Text and Thematic Investigation of Honor Killings In The Dawn Newspaper: Critical Media Discourse Analysis (CMDA)

Abstract

The social custom of honor killings is practised brutally in many societies of the world and the situation of Pakistan is no different. The current research explored the underline objectives associated with such killings in two (2) editorials from ‘The Dawn’ newspaper published in the English language in Pakistan. The basic descriptive mixed method Critical Media Discourse Analysis (CMDA) was inspected under an operational model combining two (2) theoretical perspectives. First, text analysis was examined in both the editorials under Fairclough’s (1993, 2007, 2013) 3-Dimensional Model where lexical items, functional grammar, cohesive devices and text structure were investigated and second, thematic analysis was explored in the light of Kardam’s (2005) Dynamics of Honor Killings Model. The findings of the current investigation revealed that The Dawn's ideology aligned with the left-wing tenets and the patterns of portraying honour killings affect the mindset of people and social customs.