MEDIA Monitoring Report 2017 Media Monitor ng Disclamer SAMAR in collaboration with OSF has undertaken this Media Monitoring as a project with very limited human resources. Monitors watched assigned television channels and filled questionnaires separately designed for each assignment by SAMAR. There is, however, a possibility of human error affecting the overall accuracy of the data. The report aims to give a representative sample of the Pakistani mainstream and regional media (both electronic and print) but cannot be used as evidence in any court of law. This is an attempt to gauge the trends and dynamics of media . Contents Introduction Page 1 Page 3 Methodology Regional Media Page 7 Page 17 News Channels Page 21 GEO News Page 35 ARY News Page 49 DAWN News Page 63 Dunya News Page 77 Express News Page 87 Talk Shows Page 89 Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath Page 97 Capital Talk Page 101 Off the Record Page 105 The Reporters Page 109 Zara Hut Kay Page 113 Bol Bol Pakistan Page 117 Dunya Kamran Khan Kay Sath Page 127 Muqabil Page 131 92@8 with Sadia Afzal Page 135 Faisla Aap Ka Page 139 Live With Nadeem Malik Newspapers Page 143 The News (English) Express Tribune (English) DAWN (English) Daily Express (Urdu) Daily Jang (Urdu) Daily Dunya (Urdu) Daily Kawish (Sindhi) Introduction The importance of media monitoring as a tool for change was officially recognized by the United Nations for the first time in Section J of the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA). Media monitoring become important as it bridges the gap between activists and media professionals. It creates a link between the media and their audience who has the potential to lead to democratic, professional, more equitable and diverse media systems. Media monitoring is important in developing a critical mass to aware media consumers who lobby media for more diverse coverage. In particular, a free, pluralistic and independent news media, on all platforms, is important for 1 facilitating good governance and transparency. Within the much-broadened media landscape, news media still remain central conduits for ongoing public assessments of the activities of government, other institutions and political parties that have developmental impact. Interesting facts, observed in last three months of 2018, in electronic news monitoring are that most mainstream national TV channels spend more time on headline news than the detailed news. In prime time 9:00 pm news bulletin, around 25-30 news headlines are presented in first 15- 20 minutes. More than 50% headlines have no news details. In the name of international news people are forced to watch some news which has no news value in Pakistan like in china a truck hit the pole on the road side and no one is injured or some very normal or local level dog show in Poland. There is rare news about "brexit" or Libya, Syria, Turkey. The contest for ratings and public viewership, instead of leading to competition and professionalism has created an 'information leviathan' that de-politicizes, disfranchise and alienate the public from their due role in the affairs of the state, its politics and public policy making. However, over the years, the subsequent decline in the standards of the electronic media can only be attributed to economic competition. Its role as a highly proficient and powerful tool of projecting and disseminating information makes it a viable instrument for influencing public opinion in the hands of those who are in the corridors of power or what a 2010 IFP report termed as 'for-sale journalists ready to produce or reproduce stories according to the dictates of their customers'. There may be women issue appears in ten percent of stories about an incident. But how do these stories actually portray women? In fact a story about a female may fall into as many stereotyped formula as a story about a beauty queen.In Pakistani media, the issue most of the time discussed in prime time is related to politics and when the issues that receive the most attention from media become the issues that the public discusses, debates, and demands action on. This means that the media is determining what issues and stories the public should thinks about. The heavy exposure to media causes individuals to develop an illusory perception of reality based on the most repetitive and consistent messages of a particular medium. Interestingly, TV media or talk shows are becoming the source of information for the print media these days. In the evening, and till late night, people listen and watch TV news and talk shows and then next morning they read the same in the morning newspapers. This shows how media control the flow of information and limiting people's choices. Any member or analyst from any minority community is seldom invited on the talk shows. Women participants' percentage is also very low. Media Monitor ng As compared to mainstream national media, one important limitation of the regional media is its geo-lingual nature. Geography and language both place certain kinds of constraint on the regional media. Its audience is limited to a certain language; therefore, the print and electronic media provide space to news emanating from their specific geographical area. However, this factor, by no way qualifies regional media outlets as a genuine source of public awareness and empowerment. Like the rest of the media houses, they tend to cater for their financial interests and propagate the dominant discourse. 2 Media Monitor ng Methodology There were two main aspects to the monitoring. First and foremost, the study collects quantitative (i.e. numerical) data. This part of the project provides a detailed picture of the numbers of issues in the news, the types of story in which they are found, the roles they play in the news etc. Second is the qualitative monitoring that gets behind the numbers to explore the quality of the coverage. 3 The quantitative monitoring: First, the study collects quantitative (i.e. numerical) data. This part of the project provides a detailed picture of the numbers of issues in the news, the types of story, the areas they cover in the news etc. This information is compiled for every news story monitored. For each medium – television and print - a monitoring tools set out the areas in which information is needed and the range of answers possible. Monitoring tools and the Coding Sheets of both electronic and print media is slightly different, because slightly different information is needed for each medium. The qualitative monitoring: Second, the numbers, or quantitative data, that are generated by the project tell only part of the story. To get a more complete picture of news content, the quality of the coverage needs to be analyzed. This is the qualitative aspect of the monitoring. We make a detailed study of some news stories to illustrate basic patterns in the news reporting. Scope of the News: 5 basic scope were developed to monitor the duration of the news. This defines the interest of the TV channel and the flow of information they are gathering and passing to people. After 18th amendment, provinces have more power than ever in the history of Pakistan but provincial issues or news related to provinces are not that important for the mainstream media. Whatever the provincial governments do whether in the favor of people or not media teach people to look towards Islamabad for their issues. In sports unfortunately more than 80% time was allocated for the cricket only. No news or merely 5% news about our national game 'hokey'. Issues: 25 generalize topic or issues were selected to monitor the mainstream media. According to the journalism, media should or must highlight the issues that directly effecting the people. In last one decade Pakistan's mainstream media made politics and politicians (only) the only issue for the masses. Health, education, food, water, sanitation or issues like this which concern people are not highlighted in media. No news about any culture of any area of Pakistan or local festival coverage were reported in this quarter. Everyone is talking about religious harmony but minorities are absent in news. This seam that minorities has no religious, social or ethic issues in any part of the country. Media has penetrated into our lives because; people use the media for obtaining all kinds of information. On one hand, our media broadcasts repeated information about the different national and international issues while on the other hand, they at times fully ignore the very important news of the local people. Though news channels should act as a watchdog for protecting public and state rights. Not only protecting their rights, they should inform people about it. Media Monitor ng Area Count: Pakistan is agriculture country and according to latest census more than 50% of the population living in the rural areas. But as people of the rural areas are not the 'consumer' of some multinational companies so there is no space for them in the mainstream news. Agriculture news are only highlighted when they become political otherwise media channels have no interest in agriculture or people related to agriculture. Only few big cities and middle classes living in these areas are necessary for the news items not even the whole urban areas are covered properly. This media trend clearly indicate the commercialization in journalism and interests of the media owners. 4 Mostly, Media houses decide that which news should be appeared in the mainstream or which should be killed. In Pakistan, television is becoming the dominant communication medium on a national level and according to many survey findings of four provinces Sind, Punjab, KPK, GilgitBaltistan and Baluchistan shows that television is more highly consumed medium than radio and newspaper.