Framing Analysis of a Conflict: How Newspapers in Five Asian Countries Covered the Iraq War

Abstract

This five-country study examined the extent to which the news coverage of the Iraq war by newspapers from India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines and by one news agency from Pakistan is framed according to the principles of war/peace journalism outlined by Johan Galtung. The findings, based on a content analysis of 442 stories from eight newspapers, suggest a slight peace journalism framing. Two important factors shaping the news framing of the conflict and support for the war and for the protagonists in the war (Americans/British vs. Iraqis) are religion and sourcing. Newspapers from the non-Muslim countries, except the Philippines, have a stronger war journalism framing, and are more supportive of the war and of the Americans/British than the newspapers from the Muslim countries, which are more supportive of the Iraqis. Stories produced by foreign wire services have a stronger war journalism framing, and show more support for the war and for the Americans/British than stories written by the newspapers’ own correspondents.

This study was made possible by a grant from the School of Communication & Information, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. An earlier draft of this paper was presented at the International Communication Association (ICA) 54th Annual Conference, New Orleans, 2004. The authors acknowledge the invaluable help of the following: Fatma Hung, research assistant; Francis Chin, Kate Mirandilla, and Soh Kian Leong Darren, coders.

Notes

1. Three cells (20%) have expected counts less than 5. The minimum expected count is 1.25. As a general rule, a chi-square test is invalid if more than 20% of the cells have expected values less than 5, or if the minimum expected frequency is less than 1.

2. Pakistan is officially an Islamic state created by the 1947 separation of British India. About 98% of Pakistanis are Muslims (World Factbook, 2003).

3. Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population, at more than 180 million. Islam is not the state religion but about 89% of Indonesians are Muslim. A minority of Indonesians supports the radical Islamic parties that share the aim of converting the nation into an Islamic state. The Indonesian government recognizes five official religions: Islam, Catholicism, Christianity (Protestant), Hindu, and Buddhism (World Factbook, 2003).