Cheaper than a goat: U.S. newspaper and television coverage of the southern Sudan conflict

Abstract

This study examined how eight U.S. news outlets framed the civil war in Sudan from 1989 through 2005. A textual analysis of 851 reports found the media framed it as a religious and ethnic conflict. Three themes also emerged: famine, slavery and oil. The general findings support previous research on how the U.S. media framed conflicts in Africa. However, contrary to other conflicts, the analysis found Sudan’s civil war received steady coverage over time.