend their time. By engaging here, rankers humanise their presence and build legitimacy. Their influence grows through emotional proximity and repeated interaction.

Mainstream national, commercial and digital news media also play a crucial role. In our research on Bangladesh and India, we observed how national newspapers often frame rankings as competitive races.

These narratives attract attention, especially when elite institutions are involved. Media coverage localises global rankings, comparing national sectors and fuelling institutional pride or anxiety. These stories are often paired with expert commentary, which deepens their emotional resonance and legitimacy.

Understanding how the rankings are sustained

Rankings today are more than metrics – they’re emotionally charged, media-driven spectacles tied to national pride and global market dynamics. To understand their power, we must look beyond statistics and revenue models to the emotional and media infrastructures that sustain them.

In the attention economy, rankings serve as powerful conduits: governments, institutions, individuals and commercial actors all compete not just for visibility but for our attention. Rankers, in turn, capitalise on this attention, scaling their influence from individual users to policy-making arenas.

Riyad A Shahjahan is a professor of higher, adult and lifelong education at Michigan State University in the United States.

This article is a commentary. Commentary articles are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of University World News.