Motion of No-confidence against Imran Khan: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Newspaper Headlines

Abstract

The current research study is aimed at critical discourse analysis of the newspaper headlines about the motion of no-confidence against Imran Khan in the parliament of Pakistan. The study is descriptive qualitative. Fairclough’s (1992) framework for critical discourse analysis of a communicative event was used for this study. Twenty-six newspaper headlines were selected from reputed Pakistani English and Urdu newspapers. The data was collected through purposive sampling techniques. The critical discourse analysis of newspaper headlines elucidated how the same news item was differently presented in different newspapers due to the ideological perspectives of their editors. The study reflects that the editors of newspapers have concealed ideologies that aim to create a sensation among their readers by employing a stimulating lexicon. These headlines function as a tool for propagating the hidden ideologies of editors to achieve their concealed objectives. The study draws the conclusion that newspaper headlines are representations of the editors’ ideologies which reflect their political, religious and personal propensity regardless of their claim to be unbiased and neutral in their field. The newspaper editors exploit headlines to shape readers’ thinking on issues of national concern.