Press as Negotiator or Instigator between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Ceasefire Violation Incident Occurred in January 2013

Abstract

This cross-border ten newspapers interdisciplinary study examined the extent to which the editorial and opinion column coverage in India and Pakistan played the role as negotiator or instigator between two countries during the ceasefire violation incident occurred in January 2013. Many studies have been undertaken to understand bilateral rivalry between both the countries, but how Indian and Pakistan press view these contemporary South Asian bilateral dynamics remains underexplored. Using qualitative content analysis as methodological tool, central objective of the article stands analyzed with the help of five politico-historical core foreign policy issues through the lens of a cross section of the Indian and Pakistan media—the newspaper press to be more precise. The findings are based on the analysis of editorial and opinion articles published in ten English language newspapers in both countries. The study revealed that newspapers’ role as negotiator on both sides varied from newspaper to newspaper, however, on the whole, Indian newspapers remained much committed to their negotiator role vis-à-vis Pakistani counterpart.