Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this stud... more Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this study we investigated the perceptions of conflict reporters in the three most deadly countries in the world including Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. A total of 317 journalists participated in this study. Though generally we found support for the earlier study, the analysis shows journalists engage in wider practices than predicted that overlap war and peace journalism approaches. A closer examination showed that journalists favored active war journalism practices and passive peace journalism practices. Finally, we did not find that journalistic experience and contextual factors influenced preferences towards war and peace journalism substantially.
International Journal of Crisis Communication, 2017
This study examines the coverage of the Taliban conflict in four leading national newspapers of P... more This study examines the coverage of the Taliban conflict in four leading national newspapers of Pakistan from January 2014 to July 2014 from war and peace journalism perspective. The theoretical framework for this research is determined by peace journalism and framing theories, while the sample was selected by applying the systematic random sampling method. The findings, based on a content analysis of 821 stories from the four newspapers, indicate that the Pakistani media are inclined more towards war journalism framing than peace journalism framing in their coverage of the Taliban conflict. The two Urdu dailies namely Nawa-i-Waqt and Express have a stronger preference for war than peace compared to the two English dailies namely Dawn and The News International. Consistent with the existing peace journalism scholarship, the findings of this study also show that the newspapers not only toed and supported the official version on this home-grown conflict but also marginalized and under...
This paper investigates the existing journalistic practices in three deadly conflicts in Pakistan... more This paper investigates the existing journalistic practices in three deadly conflicts in Pakistan and also proposes corrective peace-oriented media strategies. Based on semi-structured interviews with journalists, analysts and stakeholders involved in the religiously inspired Taliban conflict, separatist-led Balochistan conflict and the ethno-political conflict in Karachi, six strategies have been identified. These include highlighting the problems of sufferers and contextualization of the Taliban conflict; inclusion of multi-perspectives and highlighting the voices of peacemakers in the Balochistan conflict; humanization and solution-oriented coverage of the ethno-political conflict in Karachi. While the journalists agreed these strategies were very much in line with their professional duties, the analysts and stakeholders hoped the proposed journalistic practices would lead to better understanding and facilitate resolution of the three conflicts. Based on the findings of this arti...
These study discuses the ongoing Taliban conflict in Pakistan from the perspective of peace journ... more These study discuses the ongoing Taliban conflict in Pakistan from the perspective of peace journalism as developed by Johan Galtung and functionalized by Jake Lynch and McGoldrick later on. I have analyzed the leading newspapers of Pakistan on the issue and ...
This study critiques the existing journalistic practices for being deficit in ensuring constructi... more This study critiques the existing journalistic practices for being deficit in ensuring constructive reporting of wars and conflicts. Though the available academic scholarship developed at the Westernized settings offer a number of alternatives, however due to the peculiar socio-cultural conditions in Pakistan and rest of the Islamic societies, these approaches are not very practical. The authors of the present study propose a more contextual and an Islamic oriented model to facilitate journalists in Pakistan to produce more effective and constructive reporting of conflicts. We believe the model inspired by the Islamic injunctions would only ensure a more professional and practical approach for conflict reporting but it would also facilitate peaceful resolution of conflicts which at present are escalated by the existing practices.
In this study, the researchers analyzed the state of media freedom in Pakistan during the populis... more In this study, the researchers analyzed the state of media freedom in Pakistan during the populist regime of Imran Khan from August 2018 till April 2022. For this purpose, semistructured interviews were conducted with senior journalists of prominent newspapers and TV channels in the country. The researchers found that journalists were under immense pressure to perform their duties professionally. They faced intimidations, threats to their families, and termination from services. Furthermore, the government adopted a carrot-and-stick policy while dealing with the media. The supportive media received both financial and professional benefits while the critical media were tightly monitored and punished. Journalists also faced online harassment by the troll factories affiliated with the government. The study showed the Pakistani populist regime was mainly applying the same strategies to control media as were other populist-led governments. However, because of weak institutional support for journalists, the regime was successful in curtailing free expression substantially compared with the situation in rest of the democratic world.
