Divergent Discursive Strategies in National and Local Media Coverage of Conflicts in Pakistan's Erstwhile FATA: A Comparative Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract

This paper analysis divergent discursive practices in national and local newspapers and television reportages of the conflicts in Pakistan Territory, formerly known as Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) between 2002 and 2020 using a comparative critical discourse analysis. Based on the three-dimensional model of Fairclough and the socio-cognitive approach of Van Dijk, news articles of such national and local sources as Dawn, The News International, Geo News, and ARY News and such local sources as Khyber News, AVT Khyber, Daily Azadi, and The Frontier Post have been analyzed. Results indicate that there are significant dissimilarities in linguistic patterns and framing: national media heavily rely on governmental sources, use formal language with a focus on military success, security needs, and versions of the state-congruent narratives that support ideologies of centralized power and neutralization of threats. Local media, on the contrary, focus on civilian voices, find emotional appeal and description to emphasize human suffering, displacement, and rights issues, which disrupt the security frames of dominance and propose the community attitudes. Those differences in the choice of the sources, diction, and political stance influence the perception of the population greatly, where the national coverage can lead to supporting the acts of the state and local reporting to the development of emotions and demand to be included in the decision. It has implications on the level of conflict escalation and peace-building, where the presence of a balanced and conflict-sensitive journalism that links the opposing poles of narratives is essential to assist in dialogue and equal recovery in war-torn areas.