Mass Communication and Journalism
Showkat, J Mass Communicat Journalism 2013, 3:1
http://dx.doi.org/10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Research
Article
Review
Article
Open
OpenAccess
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Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading
National Dailies of Both the Countries (The Hindu & Dawn)
Nayeem Showkat*
Masters in Mass Communication from Islamic University Kashmir, India
Introduction
It has been established by major world sport researches that cricket
is the second most widely played games in the world after football, and
it is highly popular in the most populous nations of South Asia like
India, Pakistan or Bangladesh. It can be said that people in India and
Pakistan are enthusiastic about this game and every cricket tournament
has good following as have the TRPs of cricket matches suggested all
through their cricketing history. It can be said that people belonging
to all age groups are excited about this sport. It is a general belief that
one of the first things a kid learns after going to school is how to play
cricket. Not only is it popular in South Asia but it also has an impact
as well as is evident from the fact that cricket star endorsements or
advertisements occupy a good proportion of the market and are seen
promoting various brands or products and support various causes as
well for e.g. Anti AIDS campaign, Polio drives etc.
Background
Origin of cricket is traced to the Dark Ages, probably after the
Roman Empire but before the Normans invaded England, and certainly
somewhere in Northern Europe. The present form of this game was
believed to have originated in the 19th century. It has gone through
different stages of evolution and developments and is still evolving
as different formats have come up with time; Test matches being the
original cricket, followed by One day matches and now the T20.The
game follows proper stipulated rules and guidelines abided by all the
cricketing nations. International Cricket Council (ICC) is governing
body in world cricket, founded on the 15th of June, 1909, which frames
and implements all the laws governing the international cricket?
Cricket in India and Pakistan
The history of cricket in India is linked with the existence and
development of the British Raj via the East India Company2. The East
India Company was the means by which cricket was introduced to
India. In India, cricket was played for the first time at Cambay, near
Baroda in 1721. After partition of India in 1947 and the creation of
Pakistan, both the countries had their own cricket teams, some players
having played for the undivided India. 3The cricket team of Pakistan
appeared for the first time in the cricket world in October 1952 when it
played its first ever Test series in Delhi in India. Though, people admire
all the games but cricket is a passion for them. The game of cricket
has received a special treatment from the people and administration in
these countries.
Indo-Pakistan relations and cricket
India and Pakistan are two of the most strategically important
countries in the South Asian region. These two nations separated after
the Indian subcontinent divided. There is much in common between
Republic of India and Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The diplomatic
relations developed soon after independence but these relations did
not ensure good friendship and have been mostly hostile. The blaming
process started soon after the inception of Pakistan when during the
world’s biggest mass migration both states were unable to provide
J Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
security to minorities. The peace was disrupted and the two nations
started fighting due to different reasons from time to time. There are
many issues between Pakistan and India like those of Kashmir, water,
terrorism, border confrontation, trade etc. Kashmir maintains the
highest place in this list. With the result, four wars in 1947, 1965, 1971
and 1999 have been fought ever since. The Indo-Pak relations have gone
through various diplomatic tensions and pressures. Cricket proved to
be an important link between them and the people of the both countries
usually used to meet on the cricket grounds and stadiums even in the
bitter days of their history. The first test series played between the two
nations took place in 1952, when Pakistan toured India, and then India
toured Pakistan for the first time in 1954-55. Just after then India and
Pakistan started playing against each other.
Key dates
The cricketing ties have been active off and on, in the backdrop
of developing political events. The chronology of important events,
matches and happening is given below, which reflect upon the troubled
history of India and Pakistan as well as the attempts to mend fences
through the sub-continent’s shared passion for cricket4
1947: End of British rule and partition of the subcontinent into
mainly Hindu-majority India and the Muslim-majority state of
Pakistan. Partition triggers widespread religious bloodshed in which
hundreds of thousands die.
1947-49: The two new states go to war over the Muslim-majority
state of Kashmir, which is also partitioned, along a de facto border that
neither accepts to this day.
1965: A new war over Kashmir ends inconclusively.
1971: The two countries go to war over East Pakistan, which secedes
to form the new nation of Bangladesh.
1974: India explodes first nuclear device in an underground test.
1987: Pakistan’s Zia-ul-Haq launches “cricket diplomacy” by
watching a cricket Test match between India and Pakistan with then
Indian Prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, defusing tension as both countries
mass troops on their borders.
1989: India tours Pakistan for a full test series.
Muslim separatist groups begin anti-India campaign in Kashmir.
*Corresponding author: Nayeem Showkat, Masters in Mass Communication from
Islamic University Kashmir, India, E-mail: [email protected]
Received July 11, 2012; Accepted December 18, 2012; Published December
25, 2012
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A
Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The Hindu & Dawn)
J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Copyright: © 2013 Showkat N. This is an open-access article distributed under
the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted
use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and
source are credited.
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 2 of 10
New Delhi accuses Pakistan of arming and training the militants.
Relations sour severely and cricket suffers.
1992: Destruction of Babri mosque in Ayodhya strain relations
further.
1993: Serial blasts in Mumbai kill around 250. India blames
Pakistan for harbouring the key suspect
1997: India returns to Pakistan for the first time in eight years to
play a limited series of one-day internationals.
1998: Both countries carry out tit-for-tat nuclear weapons tests,
raising tension across the world.
1999: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee holds summit with his
Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Lahore, leading to a thaw in
relations.
• Later in the year, the Pakistani team tours India for the first
time since 1987 despite protests from Hindu extremists in India. The
victorious Pakistanis receive a standing ovation during the first game.
• The goodwill vanishes as Indian troops fight a brief but bloody
conflict with Pakistan-backed forces in the mountains of Kargil in
Indian-held Kashmir.
2001: Vajpayee holds a summit with Pakistani President Pervez
Musharraf in Agra, which ends in failure because of differences over
Kashmir.
India blames Pakistan-based militants for an attack on the
parliament in New Delhi that leaves15 people dead.
2003: Both countries agree a ceasefire on the Line of Control in
Kashmir, improving relations.