In this study, we analyze the state of information warfare on Twittersphere between India and Pak... more In this study, we analyze the state of information warfare on Twittersphere between India and Pakistan in the wake of Pulwama attack in Kashmir region and the subsequent surgical strikes by Indian forces inside Pakistan. We selected two leading Twitter hashtags on the conflict from the two countries each. A total of 20,000 tweets were manually analyzed. Contrary to the existing scholarship on digital information warfare, we found citizens from both countries produced most of the content. Among the citizens, those Twitter handles that showed affiliations with the heads of governments that we consider as trolls were the leading contributors. Moreover, the study found that contributors from the two countries mainly posted on their own hashtags and did not engage in counter-arguments with the contributors from other country. This resulted in overwhelming support for the two countries in their own assorted hashtags and outright criticism in the hashtags originating from the other country.
In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media–gove... more In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media–government relations by analyzing press reporting of four different events in the securitized context of Pakistan. For this purpose, framing analysis of one elite English newspaper Dawn and one popular Urdu newspaper daily Jang was conducted. Overall, the results are mixed. The tragic event of Salala check post did not result in critical coverage. On the other hand, policy uncertainty on participation in the Yemeni conflict produced critical coverage. In case of Kashmir conflict, the broader political consensus was responsible for supportive coverage. Similarly, the unpopular step of giving extension to army chief was mainly reported in neutral fashion with some procedural criticism.
This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potent... more This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potential for conflict escalation and de-escalation in Pakistan-a country marred by a number of deadly conflicts. While building on the existing literature, the study proposes the varying levels of intensity of a conflict and the resulting escalatory and de-escalatory coverage as important factors in the process. Through content analysis and focus group discussion, it was found that de-escalatory coverage is inversely proportional to the intensity of a conflict in terms of its perceived threats to national security. Secondly it was found that the coverage was spread across a range of thematic frames though certain perspectives got more prominence as compared to others. Noting the variations in the presence of peace journalism, the study concludes that critical pragmatic approach to peace journalism is better suited to address queries relating to its theory and practice than other approaches because it accommodates the retention of peace as a value and at the same is pragmatic and hence honors the requirements of journalistic profession.
This article combines quantitative and qualitative analysis to investigate the reporting of the T... more This article combines quantitative and qualitative analysis to investigate the reporting of the Taliban conflict in Pakistan media and finds the coverage escalatory and elitist from the peace journalism perspective. While the security-related aspects of the conflict are highlighted, the problems of victims are ignored. The data for this study were collected through content analysis, discourse analysis and interviews with conflict reporters and analysts. The key findings of this study are quite consistent with the existing peace journalism scholarship that in conflict where national interests are involved, media become nationalistic and patriotic, leaving behind the considerations of quality and good journalism.
This study combined the key findings of a dozen empirical studies with an original qualitative in... more This study combined the key findings of a dozen empirical studies with an original qualitative investigation aimed at understanding the dynamics of conflict journalism in Pakistan. The author devised an original contextual model and tested its applicability in five different conflicts of varying intensity. The study found that conflict journalism is dependent on the interaction between two key factors: the journalistic assessment of a conflict in terms of its seriousness of threat to national security and the resultant flak that stems from various sources that significantly influence professional reporting. The article concludes that journalists working in the semi-democratic, conflict-marred settings of Pakistan adopt a more vigilant and independent stance if they perceive a conflict to be posing an enormous threat to national security, for example the Taliban conflict, and that their critical stance erodes to a more compromising position in the case of a medium-level threat in con...
In this article, the researchers have examined various factors that affect reporting of two deadl... more In this article, the researchers have examined various factors that affect reporting of two deadly conflicts in Pakistan and identify peace-oriented strategies to help resolve these conflicts. For this purpose, comprehensive and inclusive interviews were conducted with reporters covering the Taliban conflict and the ethno-political conflict in Karachi. The researchers found that the nature of a conflict and threats from conflict stakeholders were the important factors that shape the production of conflict news. As far as peace journalism strategies are concerned, it was found that a more contextual way of reporting alongside humanization those sufferers would facilitate broader understanding and resolution of these conflicts in Pakistan.
In this study, the researchers examined the prevalence of fake news in the social media debates o... more In this study, the researchers examined the prevalence of fake news in the social media debates on Pakistani politics and society. The content analysis showed that both Twitter and Facebook carried a sizeable number of fake news relating to the politics and international affairs, military, economy and religion. Though more fake news was posted relating to politics and politicians, fake news stories relating to international relations got more likes and share as compared to other topics. Interestingly, even though the fake news was busted as fake and not genuine, these continued getting attention of people. This indicates the influence of cult following and populism on the Pakistani social media users. The findings of this study support the available scholarship on the prevalence of fake news, its popularity and spread in the Western world.
