Abstract

This Research Paper is an attempt to investigate how leading newspapers in the US and UK framed the issues of Kashmir after the revocation of Article 370. Using the content analysis method this study also aims to understand the frames used in the news stories and Editorials published by these newspapers, from August 5th, 2019 to August 5th, 2020. A total of 113 news stories with numerous frames have been published in both “The New York Times and The Guardian”. The former newspaper published 54 news stories with 13 on the front page and 41 on the international page. While "The Guardian" published 59 news stories with 11 on the front and 48 on the international page. Similarly, a total of 17 Editorials were published during a one-year period whereas "The New York Times" published 8 with both positive and negative tones.

Key Words

Historical Frame, Legal Frame, Nation-State Frame, Law & Order Frame, Democracy Frame, Humanitarian Rights Frame, Pak-India Frame, Other Frame

Introduction

The issue of Kashmir is regarded as the oldest international conflict between Pakistan and India and is still unsolved due to the lack of world superpowers. Till today it has been among the major reason for the existing hostilities between both countries which can be considered as a serious threat to peace in the world in general and south Asia in special. The global community also admits the progress and peace relationship between both countries depend only on a once and for all solution to this disputed piece of land (Shahzad Ali and Fozia Parveen, 2015). 

The Two South Asian countries (Pakistan &India) are developing with middle-class economies and countries with atomic powers. These two nations are frequently considered unfriendly neighbours with a hostile attitude to each other and the global media often attribute great significance and always give importance to the bilateral problems of Pakistan and India owing to nuclear capabilities and the importance of this part of the world (Aslam, 2019).

Kashmir has been a turning point in the relationship between Pakistan and India since their freedom from the United Kingdom in August 1947.  Their mutual relationships and bilateral progress have constantly been threatened by the dispute over Kashmir. They went into three straight wars in 1948, 1965 and 1999 which were fought conventionally and confronted numerous catastrophes due to the Kashmir dispute. Despite the United Nations and other powers of the exhibited their interests and proposals to resolve the Kashmir issue, altogether with their dedications were unsuccessful and futile and their recommendations or offers were ascertained to be unsuccessful because nobody of them was exclusively adequate and acceptable to both countries (Benny, 2013)

Press is reflected as a door opened towards the external environment because it's the main source through which we get data, information and knowledge and communicate to the world around us. Media on the one side cover government policies and social, political and major economic events, however, on the other hand, it is the duty of the media to also report on disputes or conflicts of any nature whether it is related to politics, society, economy or other. It has a considerable influence on what subjects the public reflects on and how it reflects on those subjects by significantly impacting their views regarding them (Hashim, 2018).

Nowadays conflict in Kashmir is still observed as one of the main problems that the global community have to solve according to the wishes of the people of Kashmir. The correlation between media and Kashmir dispute is studied comprehensively, and research about this issue has been narrowed to the contribution made by global media. The local and national media or a relative role in India and its media also Pakistan and its media in portraying the Kashmir dispute in terms of peace and war journalism. Nonetheless, the Kashmir issue is portrayed differently in the world media, and diverse media used different frames to create an artificial reality about the Kashmir conflict for the public across the world. Typically this difference in Kashmir is portrayed by the media of these two countries via war journalism (Muhammad Yousaf, 2020). However international media is writing about the situation in Kashmir for many decades, nevertheless, the conflict has not been scholarly explored on how the press in both countries frame the dispute as such portrayal would bring significance for the Kashmiri people.

More than 70 years old conflict has observed political developments throughout the years and that’s why today it has gained media attention globally.  In this context, using the Framing theory concept, the current study aims to analyse how the mentioned media organizations portrayed the issues of Kashmir after the August 5, 2019 revocation of Articles 370 and 35A. This study leans to investigate the framing mechanisms among international media, The US and UK print media while covering the issues of Kashmir. This study also attempts to identify the terms used by these media in order to describe the situation and subsequently the frames and slants used by the actors involved in the Kashmir issue. 

