Topic > A Comprehensive Analysis of News Headlines

IndexProblem StatementResearch GapJustificationResearch ObjectiveResearch QuestionLimitationDefinition of Key Termsa. News headlinesb. Comparative analysisc. Textual analysis. Discursive DevicesLITERATURE REVIEWDiscourse AnalysisCritical Discourse AnalysisNorman Fairclough Model in CDAText (description)Discursive Practice (Interpretation)Social Practice (Explanation)NewsE - NewspaperConclusionEvery nation has a common language that represents its culture, norms, identity and context. According to Chomsky (1957), “A set (finite or infinite) of sentences, each finite in length and constructed from a finite set of elements, a finite number of phonemes (or letters in its alphabet), and each sentence is representable as a sequence finished with these phonemes." A study “Language can enhance otherwise invisible objects in visual awareness” (Lupyan and Ward, 2013); confirm that language has the power to alter individuals' perceptions. Our perception, knowledge and expectations can be shaped by the use of language. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original EssayNews is the report which includes all the current activities which are of general human interest. In Pakistan, people are curious about news so as to gain awareness about the social and political activities of the world. Since independence, Pakistan has faced social, political and economic pressures, but media freedom remains constant and many political parties use the media to express their different perspective. The media plays a vital role in turning simple social events into news and often controls data according to its own interests (Taiwoo, 2007). Media includes paper and electronic forms to disseminate information to the public. The media can be in printed form, i.e. through newspapers, books, magazines, etc. Print media have contributed significantly in updating the masses. It was the main source for obtaining information. In recent years, news readers have shifted from traditional print publications, i.e. newspapers and magazines, to digital news due to technological advancement. According to Prior (2005), “Expanding media choice increases among information seekers.” The Internet allows affordable access to a wide range of sources and is cost-effective. This inexpensive customization can enable highly specialized outlets that serve niche tastes and create echo chambers of self-confirming ideological jokes (Sunstein 2001). According to Norman Fairclough (1995), “CDA consists of three dimensions: text analysis (description), discourse analysis (interpretation), and social analysis (explanation).” As English and Urdu news websites have many news addresses across the world and people get the same news in different languages. After reviewing the literature, it is noticed that most of the time Pakistani newspaper headlines have thus been analyzed by different CDA models; this research will analyze electronic newspaper headlines instead of newspaper headlines. A news headline is a summary of a news story that provides information to all busy people who cannot waste time to find the whole story; normally appears in large font. “A headline describes a news story with minimal words, informs its readers precisely and quickly and arouses their interest” (Ungerer, 2000). The news headline increases and decreases the value of the news using words and tone. Tiono (2003) states that “to capture readers' attention, journalists create headlines that are worth reading formake readers curious to read the entire content of the news". Statement of the Problem According to Mcquail (2005), “the media provide their audiences with a supply of information, images, stories and impressions, sometimes according to anticipated needs, sometimes guided by their own purposes and sometimes following the motivations of other social institutions ( for example, advertising, propaganda, showing favorable images, sending information).” The media is responsible for spreading news among the masses. News includes local, regional and global information and this same news can be used to create unity, brotherhood, hatred, hegemony, imply power and cause discrimination. The media has the power to alter people's perceptions. In Pakistan, a research was conducted on Urdu and English language newspaper headlines which include; Textual and Rhetorical Analysis of Urdu and English Newspaper Headlines, Critical Discourse Analysis of Headlines in Online News Portals, Comparative Study of Urdu and English Newspaper Headlines of Pakistan, Critical Discourse Analysis of Online News Headlines. There are many research studies conducted on newspaper headlines comparing similar events with different newspapers. This study evaluates the reporting of major E-News headlines showing the same news stories in different languages. As in the last few years it is observed that the masses preferred to visit authentic news to keep themselves updated. Since e-news is convenient, updates 24/7 and provides in-depth and basic information, the culture of visiting e-news has increased in Pakistan. “Electronic media surpasses traditional print media in terms of appeal. Studies suggest that the shift towards online news sources stems from the attraction of the Internet as an information medium” (Zulkafli, Omar & Hashim, 2014). Since newspapers are limited to narrow borders (cities or countries), while electronic news is accessible to every country in the world. Therefore, this study is an attempt to conduct a textual and discursive analysis of news headlines in English and Urdu using the three-dimensional Norman Fairclough model. Since titles help identify the nature of the information presented and are used to attract the audience. The study aims to highlight how linguistic features are used in headlines to create an impact on the masses. Research Gap This study does not present any specific news genre compared to other research papers that focus exclusively on political genre or a specific genre. Secondly, this study compares the same news event of Pakistani Urdu and English e-newspapers. Finally, both English and Urdu newspapers belong to the same publishers. Therefore the study includes the same news headlines, same publishers and different genres of e-newspapers in English and Urdu. Justification A number of studies have been conducted on newspaper headlines. It was suggested by Lodhi, Mukhtar, Akhtar, Nafees, Akhtar, and Sajid (2018) to replicate the analysis of conceptual and contextual features on electronic media. This study compares Pakistani e-newspaper headlines in English and Urdu at textual and conversational levels. