Framing countries in humanitarian crisis. A deductive content analysis of press news

Abstract

In 1992, after the U.S. military intervention in Somalia, the term ‘CNN effect’ was coined to refer to the media’s ability to focus international attention on a country in a critical situation. Based on a deductive approach to a news sample from four Spanish newspapers, this study examines the news agenda of countries and generic frames used in the coverage of countries facing humanitarian crisis. Results show that most of humanitarian crises are forgotten: While one third of the news sample focused on Afghanistan, nine crises were not present at all. Furthermore, the press does not use the ‘classic’ generic frames when they report humanitarian crises, but a combination of them, for instance ‘conflict for which the government is responsible’.