DefinePK

Abstract

Pakistan 2024 General Elections held in February were a historical political event in the history of Pakistan where media significantly played key role in changing the fate of any political group or candidate. Thus, the objective of this paper is to analyze the relationships of the election with the media and to study its diverse aspects and consequences. Traditional press like television, radio, and newspaper had prominent influence over the political contenders and their ideas. Conventionally, closeness with media owners and editorial team can benefit some political individuals while deprive others. Today with the availability of new forms of media especially the social networks, the distribution of information becomes more of a citizen affair with more activism at the base level. While this process has democratized the availability of information, high risk factors such as fake news, echo chamber and algorithmic interference questions the credibility of the process and information being spread in the population. Against this backdrop, this study aims to incorporate an amalgam approach of quantitative content analysis of media alongside qualitative data obtained from personal and focus group interviews, and content analysis. Applying the analysis of the patterns of media framing, media agenda settings, and media agenda building this study aims to discover how media determines certain political perceptions and actions during the course of an election campaign adding to the existing body of knowledge on media-politics interactions in Pakistan in order to explain factors influencing the voters.