Discursive Reproduction of Ideology in the National Elite Press of Pakistan

Abstract

Newspapers are important ideological sites to construct and articulate ideologies and their dissemination. This study attempts to unravel how the elite press in Pakistan discursively constructs the "other" while reporting a regional conflict. It reveals that the press reproduces and reifies the ethnocentric and nationalistic sentiments in the news discourse by representing the "us" and "them" in highly ideological polarization. India is represented as an "enemy other" in contrast to Pakistan which is represented as peaceful, rule-abiding and under consistent threat from an aggressive India. The distant actors namely the US, UN and international actors are also represented predominantly negatively. The findings are discussed in terms of ideology, national identity and nationalism.

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