10.52837 / 25792970-2021-10.2-64
LOUISA KHACHATRYAN
MEDIA FRAMING AND OFFICIAL PROPAGANDA IN ARMENIA DURING THE 45-DAY ARTSAKH WAR
Abstract : This study analyzes the role of the media during the 45-day war in Artsakh in 2020 . It aims to understand how the local media responded and reacted to official propaganda , particularly to the statements of the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan . The research question of the capstone project is “ What was the media framing of the official statements of the Armenian Prime Minister throughout the war ?” To answer this question , the study first provides a short timeline of the war and the PM ’ s statements . Secondly , it conducts a descriptive content analysis of the three local media outlets , which are selected through purposive sampling . The analysis shows that the government-imposed censorship as well as the political economy of the media significantly affected the way the PM ’ s statements were being framed . The study tries to understand to what extent there was a “ rally round the flag ” effect and what caused certain behavior from different media outlets . Keywords : Artsakh war , media framing , propaganda , Nikol Pashinyan , rally round the flag
Introduction
The unresolved Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resumed on September 27 , 2020 , when Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive along the full length of the line of contact . Azerbaijani armed forces targeted not only military infrastructure , but also civilian settlements and people . People were forced to hide in shelters to stay safe and not become a target of oftentimes indiscriminate Azerbaijani military strikes . The well-preparedness of thee Azerbaijani armed forces , as well as the training supported by Turkey and the wide scope of the war proved that the offensive attack was premeditated and was jointly organized by Azerbaijan and Turkey with the extensive engagement of mercenaries . Within hours , both the president of Artsakh and Prime Minister of Armenia declared martial law and announced a general mobilization of males over 18 .
Different media outlets , both local and foreign , started intensively covering the situation in the front line , Azerbaijani war crimes and Turkey ’ s political and
military support . The local media outlets were mainly relying on the official 65