Conflict Coverage in India and Pakistan of the Taliban Takeover in 2021 A Study of English-language Newspapers’ Reporting in Light of the Security Competition between India and Pakistan and the Enduring Rivalry at its Core

Abstract

After twenty years of war, in August 2021, the United States withdrew from Afghanistan, the Afghan forces surrendered, and the Taliban regained power over Afghanistan (Yousaf and Jab-arkhail 2021, 1). The resulting security risks extend beyond the borders of Afghanistan (Verma 2022, 152). Consequently, the events received extensive attention in the media outlets in the region. This research analyses the coverage of the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan in 2021 in Pakistani and Indian English-language media and explores essential factors influencing the con-flict coverage. The findings serve as a critical component in understanding the complexities of the mediascapes in India and Pakistan and the overarching implications for the broader context of conflict dynamics, as such, also giving insight into the geopolitical situation. The study draws upon the existing theoretical concept of peace journalism, its criticisms and adaptations, thereby questioning its applicability in a real-world context. The study utilises criti-cal discourse analysis to comparatively examine news articles in The Times of India and Dawn (Pakistan) concerning the discursive features of the coverage. Through the thematic analysis of 17 semi-structured interviews with experts and Indian and Pakistani journalists, the analysis of the news articles is complemented by linking the findings to the factors connected to the security competition and enduring rivalry between India and Pakistan which influence the conflict cover-age. Key findings suggest that while the interviews revealed that the Indian and Pakistani medi-ascapes were largely compromised by the establishments and experienced heavy restrictions, the news articles only partly mirrored this. There was no explicit bias towards negative reporting on matters connected to the Indo-Pak relations in TOI and Dawn.