Media, War, and Peace: A Post Pulwama Comparative Study of India and Pakistan

Abstract

Background: According to Johan Galtung theory, the war journalism and peace journalism are two frames. Peace journalism is solution oriented while war journalism escalates conflicts. This study aims at comparatively exploring the nature of coverage during a conflict.    Objective: This paper examines the role of Pakistani and Indian elite press after Pulwama attack, leading to Balakot air strike. Research design: For collection of data researchers have selected four leading elite newspapers i.e. two from Pakistan and two from India. The researchers have collected two month’s data after the incident of Pulwama leading to air craft conflict between the two states. Data is collected through content analysis which is further analyzed. Conclusion: The findings indicated that the media with dominate war frames compromise national security. The implications of this paper are discussed.