Analysis of the framing of the 2008 Jos violence in selected Nigeria newspapers

Abstract

This paper provides an analysis of how the Nigeria print media framed the long running, perennial crisis in Jos, central Nigeria with particular focus on the framing of the Jos 2008 violence by Daily Trust and The Guardian newspapers. It is a content analysis of the economic, ethnic, historical, political and religion frames used in reporting the crisis. The two major parties involved in the crisis are Hausas/Fulanis/Muslims and Indigenes/Christians. The study looks at the frames used in reporting the crisis and whether the two newspapers identified the same parties as victims, implying that the other party is the perpetrator of the violence. Findings from a content analysis of 196 issues of the two newspapers show that the political frame was mostly used to report the crisis and that both parties to the crisis were mostly identified by the two papers as victims.