This study offers a quantitative analysis of the coverage of Taliban conflict in the four leading... more This study offers a quantitative analysis of the coverage of Taliban conflict in the four leading newspapers of Pakistan and Afghanistan through the perspective of war and peace journalism—developed by Johan Galtung and adopted by many scholars. Consistent with the existing literature, the researcher found that both the English and vernacular press in the two countries predominantly reported the Taliban conflict through war journalism framing. The local press was equally escalatory while reporting on the conflict. The press in the two countries showed remarkable differences in the war journalism framing but applied similar thematic strategies of peace journalism. The study advocates an academic juncture between political communication and peace journalism scholarship to identify the issues that influence media content during conflict times for better understanding of the potential role of media in peace and conflict resolution.
This study analyzes the scholarship on the classification of war and peacemaking potential of med... more This study analyzes the scholarship on the classification of war and peacemaking potential of media in the conflict-ridden milieu of Pakistan. Borrowing from peace studies and the existing journalistic practices in the country, the researchers present and empirically test a new model for evaluating conflict journalism in terms of its escalatory and de-escalatory trends. For this purpose, news stories telecasted in two leading TV channels (PTV and Geo News) relating to seven deadly conflicts were analyzed. We found support for our model—the higher the intensity of a conflict, the higher the escalatory trends in coverage. Patriotic and elite-controlled media produced more escalation as compared to conflict in which journalists were using relatively free media. Despite the dominance of escalatory coverage, we also found some traces of peace journalism in the reporting of conflicts. The study recommends that to promote peace journalism in Pakistan and elsewhere, the local context of a c...
Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this stud... more Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this study we investigated the perceptions of conflict reporters in the three most deadly countries in the world including Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. A total of 317 journalists participated in this study. Though generally we found support for the earlier study, the analysis shows journalists engage in wider practices than predicted that overlap war and peace journalism approaches. A closer examination showed that journalists favored active war journalism practices and passive peace journalism practices. Finally, we did not find that journalistic experience and contextual factors influenced preferences towards war and peace journalism substantially.
In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-gove... more In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-government relations by analyzing press reporting of four different events in the securitized context of Pakistan. For this purpose, framing analysis of one elite English newspaper Dawn and one popular Urdu newspaper daily Jang was conducted. Overall, the results are mixed. The tragic event of Salala check post did not result in critical coverage. On the other hand, policy uncertainty on participation in the Yemeni conflict produced critical coverage. In case of Kashmir conflict, the broader political consensus was responsible for supportive coverage. Similarly, the unpopular step of giving extension to army chief was mainly reported in neutral fashion with some procedural criticism.
In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-gove... more In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-government relations by analyzing press reporting of four different events in the securitized context of Pakistan. For this purpose, framing analysis of one elite English newspaper Dawn and one popular Urdu newspaper daily Jang was conducted. Overall, the results are mixed. The tragic event of Salala check post did not result in critical coverage. On the other hand, policy uncertainty on participation in the Yemeni conflict produced critical coverage. In case of Kashmir conflict, the broader political consensus was responsible for supportive coverage. Similarly, the unpopular step of giving extension to army chief was mainly reported in neutral fashion with some procedural criticism.
This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potent... more This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potential for conflict escalation and de-escalation in Pakistan-a country marred by a number of deadly conflicts. While building on the existing literature, the study proposes the varying levels of intensity of a conflict and the resulting escalatory and de-escalatory coverage as important factors in the process. Through content analysis and focus group discussion, it was found that de-escalatory coverage is inversely proportional to the intensity of a conflict in terms of its perceived threats to national security. Secondly it was found that the coverage was spread across a range of thematic frames though certain perspectives got more prominence as compared to others. Noting the variations in the presence of peace journalism, the study concludes that critical pragmatic approach to peace journalism is better suited to address queries relating to its theory and practice than other approaches because it accommodates the retention of peace as a value and at the same is pragmatic and hence honors the requirements of journalistic profession.
Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this stud... more Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this study we investigated the perceptions of conflict reporters in the three most deadly countries in the world including Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. A total of 317 journalists participated in this study. Though generally we found support for the earlier study, the analysis shows journalists engage in wider practices than predicted that overlap war and peace journalism approaches. A closer examination showed that journalists favored active war journalism practices and passive peace journalism practices. Finally, we did not find that journalistic experience and contextual factors influenced preferences towards war and peace journalism substantially.
International Journal of Crisis Communication, 2017
This study examines the coverage of the Taliban conflict in four leading national newspapers of P... more This study examines the coverage of the Taliban conflict in four leading national newspapers of Pakistan from January 2014 to July 2014 from war and peace journalism perspective. The theoretical framework for this research is determined by peace journalism and framing theories, while the sample was selected by applying the systematic random sampling method. The findings, based on a content analysis of 821 stories from the four newspapers, indicate that the Pakistani media are inclined more towards war journalism framing than peace journalism framing in their coverage of the Taliban conflict. The two Urdu dailies namely Nawa-i-Waqt and Express have a stronger preference for war than peace compared to the two English dailies namely Dawn and The News International. Consistent with the existing peace journalism scholarship, the findings of this study also show that the newspapers not only toed and supported the official version on this home-grown conflict but also marginalized and under...
This paper investigates the existing journalistic practices in three deadly conflicts in Pakistan... more This paper investigates the existing journalistic practices in three deadly conflicts in Pakistan and also proposes corrective peace-oriented media strategies. Based on semi-structured interviews with journalists, analysts and stakeholders involved in the religiously inspired Taliban conflict, separatist-led Balochistan conflict and the ethno-political conflict in Karachi, six strategies have been identified. These include highlighting the problems of sufferers and contextualization of the Taliban conflict; inclusion of multi-perspectives and highlighting the voices of peacemakers in the Balochistan conflict; humanization and solution-oriented coverage of the ethno-political conflict in Karachi. While the journalists agreed these strategies were very much in line with their professional duties, the analysts and stakeholders hoped the proposed journalistic practices would lead to better understanding and facilitate resolution of the three conflicts. Based on the findings of this arti...
These study discuses the ongoing Taliban conflict in Pakistan from the perspective of peace journ... more These study discuses the ongoing Taliban conflict in Pakistan from the perspective of peace journalism as developed by Johan Galtung and functionalized by Jake Lynch and McGoldrick later on. I have analyzed the leading newspapers of Pakistan on the issue and ...
This study critiques the existing journalistic practices for being deficit in ensuring constructi... more This study critiques the existing journalistic practices for being deficit in ensuring constructive reporting of wars and conflicts. Though the available academic scholarship developed at the Westernized settings offer a number of alternatives, however due to the peculiar socio-cultural conditions in Pakistan and rest of the Islamic societies, these approaches are not very practical. The authors of the present study propose a more contextual and an Islamic oriented model to facilitate journalists in Pakistan to produce more effective and constructive reporting of conflicts. We believe the model inspired by the Islamic injunctions would only ensure a more professional and practical approach for conflict reporting but it would also facilitate peaceful resolution of conflicts which at present are escalated by the existing practices.
In this study, the researchers analyzed the state of media freedom in Pakistan during the populis... more In this study, the researchers analyzed the state of media freedom in Pakistan during the populist regime of Imran Khan from August 2018 till April 2022. For this purpose, semistructured interviews were conducted with senior journalists of prominent newspapers and TV channels in the country. The researchers found that journalists were under immense pressure to perform their duties professionally. They faced intimidations, threats to their families, and termination from services. Furthermore, the government adopted a carrot-and-stick policy while dealing with the media. The supportive media received both financial and professional benefits while the critical media were tightly monitored and punished. Journalists also faced online harassment by the troll factories affiliated with the government. The study showed the Pakistani populist regime was mainly applying the same strategies to control media as were other populist-led governments. However, because of weak institutional support for journalists, the regime was successful in curtailing free expression substantially compared with the situation in rest of the democratic world.