2004: They launch a formal peace process, known as the Composite
Dialogue, to address abroad range of bilateral issues.
2005: Pakistan tours India. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh invites then Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf in New Delhi
to watch a match. They say afterwards that the peace process was now
“irreversible.”
2006 India tours Pakistan.
Serial blasts in Mumbai suburban trains kill 174. India blames
Pakistan-based Islamist militants.
2008: Islamist gunmen attack Mumbai, killing 166 people. India
blames Pakistan-based militants for the assault and suspends the peace
dialogue.
India tours Pakistan for a full Test series for the first time since
1989 as part of a diplomatic initiative called the “Friendship Series.”
Many Indian fans report being welcomed like long-lost brothers.
2011: After a number of high-level contacts between the countries,
they agree to restart their peace talks to resolve all outstanding issues,
including the vexed subject of Kashmir.
- Singh invites Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime
Minister Gilani to watch the World Cup semi-final between the two
rivals in Mohali.
Diplomatic use of cricket
Diplomacy is communication applied to the relations among nation
states. Diplomatic communication has focused on direct, governmentJ Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
to-government contacts, but recent scholarly attention has begun to
turn to less direct forms of “public diplomacy” in which the government
of one nation seeks to employ the media and public opinion of a second
to bring constituency or other political pressure on the second nation’s
government to act in favour. Merritt (1980) [1] establishes that such
pressure can be directed at either increasing or restricting the latitude
of foreign-policy decision making available to the target government.
Manheim and Albritton [2-4] have examined the use of public relations
and news management techniques by several governments to influence
their portrayal in the news media of a target country. India-Pakistan
match holds the attention of large numbers of people in both countries
and conveys to them simple and highly symbolic messages; high level
sporting competition is inextricably linked with the politics of both the
countries. Cricket and cultural diplomacy can claim to be an effective
point for the forward foreign policy and the ties are channelized at not
just the diplomatic level but at the grassroots level as well.
Significance of cricket diplomacy
Cricket is considered the most popular game in the world but it
is the most popular one in India and Pakistan. India and Pakistan
have fought four wars since the two countries were founded in1947,
and their unsettled relationship lies beneath many of South Asia’s
most festering problems, including their dispute over Kashmir, lasting
decades. Diplomatic progress was shattered in 2008 when alleged
militants based in Pakistan mounted terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Then
the peace talk resumes in World cup cricket match between the two
countries. Result of this match was in the form of new initiation of
peace talks between the two old rivals. In a goodwill gesture ahead of
this cricket match, Pakistani government also freed an Indian national,
Gopal Das, who has been languishing in a Pakistani prison for 27 years
as an alleged spy (27-March-2011). It shows that a game can change the
fate of nation and its people.
Cricket can be used for ushering diplomatic relations and media
can be an effective tool in this and political leader too if desirous can
enhance the relations between both the nuclear powers of Asia (i.e.
India and Pakistan). Cricket diplomacy consists of using the game
of cricket as a political tool to enhance or worsen the diplomatic
relations between two cricket playing nations. The cricket rivalry
between the national cricket teams of India and Pakistan is one of
the most intense sports rivalries in the world. After independence in
1947, both nations laid foundations for the emergence of an intense
sporting rivalry between the two nations who had erstwhile shared a
common cricketing heritage. People feel that Cricket diplomacy is a
positive move, which made both authorities to visit the opposite nation
and enhance the relationship between the two nuclear powers of Asia.
Cricket matches have in the past used as meeting opportunities and for
discussions or icebreakers on the sidelines.
Sports diplomacy describes the use of sport as a means to influence
diplomatic, social, and political relations. Experts suggest that sports
diplomacy may transcend cultural differences and bring people
together. In a statement9 on 18 July 2012 at Islamabad, Pakistan
President Asif Ali Zardari referred to the resumption of cricketing
ties with India as a formidable confidence building measure and a
way forward to encouraging people-to-people contact. Undoubtedly,
such inputs suggest it would add to the positive atmosphere which has
been witnessed by the two countries after resumption of the bilateral
dialogue. Former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani
also stated10 that World Cup semifinal match between India and
Pakistan in Mohali proved to be a catalyst for improving ties between
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 3 of 10
the two countries and that it had brought the two governments and two
nations closer.
However, sports and politics have had both positive and negative
implications over history. Nationalistic fervor are sometimes linked to
victory or loss on sports fields. In case of India and Pakistan, cricket has
frequently been the victim of poor relations between these neighbors
with tours blocked for years because of bad-blood; nevertheless, it has
also been used to build trust and confidence when ties are improving.
Cricket diplomacy can play great role in enhancing bilateral relations
of India and Pakistan but with the affirmative media presentation [5].
Cricket as an element for improving indo-pak relations
Cricket has been an important element in the process of improving
relations between India and Pakistan; and improvements have certainly
been needed. Politics and sports are in a relatively long line of treatises
that assert that it is naive and unrealistic to view the sport as separate
and above social, economic, and more specifically, political activity.
Sports are linked to political socialization, formation of the political
culture and development of national identity [6]. The more serious
sport is to citizens, the more likely a government will use sport as a
vehicle of policy and control. Sport is an essential instrument serving
the national and political integration of a country. Rajdeep Sardesai,
wrote in his blog13 that Indo-Pak cricket could be compared with
the diplomatic relations between the two countries and believes that
it suffers from acute schizophrenia and is in a state of dilemma. He
gives the examples of January 1999 when Chennai gave a standing
ovation to Wasim Akram’s men after they had just beaten India and
after six months the two countries met again in a world cup match
against the hostile backdrop of the Kargil war. In 2004, Pakistani crowd
were praising Indian Bowler, Balaji etc. Rajdeep believes that there is a
similarity between the two for their unpredictable nature. The result
of the visit of Pakistani president Pervez Mushraff, in 2005 to India
to watch a cricket match between India and Pakistan which effectively
turned into the summit and the both countries agreed to open up the
militarized frontier dividing the disputed Kashmir region. Cricket has a
long history as a platform for diplomacy and public diplomacy between
India and Pakistan. Rockower [7] supports this by saying that the highlevel cricket diplomacy is helpful and beneficial for taking diplomacy
wickets, real people-to-people cricket diplomacy would do far more to
lower the levels of hostility between the two sides.