Literature Review

The clash and fight about the issue of Kashmir disputes is one of the leading prolonged disputes from the previous seven decades.  Since 1947, both the countries of India and Pakistan have not been able to find a final compromise or failed in settling the issue of the conflicted land of Jammu and Kashmir, although involved in three major combats (1948, 1965 and 1999) and two United Nations authorized truces (1949 and 1965). Since 1949 the terrain of Jammu and Kashmir (frequently mentioned as just Kashmir) has been separated by a cease-fire line into the side of Pakistan and side of India, and till today United Nations peacekeepers are allocated to observe the disputed borderline between them (Vance-Cheng, 2011).

By ignoring constantly United Nations proposals, the people of Kashmir are entitled to all the rights to choose their future by obeying an impartial and neutral plebiscite, whichever with India or Pakistan. Pakistan establishments continuously explained it as the core problem of Kashmir to the main hurdle in the stabilization of peaceful relationships (Lavoy, 2006).

The people of both India and Pakistan have a habit of structuring their ways of observing each other. Most notably, broadcasting information to these countries about the issues of Kashmir expressively forms the awareness of the general public in Pakistan and India by covering issues from diverse viewpoints. This is very important and relevant for observing this dispute & other problems aren't sorted via political discussions, nonetheless challenged through communications of specific means for reinforcing the particular position. Press considerably affects the people's response and psyche via support of foremost aspects and angles covering the continuing issues & happenings (Shah, 2018).

Kapoor. T (2021) found that the abrogation of article 370 was a piece of shocking news for the whole nation and Kashmiris. The researcher concluded that before taking such a high move at such a level, the government needed to educate the people first because it stops their state from progressing. The author also found a ban on freedom of speech and the authorities had banned media from showing the real picture of the area along with restrictions on the internet which eventually led to healthcare issues and basic necessary requirements. However, Meena. R. C, (2021) relates the abrogation of article 370 with a big win for India. she revealed that this move will abolish terrorism in India and so in Kashmir. Meena also concluded that this move of the Indian parliament will bring peace and development in the industrial sector which will eventually flourish the area.

This is very much evident since the investigation of analysis about the issue and reflects a hell of dissimilarity among mainstream press covering the Kashmir disputes because India's elite press provides security-oriented stories of the region with only focused on its own narrative whereas on the other side world-leading press is politically contextualizing the events and created specific angles and agendas (Gupta, 2010). Nonetheless, in the ongoing fight, the Indian armed forces and law enforcement agencies have not recognized transparent rules connecting to authority and unlawful accountability in the region of Kashmir concerning detainees of war, enemy inmates of conflict, or fighters, guerillas, and rebels that are detained in lengthy custody or exterminated (Chatterji, 2009). According to some information, the local administration has arrested up to thousands of persons since August 5th, 2019 including more than 100 mainstream political leaders, even though many have since been released.  The state administration did not publically approve these large-scale confinements except those of prominent representatives, containing former Chief Ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah, and Mehbooba Mufti.

Since the August 5th, 2019 withdrawal of Articles 370 and 35A of India's constitution still, internet and mobile phone services continue to be jammed in roughly some places.  Pieces of information show this has led to a severe shortage of remedies, suspensions in receiving healthcare, and delayed commerce.  With public services obstructed, local advocates of humanitarian Rights and the press are unable to keep informed on the present existing atmosphere in the area of Jammu and Kashmir Valley (Destro, 2019).




Significance of the Study

The powerful role of the press has been acknowledged around the world at every stage and in every society. Media plays a significant role in society to shape, influence and change the perception of people. The review of this research will help the readers to know about the portrayal of Kashmir issues by the US and UK press. This Research paper will help students of mass communication studies fascinated to study Kashmir conflict and involved stakeholders of this issue. This Research paper is going to identify similarities and differences between the New York Times and The Guardian regarding framing about Kashmir issue which will help all the concerned people who want to know and understand more about the nullification of Articles 370 and 35A. This research study will provide help and could become an important study for future researchers who wants to further study the framing of the Kashmir issue in western media.