In this study, we analyze the state of information warfare on Twittersphere between India and Pak... more In this study, we analyze the state of information warfare on Twittersphere between India and Pakistan in the wake of Pulwama attack in Kashmir region and the subsequent surgical strikes by Indian forces inside Pakistan. We selected two leading Twitter hashtags on the conflict from the two countries each. A total of 20,000 tweets were manually analyzed. Contrary to the existing scholarship on digital information warfare, we found citizens from both countries produced most of the content. Among the citizens, those Twitter handles that showed affiliations with the heads of governments that we consider as trolls were the leading contributors. Moreover, the study found that contributors from the two countries mainly posted on their own hashtags and did not engage in counter-arguments with the contributors from other country. This resulted in overwhelming support for the two countries in their own assorted hashtags and outright criticism in the hashtags originating from the other country.
In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media–gove... more In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media–government relations by analyzing press reporting of four different events in the securitized context of Pakistan. For this purpose, framing analysis of one elite English newspaper Dawn and one popular Urdu newspaper daily Jang was conducted. Overall, the results are mixed. The tragic event of Salala check post did not result in critical coverage. On the other hand, policy uncertainty on participation in the Yemeni conflict produced critical coverage. In case of Kashmir conflict, the broader political consensus was responsible for supportive coverage. Similarly, the unpopular step of giving extension to army chief was mainly reported in neutral fashion with some procedural criticism.
This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potent... more This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potential for conflict escalation and de-escalation in Pakistan-a country marred by a number of deadly conflicts. While building on the existing literature, the study proposes the varying levels of intensity of a conflict and the resulting escalatory and de-escalatory coverage as important factors in the process. Through content analysis and focus group discussion, it was found that de-escalatory coverage is inversely proportional to the intensity of a conflict in terms of its perceived threats to national security. Secondly it was found that the coverage was spread across a range of thematic frames though certain perspectives got more prominence as compared to others. Noting the variations in the presence of peace journalism, the study concludes that critical pragmatic approach to peace journalism is better suited to address queries relating to its theory and practice than other approaches because it accommodates the retention of peace as a value and at the same is pragmatic and hence honors the requirements of journalistic profession.
This article combines quantitative and qualitative analysis to investigate the reporting of the T... more This article combines quantitative and qualitative analysis to investigate the reporting of the Taliban conflict in Pakistan media and finds the coverage escalatory and elitist from the peace journalism perspective. While the security-related aspects of the conflict are highlighted, the problems of victims are ignored. The data for this study were collected through content analysis, discourse analysis and interviews with conflict reporters and analysts. The key findings of this study are quite consistent with the existing peace journalism scholarship that in conflict where national interests are involved, media become nationalistic and patriotic, leaving behind the considerations of quality and good journalism.
This study combined the key findings of a dozen empirical studies with an original qualitative in... more This study combined the key findings of a dozen empirical studies with an original qualitative investigation aimed at understanding the dynamics of conflict journalism in Pakistan. The author devised an original contextual model and tested its applicability in five different conflicts of varying intensity. The study found that conflict journalism is dependent on the interaction between two key factors: the journalistic assessment of a conflict in terms of its seriousness of threat to national security and the resultant flak that stems from various sources that significantly influence professional reporting. The article concludes that journalists working in the semi-democratic, conflict-marred settings of Pakistan adopt a more vigilant and independent stance if they perceive a conflict to be posing an enormous threat to national security, for example the Taliban conflict, and that their critical stance erodes to a more compromising position in the case of a medium-level threat in con...
In this article, the researchers have examined various factors that affect reporting of two deadl... more In this article, the researchers have examined various factors that affect reporting of two deadly conflicts in Pakistan and identify peace-oriented strategies to help resolve these conflicts. For this purpose, comprehensive and inclusive interviews were conducted with reporters covering the Taliban conflict and the ethno-political conflict in Karachi. The researchers found that the nature of a conflict and threats from conflict stakeholders were the important factors that shape the production of conflict news. As far as peace journalism strategies are concerned, it was found that a more contextual way of reporting alongside humanization those sufferers would facilitate broader understanding and resolution of these conflicts in Pakistan.
In this study, the researchers examined the prevalence of fake news in the social media debates o... more In this study, the researchers examined the prevalence of fake news in the social media debates on Pakistani politics and society. The content analysis showed that both Twitter and Facebook carried a sizeable number of fake news relating to the politics and international affairs, military, economy and religion. Though more fake news was posted relating to politics and politicians, fake news stories relating to international relations got more likes and share as compared to other topics. Interestingly, even though the fake news was busted as fake and not genuine, these continued getting attention of people. This indicates the influence of cult following and populism on the Pakistani social media users. The findings of this study support the available scholarship on the prevalence of fake news, its popularity and spread in the Western world.
