Journal of Academic Research for Humanities (JARH) is a double-blind peer-review, Open Free Access, online Multidisciplinary Research Journal
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Vol. 3 No. 3 (2023)
The International "Journal of Academic Research for Humanities"

Research Articles

Focusing Public Deliberation: Editorial Framing of Pakistan Democratic Movement

Published 27-09-2023

  • Ruqia Shahid
    • ,
  • Muzammil Saeed
    • ,
  • Muazam Ali Khan

Ruqia Shahid
Department of Media and Communication, University of Management and Technology, Lahore

Muzammil Saeed
University of Management and Technology, Lahore

Muazam Ali Khan
Department of Media and Communication, University of Management and Technology, Lahore

Abstract

  The role of newspaper editorials is awe-inspiring in the field of journalism making public opinion. Editorials following organizational policy and maintaining accuracy and impartiality build a narrative about political positioning. This study was conducted to bring forth the editorial framing of Pakistani elite newspapers about the Pakistan Democratic Movement. The movement was initiated by a coalition of 13 opposition parties to oust the government of then-prime minister Imran Khan, accusing the poor performance of his regime in economic and strategic sectors. The study examined how prominent English and Urdu dailies have outlined the struggle of the opposition alliance. For this purpose, qualitative content analysis was used as a methodological tool to analyze editorials of the four selected newspapers, ‘Dawn and The News’ and ‘Jang and Express’ from 20 September 2020 to 28 February 2021. The study’s results showed that newspaper editorials have criticized the opposition and government for their anti-democratic behavior, attributing a burden of responsibility on one side, either towards the government or the opposition alliance. A clear difference of opinion was found between English and Urdu newspapers emphasizing government and opposition roles. English newspapers have stressed opposition alliance to focus on solving the issues in parliament while Urdu newspapers have forced the government to apply democratic values with full spirit to overcome the turmoil. In a nutshell, they stressed on both sides, government, and opposition, to practice democratic norms and good governance for the public good and national interest.

Keywords

Democracy, Democratic Movement, Editorial framing, Newspapers, Politics

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