The Taliban factor: conflict in Afghanistan and elite South Asian newspapers

Abstract

We analysed the editorial treatment of Taliban in the elite English press of India and Pakistan during January 2008 to December 2009. The study critically evaluated the relationship between elite press and the governments of the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan, and discussed how media framed Taliban in the context of foreign policies of the South Asian neighbours having important stakes in the conflict-ravaged Afghanistan. The central focus of the study was the stated foreign policy positions of India and Pakistan on Taliban factor in Afghanistan and the approach used by the elite press of these countries in responding to the initiatives of foreign office. We employed qualitative content analysis to analyse editorials of two English newspapers (The Hindu and Dawn), which helped us examine framing of the foreign policy initiatives of India and Pakistan. We found that the elite English newspapers followed the official foreign policy of India and Pakistan while covering war in Afghanistan and Taliban at a time when the entire region was in the grip of terror attacks.

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