Sports journalism
Sports journalism is a form of journalism that reports on sports
topic and events. Sports journalism is an essential element of any news
media organization. There is a socio-political significance of sports
journalism. As the example of cricket the stories related to it transcends
the game spirit and take on socio-political significance by connecting
the people of more than two countries in the common thread of
entertainment and enhancing the political relations. Journalism
is mainly concerned with the reporting of events and forming the
emotional attachment to events by spreading the magic of words.
Sports representation by media
Representations of sports in the media are key sites for political
and social struggles around race and nation. Sport is often and
appropriately, analyzed as being representative of broader social
relations, it is an important site in its own right for the production,
reproduction and transformation of social relations. As sport is the
symbol of the nation’s culture and social heritage so it affects indirectly
the policies of government and the relations between the nations.
Wood et al. [8] gives the concept of sponsor effect that appears to
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ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
include both social learning and situational conformity. Social learning
involves socialization and enduring effects on the viewer. Viewers
may be more likely to internalize a media message if they think it is
sponsored by someone they respect. A sponsor effect would enhance
whatever message is being conveyed. The media have an impact on the
attitude and behaviour of people and media helps society to bring at the
peace situation [9].
Role of media in diplomacy
Today media, which is found in various forms like television, radio,
magazines, newspaper, and now on the information superhighway, can
be said to have the power to inform the public about the truth. The
media has shaped the way society views itself and the thinks about
politics, economy, religion etc. Media affects the perception of people
about their leaders, shaping or formulation of policies of the country
and it can even enhance or worsen the situation between two countries.
Issues are raised and projected through the salience assigned to them
and how an issue is portrayed affects the way audiences look at it. Media
promotes what it believes is easiest for the public to accept. The media
can cloud public’s judgments and cause confusion and disillusionment
as well. Media messages are designed to influence people’s attitudes,
desires and decisions urging those people to buy certain products, to
vote for certain political figure, or support a “Worthy” cause. Public
opinion is formed through media propaganda [10]. Propaganda
unconsciously causes the public to act in ways they may not have, had
they not been exposed.
Agenda setting theory
The role of media in shaping an agenda in a society has been
projected by various theorists and Agenda Setting Theory forms one
such perspective that identifies the media’s quality to define ‘What the
audiences or masses should think about’. After studying the media
influence on public opinion during the 1968 presidential elections
in the US, Mc Coombs and Shaw, suggested this theory in 1976
highlighting that media are not, according to this approach, crude
agents of propaganda. They organize public understanding. Agenda
setting describes a very powerful influence of the media- the ability
to tell us what issues are important. Every media organization sets an
agenda to report and make the vote of people for a particular issue.
Print media
It is one of the oldest and most basic forms of mass communication.
Print media are the earliest form of modern mass media in India. It
includes newspapers, weeklies, magazines, monthlies and other forms
of printed journals. The contribution of print media is providing
information and transfer of knowledge is remarkable. Even after the
advent of electronic media, the print media has not lost its charm or
relevance [11]. Print media have the advantage of making a longer
impact on the minds of the readers, with more in- depth reporting and
analysis [12]. The Indian press has always enjoyed an exalted position
and has been seen as a watchdog of the nation and its institution
and same is the case with neighbouring country Pakistan. This is an
achievement despite its limited reach and spread. There are only about
57 million copies of newspapers of all periodicity, for the population of
1000 million. In other words there is only one newspaper for every 15
persons18. Newspapers help in shaping public opinion and influence
decision making. Credibility is the central theme of media writing.
So the journalists and editors also realize their responsibility and the
need to be fair and just, in informing honestly and earnestly, because
their readers comprise a large amorphous and heterogeneous audience
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 4 of 10
[13]. Mass media can produce a change not only in attitudes but also
in behavior and maintains a well designed media campaign aimed
specifically at influencing behavior can play a crucial role by creating
a positive social environment conducive to behavioral change. For
example both India and Pakistan media presenting the opposite team
in positive frame can affect the behaviour and attitude of people in two
nations.
Objectives
Keeping in consideration the area under study, following objectives
have been framed for the study:
• To examine the relationship between media and cricket diplomacy
through the portrayal of cricket by the press of the two countries.
• To examine the difference in the media presentation of cricket
through both countries’ elite newspapers.
• To examine the role of cricket diplomacy in bilateral relations.
The purpose and significance of the study
The study aims to analyze the print media portrayal of cricket
between India and Pakistan and how it can be used to shape the public
and political agenda. It also tries to investigate the presence of Cricket
diplomacy between India and Pakistan projected by both country’s
leading nationals and the scope thereof. It is a comparative study of
the two leading national of Asia’s two biggest nuclear powers i.e. India
and Pakistan. Comparison of the India’s national daily “The Hindu”
and Pakistan’s “Dawn” is done to assess how much importance and
coverage has been given to cricket matches by both the newspapers.
The objective of the study is to examine the role of newspapers in
bilateral relations in the perspective of cricket.
The aim behind this investigation is to draw the conclusions from
the media presentation of the matches before the audience. Research
will try to find out that whether print media is playing a significant role
while presenting the content regarding the cricket diplomacy between
India and Pakistan or the presentation of media is negative? Experts
believe that soft power which includes cultural diplomacy, sports
diplomacy and media can be very effective for bridging the gap between
the Asia’s two biggest nuclear powers i.e. India and Pakistan. After
studying the presentation and importance given by the print media of
both the countries, it will be further analyzed that is there any role of
media in enhancing or worsening the relations between nations? It will
provide the path for the full fledged research on the topic to explore the
significance of cricket diplomacy and media presentation.
of the news producers, assessing the representation of particular issues,
drawing inferences about media effects while comparing the media
content with the real world. Researchers quantify and analyze the
presence, meanings and relationships of chosen variables or codes,
then make inferences about messages within the texts, the writer(s),
the audience and even the culture and time of which theses are a part.