Research Questions

The researcher through this study tends to investigate how the two leading newspapers of the United States and the United Kingdom framed (Placement of stories and tones used) and gave coverage to the Kashmir-related issues in their news stories and editorials after the revocation of Article 370. The study also aims to understand the frames used by these newspapers and the difference among these frames. The researchers analysed news stories and Editorials of these newspapers during a period of one year, from August 5th, 2019 to August 5th, 2020 after the abrogation of Article 370. The researcher keeping in mind the above objective framed the following Research questions.

RQ1. How much space did The New York Times give

in its news stories to Kashmir-related issues after the Abrogation of Article 370?

RQ2. How much space did The Guardian give in its news stories to Kashmir-related issues after the Abrogation of Article 370? 

RQ3. What are the dominant frames in the coverage of Abrogation of Article 370 used in The New York Times & the Guardian?

RQ4. How do The New York Times and The Guardian cover the Abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir in their Editorials?




Theoretical Framework

The current study follows the concept of framing theory which states how the media send and present information to the general public. The theory tells how different media outlets focus on certain incidents and then promoted them with a specific context in order to encourage or discourage certain interpretations. And that is how media influence the perception of people about reality. 

Some of the researchers and scholars sometimes refer to the concept of Framing as an agenda-setting theory because of its close relation to Theory. This research study employs framing theory as a theoretical framework to recognize the broadcasting discourses on the recent unrest in Kashmir valley. Framing is the main dominant notion in studies of news broadcasting. The concept of framing goes back to Goffman (1974) who defined frames “as the principles of organizations which govern social events about the social world”. He further says that “to frame is to select some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient in a communicative text, in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treatment for a recommendation for the item”.

Research Methodology

The present study uses qualitative content analysis, which required an organised and regular process of examination of the data in hand. The researcher chooses news stories and editorials published by two leading newspapers in the US and the UK in this regard. The researchers took a one-year time period for the news stories and Editorials which starts on August 5, 2019, after the revocation of Articles 370 and 35A of India's constitution. The researcher in this regard analysed all the news stories and Editorials published during the mentioned time period.

Data Analysis

This portion of the paper enlightens about the English

newspapers (The New York Times and The Guardian) and the number of news stories and editorials published on Kashmir issues in different months between the period 5^th August of 2019 and till 5^th August of 2020.




 

Table 1. News Stories Published in Different Months

	News Stories Published in Different Months													Total
	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	June	July	Aug
The New York Times	19	11	07	01	01	04	01	01	02	04	01	01	01	54
The Guardian	30	10	05	01	01	04	02	01	0	02	0	0	03	59
Total	49	21	12	2	2	8	3	2	2	6	1	1	4	113

 




The table above shows that selected Newspapers have published a total of 113 news stories regarding the Kashmir issue since the Abrogation of Article 370. The New York Times has published 54 news stories while The Guardian has published 59 news stories which shows that The Guardian gave more coverage to the issues of Kashmir during the one-year selected time frame.




 

Table 2. Different Frames Used in News Stories

	Different Frames Used in News Stories
	History Frame	Legality Frame	Nation-State Frame	Law & Order Frame	Democracy Frame	Human Rights Frame	Pakistan & India Frame	Other Frame	Total
The New York Times	03	02	02	05	04	16	12	10	54
The Guardian	05	05	01	08	04	13	13	10	59
Total	8	7	3	13	8	29	25	20	113

 




This table states the Central themes of news stories published in these newspapers. The table highlight that the New York Times has, in most of its news stories i.e. 16 framed the issues of Kashmir in the Human Rights Frame followed by 12 and 10 with the Pak-India frame and other frames respectively. Likewise, the Guardian also highly framed the issues of Kashmir in Human Rights Frame (13 stories), Pakistan & India Frame (13 stories), and Other Frames (10 stories),   Which means that the New York Times framed the issues more in the human rights frame while the Guardian framed these issues equally in the Human rights and Pak-India frames comprising 13, 13 news stories respectively.




 

Table 3. Placement of News Stories

	Placement of News Stories
	Front Page	International/ World Page	Total
The New York Times	13	41	54
The Guardian	11	48	59
Total	24	89	113

 




Table 3 show the placement of news stories which have been published on the front page and also on the international page. The New York Times in this regard gave more coverage to the issues related to Kashmir on the Front page as compared to The Guardian however The Guardian gave more coverage to the same on its international page.




