THE 2020 FRANCE ATTACKS: A FRAMING ANALYSIS OF U.K. AND U.S. NEWSPAPERS

Abstract

The 2020 France attack regarding the controversial issue of the public portrayal of Prophet Muhammad’s caricature had created havoc all over the world. This research focuses on how the 2020 France attacks-related issues were portrayed in the media in the United Kingdom (U.K.) and the United States (U.S.). This analysis aims to determine the dominant issues covered, the news slant, and the newspapers' tone and framing regarding the 2020 France attacks-related issues. Using content analysis, the data from news articles and feature articles collected from two mainstream online daily newspapers, which were The Independent from the U.K. and The New York Times from the U.S. were examined. This study also aims to compare the differences between the U.K. and U.S. media in framing and reporting the 2020 France attacks-related issues. A total of 56 news articles were analysed, from which three major issues were reported in the newspapers during that period. The most frequently reported issue was the Islamist ‘Terrorism’ in France issue. The findings of the study indicated that the news slant of both newspapers was significantly different. The Independent's news slant was balanced towards both France and Islam, while The New York Times' news slant was against Islam.