Framing of Bangladesh in U.S. Media: A postcolonial analysis

Abstract

This study examines how Bangladesh, a Muslim-dominated country located in the global South, has been portrayed in leading U.S. media over the past five years (2011–2015). Investigating the process of media framing from a postcolonial theoretical perspective, this study analyses 240 stories (reports, editorials, opinion pieces, etc.) in two U.S. media outlets ( The New York Times and The Washington Post) to understand the framing of Bangladesh. The findings indicate that negative attributes frequently come to construct the image of Bangladesh and describe the moral state of the nation. Violent Islamic extremists, disastrous country, and human rights violations emerge as the dominant frames to describe Bangladesh. Drawing on postcolonial theory, the article argues that these stereotypical frames of Bangladesh are important to sustaining the binary opposition of the West with its other. I conclude by calling for a democratic media representation globally.