 

Table 4. Number of Editorials Published Per Month

	Months							Total
	Aug	Sep	Oct	Dec	Jan	June	July
The New York Times	04	02	02	0	0	0	0	8
The Guardian	03	02	0	01	01	01	01	9
Total	7	4	2	1	1	1	1	17




The table above shows the number of editorials published per month in the New York times and the Guardian during the selected time period which shows a total of 8 and 9 editorials published during the one-year time period by The New York Times and the Guardians respectively.




Table 5.  Tone Used in Editorials Published

	Tone of  Editorials			Total
	Positive	Negative	Neutral
The New York Times	04	02	02	8
The Guardian	04	04	01	9
Total	8	6	3	17

 




The table highlights the tone of editorials published in both The New York Times and The Guardian. The data reveals both newspapers went with an equal number of editorials which shows a positive tone and has shown the better face of Kashmir however, the latter newspaper has more likely used a negative tone in its editorials i.e. 4 editorials compared to 2 of the New York Times.

Discussion & Conclusion

The two newspapers The New York Times and The Guardian are reflected as well as established, truthful, dependable, famous and leading newspapers in the western press and have great global followings across the west. These newspapers of international western mass media have their unique importance and standing in the field of print media. This research paper has especially focused on the framing of Kashmir-related issues in the news stories & editorials of the selected newspapers after the rescindment of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution from the time period of August 5th, 2019 to August 5th, 2020. There is a total of 113 news stories regarding the Kashmir issue since the abrogation of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution in leading international newspapers The New York Times and The Guardian. The New York Times just framed a total number of news stories published 54 of which 13 news stories about the Kashmir issue since the abrogation of Article 370 were published on the front page and 41 news stories about the Kashmir issue since the abrogation of Article 370 was published on the international page. While in The Guardian newspaper published a total of 59 news stories with 11 stories front page and 48 on the international page. 08 categories of the central theme of news stories made by the researcher according to the sense of news stories published.  These categories are History Frame news, Legality Frame news, Nation State Frame news, Law and Order Frame news, Democracy Frame news, Human Rights Frame news, and Pakistan and India Frame News. 

This research study is also focused on the editorial coverage of these two newspapers regarding Kashmir issues. In The New York Times newspaper, 08 editorials were published which 04 editorials are showing a positive tone as the contents in the editorial showed the better face of the Kashmir region and its people by supporting their rights and highlighting the role of the united nations security council resolutions about the right to self-determination and out of eight editorials, 02 editorials were published in negative tone as it showed the Kashmiris in a bad light and portraying a negative image of Kashmir conflict. The two editorials are considered neutral in tone as they are just presenting the facts about the situation in Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370. The Guardian newspapers published 9 editorials over the period of one year of which 04 editorials are showing a positive tone as the contents in the editorial showed the better face of the Kashmir region by expressing support for the public struggle against the occupied forces of India and showing them in favourable tone and out of nine editorials 04 editorials were published in negative tone as it showed the Kashmiris as bad people and supporting the strategies of Indian administration in the region of Jammu and Kashmir by linking freedom struggle to terrorism. The one editorial can be considered neutral in its tone regarding the Kashmir issue.

This research paper has revealed and examined the framing patterns through which the printed press of the US & UK have covered extensively the issue of Kashmir after the Article 370 abrogation by the Indian government. The New York Times and The Guardian created these frames by highlighting some aspects of the issue of Kashmir and stressing these aspects over others. They have focused on two main aspects of the Kashmir conflict that is human rights and India Pakistan context as dominating frames.

The findings of the study are confirming that these two selected newspapers had covered the issue of Kashmir significantly only in the earlier months of this chaotic situation in Kashmir since August 2019 but later coverage was not quite significant to create any diplomatic pressure so this research paper is also confirmation about the earlier studies that western media always treated the international events on the basis of violence or largely ignored some events of greater importance due to its own agendas and interest. This issue of Kashmir needs to be framed broadly in the international media for sustained efforts to create significant pressure on the regional powers about the solution to the Kashmir crisis.

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