Conflict and Conflicting News Discourses: An Analysis of Newspaper Coverage of Pulwama Attack

Showkat Ahmad Jan & Francis P. Barclay.

ABSTRACT
Discourse analysis is used to investigate print media coverage of
the Pulwama attack of 2019, a recent development in the
Kashmir con ict between India and Pakistan that pushed the
nuclear-armed Asian neighbours to the brink of war. To identify
the news discourses, 686 headlines of news articles published in
six popular newspapers on the attack and its aftermath during
February 15–25, 2019, are analysed. Three levels of discourse
analysis are employed: Lexical choices, social languages and
conversations. Under lexical choices, the headlines are analysed
to identify the bags of words used to represent places and
actions, along with the literary-rhetorical devices employed. With
the social languages tool, the assumed identities and intentions
of the headline writer are deduced, while the conversations tool
is used to identify and categorise the events covered, issues
raised, actors and institutions involved and their arguments in the
headlines. Five distinct discourses—News, Political, Critical,
Con ict and Peace—are thus identi ed and characterised.
Further, consulting critical discourse theories, the study ndings
are used to discuss the interplay of media, discourses and power,
and theorise on the sociopolitical powerplays that regulate those
journalistic discourses, discussing implications and the way
forward for the journalists and journalism practice covering
conflicts.

REFERENCE

Jan, Showkat Ahmed & Francis P. Barclay. (2023). Conflict and Conflicting News Discourses: An Analysis of Newspaper Coverage of Pulwama Attack, Journalism Practice, DOI: 10.1080/17512786.2023.2218338 Scopus indexed

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