Framing
Is the social construction of a social reality by mass media sources
or specific political or social movements or organizations? Framing
is a process of constructing or deconstructing an issue or event using
different elements and media texts. A frame defines the packaging of an
element of rhetoric in such a way as to encourage certain interpretations
and to discourage others. It is an inevitable process of selective influence
over the individual’s perception of the meanings attributed to words or
phrases. Framing may be of two types; positive or negative and due to
the advancement of the world neutral framing is also included.
Media frames are defined as patterns of representation and
interpretations of symbols and themes that organize the discourse.
They enable reports to sort and pack the information effectively for
their audiences. In media as a process through which some aspects of
reality are chosen and become more significant in the text. The mass
media have been shown to have a significant impact on what issues the
public thinks about and how it thinks about them. Two of these effects
of the mass media are embodied in the theories of agenda setting . In
this study, the frames created or adopted by the sample newspapers
in presenting Cricket and Cricket Diplomacy have been studied using
selected code and frames.
Measures of study
As the study focuses on assessing how media presentation of India
and Pakistan refers to the diplomatic relations of the countries through
cricket coverage, news frames were studied using specific codes and
units like prominence, placement, tone, to carry out a qualitative
analysis for analyzing the coverage and a quantitative analysis was also
conducted.
Sample
Sampling is an act, process or technique of selecting a suitable
sample, or a representative part of a population for the purpose of
determining parameters or characteristics of the whole population.
Since it was not humanly possible to consider all the media channels
of the two countries, a sample of two newspapers was used. The
newspapers selected for the purpose of the study were
Methodology
Time period
To achieve the objectives of this research study, following
methodology was applied and an attempt was made to analyze the
sample in a qualitative and quantitative manner. For this purpose,
content analysis was used to check the coverage in terms of the variables
of frequency, perspectives and other aspects and framing also formed
an important tool in this study as these are more suited for this kind
of research and assessment as the results defined the objectives set for
this study.
The time period of the study was based on the study of cricket
matches played between India and Pakistan in 2011 and 2012 i.e. two
years. It was found that only two matches were played during this
time, one was the 2011 World Cup Semi-Final on 30th march 2011
and second at Mohali on 18th march 2012. However, because of the
importance accorded to these matches, there was good media coverage.
The time duration consists of study of the sample newspapers before
and after the matches, which included analyzing cricket coverage of
one week prior to the match day, match day and of one week postgame, i.e. fifteen days of each newspaper for both the games-Mohali
match played on 18th march 2012 and for World Cup Semi-Final
of 30th march 2011. In total sixty newspaper samples were content
analyzed in order to conduct the research of the area under study.
Content analysis
Content Analysis or textual analysis is a method in the social
sciences for studying the content of any media message. Identify
the different purposes that Content analysis is used for including
determining the trends in portrayals in media texts, policies and aims
J Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 5 of 10
Result and Interpretation
Newspaper
Total coverage
Date
Front page
Sports page
Front page
Sports page
11 Mar
1
2
0
1
12 Mar
0
1
0
0
13 Mar
0
3
0
0
14 Mar
0
1
0
0
15 Mar
0
0
0
0
16 Mar
0
0
0
3
17 Mar
1
1
0
2
The table below has documented the coverage that has been
provided by The Hindu and Dawn. The data were reviewed to find
out the number of stories that have published during the mentioned
time period. The first and for most difference in the content analysis
was there were only twenty five news stories published in thirty issues
of The Hindu newspaper and Sixty one stories in Dawn during their
coverage of both the matches (Table 1). The content of the stories was
analyzed and the stories included News stories, editorials, articles,
opinion pieces, letters etc. News story is a write up covering any
news pertaining to some important happening, event written by the
reporters or staffers of an organization. Editorials formed an important
part of the study for presenting the opinion of the newspapers. Some
of the pieces written by some prominent personalities were also taken
as news stories. Articles are nonfictional opinionated prose pieces
forming an independent part of a publication. Articles are published on
open page or Op-Ed page and every reader or person can write articles
to get published. It is an individual effort based on the interpretation of
the writer. The piece written by the common reader was treated as an
article. In addition, letters from readers were also included (Table 2).
Dawn
The Hindu
Table 3: The table below depicts the placement of the stories by Dawn for the
Match played on 18th March 2012.
Match day
0
3
0
3
19 Mar
1
0
0
0
20 Mar
0
0
0
0
21 Mar
0
0
0
0
22 Mar
0
0
0
0
23 Mar
0
0
0
1
24 Mar
0
0
0
0
25 Mar
0
0
0
0
Total
3
11
0
10
Grand Total
14
10
Table 4: By adding both the positive and negative percentage of Dawn and The
Hindu for the year 2011 and 2012, following results were obtained.
Placement
Stories are also categorized on the basis of news value. Stories
possessing high news value are given more importance and are placed
on important pages (Front page). Placement of the stories is another
aspect to grab attention of the readers towards to particular write up.
Placements of these stories in the newspapers (Dawn and The Hind)
clearly highlight the approach of the newspapers towards the issue
(Table 3-5) (Structure 1).
Types
Newspaper
Number of stories
News stories
Dawn
61
The Hindu
25
Dawn
61
The Hindu
25
Total stories published
Total stories published by Dawn
and The Hindu
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
Hope
4
Unity
2
Good chance
3
Boost for national standing
2
Accept defeat with open heart
4
Constructive process
3
Game spirit only
2
Total
20
Table 5: Showing the positive themes of the content of Dawn with percentage
(match played on 30th March 2011).
Placement
86
Table 1: Total coverage.