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to understand how the same publishing house uses words from two languages ​​that create a particular meaning, emotion or representation of the same event. The study attempts to draw attention to the meaning of the language used in news headlines and also to find out how an event can be sensitive to readers using linguistic devices. Furthermore, this study creates awareness among the masses by identifying thedifference in the news and how language in news headlines is used to increase and decrease the value of any incident or event. Through the analysis of news headlines themselves, this research will present e-newspaper readers and media analysts with understanding the hidden meaning in seemingly simple texts. Research Objective The study has the following two research objectives: To explore the textual difference between Pakistani English and Urdu electronic newspaper titles. To analyze the discursive devices used in electronic newspaper headlines in Pakistani English and Urdu. Research Question Based on the above objectives of the study, this research aims to answer the following research questions: What are the textual differences between Pakistani English and Urdu e-newspaper headlines? What are the discursive devices used in electronic newspaper headlines in Pakistani English and Urdu? Limitation This study comprises the content of twenty (20) same news headlines each published on the front page of Pakistan E-Newspaper in Urdu and English, from the period of October to November 2019 (instead of the whole year). This study adopted Norman Fairclough's three-dimensional model which consists of 3 levels, namely text, discursive and social levels but social level was omitted because it analyzes the ideological element which is beyond the scope of this study. Therefore this study will focus on one month's electronic newspaper headlines and these headlines will be analyzed at two levels, i.e. social and discursive. Definition of key termsa. News Headlines "A newspaper headline is often the most important element of a page as it gives the reader an overview of the news." (Mozūraitytė, 2015)b. Comparative Analysis Przeworski and Teune (1970) restrict “Comparative analysis to analyzes in which a social characteristic is shown to have an effect on the variable or relationship of interest, for example when a characteristic of the national political system has influenced some aspect of behavior electoral.”c. Text Analysis“Text analysis is the communication method used by researchers to describe and interpret the characteristics of a recorded or visual message. The purpose of textual analysis is to describe the content, structure and functions of the messages contained in the texts”. (Frey, L., Botan, C. and Kreps, G. 1999)d. Discursive Devices “Discursive devices refer to the microlinguistic tools that people use in interaction to construct a particular version of the world and their relationship to it. To give an example, callers to a child protection helpline use language in a particular way to present the situation they are reporting as sufficiently concerning to warrant the call (one world version), but not of such severity that make them guilty of negligence. not calling the police (a version of themselves).” (Potter & Hepburn, 2003). LITERATURE REVIEW Discourse Analysis Discourse comes from the Latin word “discursus” meaning “conversation” (McArthur, 1996). Discourse is defined as 'a serious speech or piece of writing on a particular subject' (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, 2001, p.388). Carter (1993) emphasizes that discourse refers to the topics or types of language used in a particular context. Furthermore, speech also refers to any commonly appearing stretch of language. Speech is usually of two categories: spoken and written. According to Van Dijk (as cited in Lodhi et. al (2018) the term discourse can be simply understood as text and discourse. It is a form of language used in both spoken and written language asdaily conversations, newspapers, texts etc. Discourse analysis is a broad terminology that is defined differently by many authors. Some consider this to be 'beyond the sentence' analysis of language. According to Bavlas, Kenwood and Philips (2002, p.102) “Discourse Analysis is the systematic study of natural (non-hypothetical) communication in the broadest sense, at the level of meaning (rather than as physical acts or characteristics). According to Richardson, there are two main perspectives to explain discourse analysis. 2010) states that "The first paradigm that explains discourse analysis is a formal or structural paradigm." DA is seen as the exploration of language use by focusing on larger chunks of sentences. The second paradigm that explains discourse analysis is known as functionalist in this approach the focus is on the specific function which is the language in use. Brown and Yule (1983) suggest that discourse is, necessarily, the analysis of language in use. As such, it cannot be limited to the description of linguistic forms regardless of the purposes or functions that these forms are designed to perform in human affairs. (p.1)Critical Discourse AnalysisCritical Discourse Analysis (CDA) is "a new transversal discipline that encompasses the theory and analysis of text and discourse in virtually all disciplines of the humanities and social sciences" (Van Dijk , 1997). CDA sees the text as an entity that does not occur in isolation (Fairclough, 2010). Critical discourse analysis deals with the study and analysis of written or spoken text to reveal the existence of power, dominance and inequality. (Handayani, Heriyanto and Soemantri 2018, p.337). The main purpose of CDA is to present a framework that creates a connection between text, discourse and society. A complete explanation of communication is suggested by such a structure when all these components are connected. More frameworks have been introduced under CDA. The Norman Fairclough model in CDAFairclough presented a model in 1989 and revised it in 1995. His three-dimensional framework is considered one of the significant and detailed frameworks presented in the field of CDA. CDA. According to Fairclough, every interaction is made up of three dimensions, namely text (description), discursive practice (interpretation) and social practice (explanation). Text (description) The first and main element of this framework is the text or descriptive phase. The description includes linguistic analysis. Fairclough (1995) further states that “linguistic analysis includes the analysis of grammar, vocabulary, phonetic system, semantics, and the organization of tone and cohesion above the sentence level” (p.57) . According to Handayani et.al (2018), linguistic elements such as word choice (vocabulary), grammar (transitivity, passivization) and text arrangement (thematic choice, turn system) should be examined systematically. The text at this level should be considered as an object.Discursive practice (interpretation)The second element of this framework is the discursive practice or interpretation phase. According to Handayani et.al (2018), “In the interpretation stage, the relationship between the discourse and its production and consumption should be interpreted.” (p.339). This level includes two processes. One is the institutional process (editorial procedure), and the other is the discursive process (the alteration that the text undergoes in production and consumption). Here the significant concept of “intertextuality” is useful to describe the process of discourse. Furthermore, this phase concerns the investigation of intertextual connections between discourse, texts and environment. Factors affecting the way people should be taken into account.