This study offers a quantitative analysis of the coverage of Taliban conflict in the four leading... more This study offers a quantitative analysis of the coverage of Taliban conflict in the four leading newspapers of Pakistan and Afghanistan through the perspective of war and peace journalism—developed by Johan Galtung and adopted by many scholars. Consistent with the existing literature, the researcher found that both the English and vernacular press in the two countries predominantly reported the Taliban conflict through war journalism framing. The local press was equally escalatory while reporting on the conflict. The press in the two countries showed remarkable differences in the war journalism framing but applied similar thematic strategies of peace journalism. The study advocates an academic juncture between political communication and peace journalism scholarship to identify the issues that influence media content during conflict times for better understanding of the potential role of media in peace and conflict resolution.
This study analyzes the scholarship on the classification of war and peacemaking potential of med... more This study analyzes the scholarship on the classification of war and peacemaking potential of media in the conflict-ridden milieu of Pakistan. Borrowing from peace studies and the existing journalistic practices in the country, the researchers present and empirically test a new model for evaluating conflict journalism in terms of its escalatory and de-escalatory trends. For this purpose, news stories telecasted in two leading TV channels (PTV and Geo News) relating to seven deadly conflicts were analyzed. We found support for our model—the higher the intensity of a conflict, the higher the escalatory trends in coverage. Patriotic and elite-controlled media produced more escalation as compared to conflict in which journalists were using relatively free media. Despite the dominance of escalatory coverage, we also found some traces of peace journalism in the reporting of conflicts. The study recommends that to promote peace journalism in Pakistan and elsewhere, the local context of a c...
Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this stud... more Following seminal study on journalistic attitudes towards wars and peace journalism, in this study we investigated the perceptions of conflict reporters in the three most deadly countries in the world including Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. A total of 317 journalists participated in this study. Though generally we found support for the earlier study, the analysis shows journalists engage in wider practices than predicted that overlap war and peace journalism approaches. A closer examination showed that journalists favored active war journalism practices and passive peace journalism practices. Finally, we did not find that journalistic experience and contextual factors influenced preferences towards war and peace journalism substantially.
In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-gove... more In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-government relations by analyzing press reporting of four different events in the securitized context of Pakistan. For this purpose, framing analysis of one elite English newspaper Dawn and one popular Urdu newspaper daily Jang was conducted. Overall, the results are mixed. The tragic event of Salala check post did not result in critical coverage. On the other hand, policy uncertainty on participation in the Yemeni conflict produced critical coverage. In case of Kashmir conflict, the broader political consensus was responsible for supportive coverage. Similarly, the unpopular step of giving extension to army chief was mainly reported in neutral fashion with some procedural criticism.
In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-gove... more In this study, the researcher examines some of the key arguments in the scholarship on media-government relations by analyzing press reporting of four different events in the securitized context of Pakistan. For this purpose, framing analysis of one elite English newspaper Dawn and one popular Urdu newspaper daily Jang was conducted. Overall, the results are mixed. The tragic event of Salala check post did not result in critical coverage. On the other hand, policy uncertainty on participation in the Yemeni conflict produced critical coverage. In case of Kashmir conflict, the broader political consensus was responsible for supportive coverage. Similarly, the unpopular step of giving extension to army chief was mainly reported in neutral fashion with some procedural criticism.
This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potent... more This study proposes a classification framework for conflict journalism with respect to its potential for conflict escalation and de-escalation in Pakistan-a country marred by a number of deadly conflicts. While building on the existing literature, the study proposes the varying levels of intensity of a conflict and the resulting escalatory and de-escalatory coverage as important factors in the process. Through content analysis and focus group discussion, it was found that de-escalatory coverage is inversely proportional to the intensity of a conflict in terms of its perceived threats to national security. Secondly it was found that the coverage was spread across a range of thematic frames though certain perspectives got more prominence as compared to others. Noting the variations in the presence of peace journalism, the study concludes that critical pragmatic approach to peace journalism is better suited to address queries relating to its theory and practice than other approaches because it accommodates the retention of peace as a value and at the same is pragmatic and hence honors the requirements of journalistic profession.
Uploads
Papers by Shabir Hussain