Dawn
The Hindu
Date
Front page
Sports page
Front page
Sports page
23 Mar
1
1
0
0
24 Mar
1
1
0
0
25 Mar
2
3
0
0
26 Mar
2
4
1
0
27 Mar
1
1
0
1
28 Mar
1
2
0
0
29 Mar
0
7
0
0
Match day
0
5
3
0
31 Mar
0
5
1
0
01 Apr
1
1
0
1
02 Apr
0
1
1
0
03 Apr
1
1
1
3
04 Apr
0
3
0
0
05 Apr
0
2
0
3
06 Apr
0
0
0
0
Total
10
37
7
8
Grand Total
47
15
Table 2: Placement.
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ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
2011
Newspaper
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Sports page
The Dawn
37
The Hindu
8
Front page
10
7
Structure 1: Placement.
After analyzing the headlines pertaining to the cricket matches,
it was found that a good proportion of these had a reference to the
political relations between India and Pakistan. Out of the two, Dawn
had more headlines mentioning the bilateral relations or diplomatic
connotations, which focus on bridging the gap between India and
Pakistan and Hindu attempts not to link politics with cricket.
Keywords used by Dawn: Zardari, PM Geelani, High Voltage
Match, Singh, Permanent reconciliation, cabinet, cricket mania,
security, skill and diplomacy, unprecedented security, political aspect,
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 6 of 10
fired up, surveillance, normalization of ties, Rehman Malik, revive
bilateral series, heroes, Indian fans, not revenge, Indian media, battle
of nerves, encounter, gracefully are some of the important terms found
in Dawn headlines.
Keywords used by The Hindu: Manmohan, Zardari, Geelani,
Cricket diplomacy, expectations, High-voltage encounter, it’s just
cricket, no parting with goodies, charged up atmosphere, last laugh
were some key words used in Hindu headlines.
shaping their perceptions to some extent. So if media portray something
in a negative sense, the thing will be taken negatively by the audiences
and vice versa. This aspect was important to learn because through this
researcher can find out the conclusion about the media presentation
(whether media has portrayed these events negatively or positively). So
the researcher tried to trace out the themes and frames used by both the
media in their presentation and divided these frames into two types.
a) Positive frames
Photographs
b) Negative frames
Following the adage that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words,’
Dawn and Hindu used different photographs for depicting the news
regarding cricket matches throughout their coverage and thus the
researcher found that there were three main categories of pictures:
a.1) Positive frame analysis
1. Cricket related: these were used by both the newspapers and
photographs showing cricketers in action or simply their mugshots,
memorable matches and performances etc. were inserted in the news
stories to complement the text and reinforce the content.
2. Diplomacy related: These included depictions of political figures,
leaders so in order to display the relationship between cricket ties and
political ties in stories presenting the idea of interstate relations and
diplomacy, photographs of Prime Ministers Manmohan Singh, Yousuf
Raza Gillani and that of Zardari were used. There were other such
pictures also.
3. Semiotics related: National symbols like flags or their
representation like three colours of saffron, white and green (India)
or white crescent only or with a green background (Pakistan) were
showcased in certain photographs. These ascertain the national
importance of the game of cricket for a country and also generate a
patriotic sentiment in masses.
Some of photographs used by these newspapers during the period
of study clearly depict the above defined areas to reflect upon the
position of cricket matches between India and Pakistan are below:
Courtesy: Dawn and The Hind
News frame analysis
Tone of portraying: Media presentation is supposed to be balanced.
But there is a possibility of negative as well as positive frames in a news
story. As already discussed, a news story can portray either negative or
positive frames or both of them. Both the frames have their own impact
on audiences. An audience of a particular media product has some level
of belief associated with it, or that particular media is responsible for
The eight tables depict the positive and negative frames used by
both the media organizations. Cricket match played on 30th March,
2011: there were 47 stories in Dawn during the fifteen days of study i.e.
23rd March 2011-6th April, 2011 (Table 6).
It was found that the percentage of presence of positive frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by Dawn for its coverage of this
particular match was 0.4255%. Cricket match played on 18th March,
2012: there were 14 stories in Dawn during the fifteen days of study i.e.
11th March 2012- 25th March, 2012 (Table 7).
It was found that the percentage of presence of positive frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by Dawn for its coverage of
this particular match was 2.142%. Total number of positive frames
appeared in 61 stories of Dawn =50.
Therefore the total positive percentage by Dawn=0.82%. Cricket
match played on 30th March, 2011: there were 15 stories in The Hindu
during the fifteen days of study i.e. 23rd March 2011-6th April, 2011
(Table 8).
It was found that the percentage of presence of positive frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by The Hindu for its coverage of
this particular match was 2.333%. Cricket match played on 18th March,
2012: there were 10 stories in The Hindu during the fifteen days of
study i.e. 11th March 2012-25th March, 2012 (Table 9).
It was found that the percentage of presence of positive frames
Themes
No. Appearances in the content
Admiration through game
4
Hope in the form of game
7
Enhancement in bilateral relations
2
Goes beyond symbolism
3
Wining hearts over game is important
5
Memorable match
6
Act as bridge between two countries
3
Total
30
Table 6: Highlights the positive themes of Dawn while presenting the match played
between India and Pakistan on 18th march 2012.
Courtesy: Dawn and The Hind.
J Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
Peace through cricket
8
Game and politics hand in hand
5
Platform for bilateral talks
7
Cricket enhancing bilateral relations
4
Significant occasion
4
Every strata of society involved
2
Exchange of culture
5
Total
35
Table 7: Shows the positive themes given in The Hindu while addressing the
match played between India and Pakistan on 30th March 2011.
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 7 of 10
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
Regaining peace process
5
Bond between nations
7
Cricket diplomacy with high expectations
4
More than a game
5
Forgotten revenge on ground
6
Medium for peace process
3
People more important than game
2
Exchange of thoughts through game
5
Way to achieve political aim under shade of 3
game
Total
40
Table 8: Shows the positive themes highlighted by The Hindu in presenting the
match played between India and Pakistan on 18th March 2012.
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
War
7
Political hostility
5
Rivals
5
Exploitation of sentiments
3
Past dispute and prejudice
4
Insecurity of players
2
Low expectation game
4
Total
30
Table 9: Depicts the negative themes by Dawn in the presentation of 30th March
2011 match played between India (The Hindu) and Pakistan (Dawn).
