News framing in The Daily Star: A content analysis on general elections of Bangladesh under caretaker government and party government

Abstract

General elections in Bangladesh have been critical in shaping its political landscape since its independence in 1971. Over the years, the country has undergone significant changes in its political structure, leading to a transition from a military regime to a parliamentary democracy. The two types of governments that govern Bangladesh are the caretaker government and the party government. This study investigates how The Daily Star presented election issues within two distinct political contexts. This study comprehends the news framing of the general election of Bangladesh conducted under caretaker (2008) and party government (2018) in The Daily Star through content analyses. This study reveals that the dominant frames in The Daily Star’s election coverage under the caretaker government in 2008 were game, conflict, and issue frames. In addition, the study observes that during the election coverage under the party government in 2018, The Daily Star placed a notable emphasis on frames related to election conspiracy and intimidation alongside the previously identified game, conflict, and issue frames. However, The Daily Star neglected to highlight economic, human interest, and morality frames in their coverage of elections held under both caretaker and party governments in 2008 and 2018.

Keywords

news framing general election newspaper caretaker government party government The Daily Star Bangladesh

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