Print Media Framing of Boko Haram Insurgency in Nigeria: A Content Analytical Study of the Guardian, Daily Sun, Vanguard and Thisday Newspapers

Abstract

This study set out to identify the pattern of frames adopted by Nigerian newspapers in the coverage of Boko Haram insurgency. Four newspapers (The Guardian, Daily Sun, the Vanguard and ThisDay) were analysed to find out the framing patterns in the reportage of Boko Haram insurgency. The research method was content analysis. Inter-coder reliability was tested using Holsti’s formula which showed an overall 0.86 percent agreement. Findings indicate that Nigerian newspapers reported the Boko Haram insurgency in a predominantly policy response frame. This pattern was conspicuously manifest in The Guardian, ThisDay and Vanguard newspapers. However, this contrasted with the pattern identified in the Daily Sun newspaper, which emphasized ethnic and religious frames. Findings also showed that there was 60% prevalence out of the 10 frame categories used in the study. From these findings, it is clear that Nigerian newspapers reported government interventions in positive terms. Such positive framings are germane to minimizing insurgencies like that of Boko Haram, while on the other hand, coverage which emphasize ethnic and religious frames are negative and are detrimental to peace initiatives in a secular and multi-cultural State like Nigeria. We therefore recommend the optimization of positive frames to promote the peace media initiative which forms the critical plank of positive media interventions.

Keywords: Frames, Newspapers, News coverage, Boko Haram, Framing Categories.