(mentioned in the table above) used by The Hindu for its coverage
of this particular match was 4.00%. Total number of positive frames
appeared in 25 stories of The Hindu=75. Therefore the total positive
percentage by The Hindu=3.00%
a.2) Positive frames result analysis
The analysis reveals that both the newspapers have tried to draft
their content positively and have attempted to grab attention of the
public for gaining peace between India and Pakistan e.g the themes
like “platform for bilateral talks” and “enhancement in bilateral,”
have been used many times in the stories which indicates that both
The Hindu and Dawn are of the opinion to construct a good relation
between both the countries. The media have marked the cricket events
as a significant occasion for the improvement of the relations between
the two nations. Though, the number of Indo-Pak cricket stories are
less in the Hindu but the occurrence of positive frames in its stories is
more in percentage.
Both Media has termed the cricket matches as “a bridge between
the two countries” for the betterment of relations between them. Media
has termed these cricket matches as a regaining peace process. Content
analysis results that there is a hope to achieve peace and unity between
the people of both the countries.
Media has also stressed for the exchange of culture and is of the
opinion to accept each other and clarify all the confusions for the
bonding of relations. Media has also specified that every single person
of the society is involved as this is the matter of all the masses of both
countries instead a game.
Both newspapers have framed stories in a manner to win hearts
instead of matches and have tried to portray that people are more
important than cricket.
After analyzing the content pertaining to the cricket matches, it was
J Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
found that a good proportion of these had a reference to the political
relations between India and Pakistan. Out of the two, The Hindu had
more percentage of positive frames mentioning the bilateral relations
or diplomatic connotations, as compared to the Hindu
Some of the keywords used by Dawn: Constructive process, Hope,
unity, Good chance, Open heart, Enhancement in bilateral relations are
some of the important terms found in Dawn stories
Some of the keywords used by The Hindu: Peace through cricket,
Game and politics hand in hand, Platform for bilateral talks, Cricket
enhancing bilateral relations, Significant occasion, Every strata of
society involved, Exchange of culture, Regaining peace process, Bond
between nations, Cricket diplomacy with high expectations, More than
a game, Forgotten revenge on ground, Medium for peace process,
People more important than game, Exchange of thoughts through
game, Way to achieve political aim under shade of game.
b.1) Negative frame analysis
Cricket match played on 30th March, 2011: there were 47 stories in
Dawn during the fifteen days of study i.e. 23rd March 2011-6th April,
2011 (Table 10).
It was found that the percentage of presence of negative frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by Dawn for its coverage of this
particular match was 0.638%. Cricket match played on 18th March,
2012: there were 14 stories in Dawn during the fifteen days of study
i.e.11th March 2012-25th March, 2012 (Table 11).
It was found that the percentage of presence of negative frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by Dawn for its coverage of
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
Wide gap between two nations
4
Hype for security
3
Low skill high pressure match
4
Political hostility
2
Low confidence in opponent
4
Nuclear rivals
3
Total
20
Table 10: Shows the negative themes highlighted by Dawn about the match played
between India and Pakistan on 18th March 2012.
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
Low potential meet
4
Thorny relations
2
False initiations
3
Less hope from game
2
It intricate relations
4
Total
15
Table 11: Shows the negative themes presented by The Hindu about the match
played on 30th March 2011 between India and Pakistan.
Theme
No. Appearances in the content
Peace affected by pressurizing teams
3
Highlighting weak points of opponent team 2
Correlating insecurity with peace
2
Lack of enthusiasm in opponent
2
Militant attacks on team
3
Border rivalry
3
Total
15
Table 12: Depicts the negative themes by The Hindu about the match played on
18th March 2012 between India and Pakistan.
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 8 of 10
this particular match was 1.428%.Total number of negative frames
appeared in 61 stories of Dawn=50. Therefore, total negative percentage
by Dawn=0.82. Cricket match played on 30th March, 2011: There were
15 stories in The Hindu during the fifteen days of study i.e. 23rd March
2011- 6th April, 2011 (Table 12).
It was found that the percentage of presence of negative frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by The Hindu for its coverage of
this particular match was 1.00%. Cricket match played on 18th March,
2012: there were 10 stories in The Hindu during the fifteen days of
study i.e. 11th March 2012- 25th April, 2012 (Table 13).
It was found that the percentage of presence of negative frames
(mentioned in the table above) used by The Hindu for its coverage
of this particular match was 1.50%. Total number of negative frames
appeared in 25 stories of The Hindu=30. Therefore, Total negative
percentage by The Hindu=1.2%.
b.2) Negative frames result analysis
Content is presented like there was a war situation more than a
game. The content analysis reveals media has discussed the past disputes
in news stories. Media has criticized the opponent nation e.g. Dawn has
used the term “Low confidence in opponent” and on the other side The
Hindu has written “lack of enthusiasm in opponent” in a news story.
From the content it is clearly visible that the two nations are enemies
of each other and don’t want to bend knees in front of each other by
receiving a defeat. Media has largely concentrated on bitter relations
than the game. Both the media has not remained behind in blaming
the opponent nation for the disruption of peace. Dawn is talking about
the insecurity of the Pakistan players meanwhile The Hindu talks
about the militant attacks on the team. The Hindu has described the
relation of two countries as “thorny relations”. The content analysis
has enlightened that both the newspapers have linked Cricket game
with old rivalry and have put a finger on an opposite country for the
contention. Both the media organizations have made each and every
attempt to relate the game of cricket with the past disputes between
the two nations. In general context both the newspapers Dawn and
Newspaper Year Percentage of keyword
appearances in the newspaper
that support the positive frame
Dawn
2011 0.425 %
0.638%
The Hindu 2011 2.33 %
Dawn
Percentage of keyword
appearances in the newspaper
that support the negative frame
1.00%
2012 2.14%
1.48%
The Hindu 2012 4.00%
1.50%
Table 13: The table depicts the percentage (negative and positive) by Dawn and
The Hindu while reporting on the cricket matches under study (played between
India and Pakistan) in the year 2011 and 2012.
