Analyzing the Influence of Geo News and ARY News Coverage on Electoral Outcomes in Pakistan's 2024 Election: A Case Study of PTI and PML-N

Abstract

Pakistan's general elections in 2024 took place in the middle of a tumultuous political environment marked by judicial challenges, limitations on political campaigning and numerous accusations of voter suppression and media bias. This study examines the impact of two prominent television news networks, Geo News and ARY News, on the election results for Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN), given the critical role that conventional media sources play in influencing political narratives and public opinion. This study examines how these media sources represented PTI and PMLN during the election period and the effects their coverage had on public opinion and voter behavior using a content analysis research design based on framing and agenda setting theories. In this study, 60 news clips that were broadcast on both networks between March 1, 2024, and May 31, 2024 were categorized for agenda dominance, framing techniques, and tone (positive, negative and neutral). The results show that the media landscape is divided. Mostly reiterating state aligned opinions that minimized PTI's claims of electoral meddling, Geo News embraced a narrative that was favorable to the PMLN and the electoral process. By emphasizing instances like the refusal of PTI's electoral emblem ("bat"), the detention of party officials like Imran Khan, and the suspension of mobile networks on election day, ARY News, on the other hand, presented PTI as a victim of governmental repression. According to the study, Geo News concentrated on fostering political continuity and institutional legitimacy through positive PMLN coverage, whereas ARY News helped to strengthen PTI's reputation as a persecuted but resilient political party. The results of the content analysis were validated and triangulated using audience survey data and secondary sources, such as reports from FAFEN, Gallup Pakistan, and Reporters Without Borders. Entman's framing theory and McCombs and Shaw's agenda setting theory, which assist explain the ways in which media affect what and how audiences think about political problems, serve as the theoretical underpinnings of this study. In a hybrid democracy setting like Pakistan, where news organizations frequently serve as stand ins for conflicting political agendas, the study also emphasizes the function of partisan media.