2012
Placement
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
The Dawn
The Hindu
Sports Page
11
10
Front page
3
0
Structure 2: Placement.
J Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
4.00%
3.50%
3.00%
2.50%
2.00%
The Dawn
1.50%
The Hindu
1.00%
0.50%
0.00%
P.F 2011
N.F 2011
P.F 2012
N.F 2012
Structure 3: The table below depicts the percentage (negative and positive)
by Dawn and The Hindu while reporting on the cricket matches under study
(played between India and Pakistan) in the year 2011 and 2012.
Newspaper Year
Percentage of keyword
Percentage of keyword
appearances in the
appearances in the newspaper
newspaper that support the that support the negative frame
positive frame
Dawn
2011
0.425 %
0.638%
The Hindu
2011
2.33 %
1.00%
Dawn
2012
2.14%
1.48%
The Hindu
2012
4.00%
1.50%
Table 14: The table below depicts the percentage (negative and positive) by Dawn
and The Hindu while reporting on the cricket matches under study (played between
India and Pakistan) in the year 2011 and 2012.
Newspaper
Positive % age
Negative % age
Dawn
0.82%
0.82%
The Hindu
3.00%
1.20%
Table 15: By adding both the positive and negative percentage of Dawn and The
Hindu for the year2011 and 2012, following results were obtained.
The Hindu have highlighted Positive as well as negative points in their
presentations. After analyzing the content pertaining to the cricket
matches, it was found that a good proportion of these had negativity
in the presentation. Out of the two, The Hindu had more percentage of
negative frames as compared to Dawn.
Some of the keywords used by Dawn: War, Past dispute and
prejudice, insecurity of players, low expectation Game, wide gap
between the two nations, hype for security and nuclear rivals, are some
of the important terms found in Dawn stories. (Structure 2)
Some of the keywords used by The Hindu: Thorny relations,
Border rivalry, Militant attacks on the team, correlating insecurity with
peace, false initiations, less hope from the game and Low potential meet
are some of the important terms found in the Hindu stories (Table 14,
Structure 3).
Overall, The Hindu has more percentage of both the positive as well
as negative frames as compared to Dawn. Differentiating on the basis
of years i.e. 2011 and 2012, the percentage of positive frames in Dawn
has shown an increase where it was 0.425% in 2011, in the year 2012
the percentage became 2.142, in the meanwhile positive percentage
by The Hindu has also shown an increase from 2.333% in year 2011
to 4.00% for the year 2012. But on the other side the percentage of
negative frames by Dawn is less than that of The Hindu. Against 0.638
% negative frames of Dawn in year 2011, The total Percentage of the
negative frames by The Hindu is 1.00% in 2011 and in year 2012 its
1.50% as compared to 1.428 percent by Dawn. The other difference is
between the total coverage given to the matches. Dawn has given 2.5
times more coverage to these cricket matches against The Hindu (Table
15, Structure 4).
Conclusion
Cricket has been cherished by the people of Indian Subcontinent for
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 9 of 10
3.50%
3.00%
2.50%
2.00%
1.50%
Negative
1.00%
positive
0.50%
0.00%
-0.50%
The Dawn
The Hindu
-1.00%
-1.50%
Structure 4: By adding both the positive and negative percentage of Dawn
and The Hindu for the year2011 and 2012, following results were obtained.
long now right from the time it was introduced by the British and the
study shows the interest in this game by way of number and placement
of the cricket coverage. With the findings of the study, it could well be
established that the subcontinent cricket has a link with the diplomacy
and is regarded as a tool for building ties between India and Pakistan.
With the modern upsurge in politics, media and technology, diplomatic
relationships hinges on more than one front, cricket diplomacy seems
to be one such pivot as is reflected in the study. It was found that the
media presentation by both the nations (i.e. India and Pakistan) print
media have a role in this regard. The potential of media and cricket
culture is extraordinary.
While quantifying the data, the percentage (%) of the units
analyzed, sample newspapers shows clearly the difference between the
presentation of the media of both the countries and the role it plays
in enhancing the relation through the medium of cricket diplomacy.
Keeping in view the theoretical paradigms, the study provides an idea
about how media portrayal using ‘news frames’ can mould or shape the
public perception as media form one of the most important sources of
information, opinion, viewpoints or perceptions and these can over a
period of time ‘Cultivate’ images in the minds of the audiences. That
the media help in enhancing or the bilateral relations with neighboring
countries. Agenda Setting has a role to play in this scenario as a
continued message can reinforce the perceptions in societies like these,
where there is often an atmosphere of political tensions and pressures.
The content analysis shows that there is a difference in the presentation
of cricket diplomacy in both nations and media rhetoric often follows
the political rhetoric.
The positive themes reported by The Hindu (Indian newspaper)
were different from their opponent Dawn (Pakistani newspaper).
While analyzing their reportage, it could be established that they
complimented each other in their percentage of positive frames
notwithstanding the number of stories done, which could be a factor
behind that as The Hindu had done less than half the number of stories
done by Dawn (25 against 61 of dawn). It could be figured from the
approach of The Hindu that the Indian Pint media do not give so much
importance to reporting on Indo-Pak cricket matches in the backdrop
of political relations as is done by their Pakistani counterparts. The
startling difference was found between the coverage of the two matches
played in 2011 and 2012 as the percentage of positive and negative
frames increased for both the newspapers (positive percentage of 0.425
% for the year 2011 in Dawn increased to 2.14 % in 2012, while the
positive percentage in The Hindu in 2011 was 2.33% against 4.00% in
year 2012).
While Hindu highlighted cricket occasion significant for bilateral
ties and exchange of social and cultural heritage, Dawn represented
J Mass Communicat Journalism
ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
this occasion as auspicious to win the heart of the people in India and
appreciated the cricket heroes for bonding two nations in one bond.
Everything becomes insignificant before the cricket spirit reported by
Dawn and The Hindu was of the opinion that every stratum of society
is involved in the peace process. Both nations’ print media was trying to
enhance the relations of both countries and choosing the cricket as the
best medium for it so the cricket diplomacy was hyped. 1Mass media
can produce a change not only in attitudes but also in behavior.
There is a relation between the media coverage, cricketing ties
and the political equations that India-Pakistan have been sharing.
The exchange of goodwill gestures also includes encouragement
that this game receives and the related political statements issued in
the backdrop of these matches are taken well by these media outlets.
The media of both the countries appreciate each other as it mends
the relations between the two countries. It could be said that media
coverage helps create the necessary environment for the players,
spectators, teams, political establishments and countries to help ease
out some past bitterness. The expectations of the fans on the both sides
of the border provide the chance to spell out the differences between
the nations and the cricket provide chance to both the countries to vent
out the feelings time to time which is fruitful for these big rivals to start
peace talks. However, during the world cup matches the amount of
pressure built on the respective teams was much more than that of the
Asia cup match, still there was a presence of content that reflected upon
the sport-spirit and cricketing skill test only in an attempt to minimize
the overwhelming rivalry factor.
The projection by the media shows that on the playground no war
can be fought but it can be the path for the peaceful relations between
India and Pakistan. The media helps in hyping the expectations of
the masses related to peace talk so that it might create pressure on
political leaders to consider the peace process seriously. As cricket is
the passion of people in both countries so it is the best intermediate to
communicate people about the sentiment of solitary. Behaviour change
is a gradual process that is dependent on the individual’s experiences
and perception of the personal importance of the change2.
Traditionally, societies have arrived at decisions and have resolved
disputes through the use of force, or economic coercion, or majorities
imposing their will on minorities. In contrast, in a society in which a
media culture would be the dominant influence in the society, social
decisions could be reached and disputes could be resolved through a
proper discourse rather than coercion. This would represent absolutely
remarkable progress in human development. Moreover, the discourse
could be based on the honest reporting of events and conditions, and
on participants imaginatively and empathetically entering into the
narratives of the histories and situations of others. The discourse could
be characterized by rational discussion and consideration of alternative
courses of action and the reasons in their favor. And it could promote
the kind of trust on which social stability depends. Through effective
discourse, it could invite those who disagree with existing arrangements
to enter into dialogues and encourage the hope that those with the best
arguments would win over others, and it could lead to the widespread
belief that this would be so. The media of both countries try to present
a positive image of the opponent so the people may forget the age
old revenge and try to initiate the peace talks through the medium of
cricket.
The themes which were presented negatively in both media are
indicative of the presence of the decades-old irritable equation between
1
2
(Strasburger 1989; Parlato 1990)
(McGuire 1981)
Volume 3 • Issue 1 • 1000142
Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The
Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
Page 10 of 10
the two neighbors and often there are references to the history of wars,
border, security concerns, past rivalries inter-alia critiques about pure
cricket records and performances. In order to keep the audiences on
tenterhooks about the matches, the years old revenge between the both
nations is touched which can encumber the bilateral relations. That
becomes a moment of concern but since the percentage of negative
frames are less than the positive frames in the sample (a total of 1.20%
negative percentage against 3.00% positive percentage in The Hindu),
it is hoped that there would be some constructive approach from both
sides on this. 3Mass media are effective in changing behavior, they
must not only be motivational, but must be instrumental in facilitating
the desired change. So the media can highlight and help in mending the
bilateral ties through cricket diplomacy. Cricket diplomacy play great
role in enhancing bilateral relations of India and Pakistan but with the
affirmative media presentation.
Most of the people feel that cricket is the way through which the
relations of the two neighboring countries: India and Pakistan can grow
better. Media often projects these cricket events as a matter of rivalry
and a war bugle is blown before matches. Analysis of some news stories
reveals that the media has mostly focused on the past incidents and
relations instead of the sports, which has played a negative image other
on one. On the other side The Hindu has given very less coverage to
these matches as compared to Dawn, which could be considered their
non seriousness for the building of peace through such events. Negative
coverage given to provoke the years old revenge and talking about the
security of players again is like scratching wounds of the people of both
the nations which media should avoid at any cost. Positive coverage of
events could increase the interest of audiences of both the countries
for participation across the border and a higher percentage of positive
frames (0.82 and 3.00) as compared to negative frames (0.82 and 1.20)
in the studied content depict a promising side of the editorial policy of
these newspapers.
Which in turn would lead sharing same platform and if media
honestly highlights the weak points of the games and teams they could
improve upon them and provide cricket lovers with a chance to watch
and appreciate better performance, which the people of the subcontinent
have been doing. Media can make the people of both countries to give
respect and love to the players of other countries like the one given by
the Chennai audiences to Wasim Akram’s men after they had beaten
India in January 1999 or how Pakistanis encouraged Indian players like
Balaji or Dhoni during matches in Pakistan or how the then Pakistan
President General Parvez Musharraff praised Dhoni’s hairstyle in
addition to his cricket in February 2006. Media instead of talking past
experiences could work to build trust and affection for each other and
will let people of both places to come together without considering any
boundaries or borders between them. The media can highlight and help
in mending the bilateral ties through cricket diplomacy. This has been a
major analysis4 put forward by working journalists and experts during
the course of this research. Media has influence and people easily trust
to the stories published so media instead of talking about the political
connections and could talk about the game and also advise people to
concentrate on the game and the fact the sports stories often jump onto
the front page in India and Pakistan show its importance as well. An
attempt to manipulate bilateral ties through this game thereof may not
be such a difficult task for the media.
3
Dubey (1969)
Interview with Local journalists and academicians, July, 2012.
4
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ISSN: 2165-7912 JMCJ, an open access journal
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Citation: Showkat N (2013) Cricket Diplomacy between India and Pakistan: A Case Study
of Leading National Dailies of Both the Countries (The Hindu & Dawn) J Mass Communicat
Journalism 3:142. doi:10.4172/2165-7912.1000142
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