Religious Tension in Media: Coverage Patterns of Two Bangladeshi Newspapers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65826/IJPIR.1.1.2026.23Keywords:
Religious tension, News media, Content analysis, Bangladesh, Quantitative analysisAbstract
This study examines how two ideologically different Bangladeshi newspapers covered the 2021 Comilla communal violence, which erupted after a Quran was allegedly placed at a temporary Hindu Temple during Durga Puja festivities. We conducted a mixed-method content analysis of 260 news articles from Daily Prothom Alo (progressive n=154) and Daily Nayadiganta (religiously aligned n=106) published during the 15 days period following the incident. Quantitative analysis coverage frequency, placement, and sources using t-test, while qualitative thematic analysis identified editorial preferences and strategies. Although Daily Prothom Alo published more articles (M=28.8) than Daily Nayadiganta (M=18.1), the different was not statistically significant (p=0.176). However, qualitative analysis revealed distinct editorial strategies. Prothom Alo distributed coverage across pages, employed diverse formats, and highlighted victim experiences while demanding accountability. Daily Nayadiganta concentrated coverage on front and back pages, emphasizing Islamic discourse. Both newspapers demonstrated critical shortcomings: over-reliance on political and police sources, marginalization of victim voices, and absence of investigative reporting. Neither examined underlying causes of the incident, instead focused on daily events and political finger-pointing. These findings suggests that inadequate source diversity and weak investigative journalism limits media’s ability to contextualize religious tensions, potentially perpetuating rather than resolving conflicts. Bangladeshi media requires stronger investigative capacity, particularly among rural reporters for on investigative reporting, deliberate inclusion of minority voices, and examining structural factors driving communal violence to effectively promote informed public discourse and social cohesion.
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কুমিল্লায় মণ্ডপের ঘটনায় সহিংসতা ছড়ায় নানা স্থানে [Violence from the Comilla mandap incident extended to other locations]. (2021, December 31). Prothom Alo. https://www.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/district/%E0%A6%95%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%B2%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B2%E0%A6%BE%E0%A7%9F-%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%A3%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A1%E0%A6%AA%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B0-%E0%A6%98%E0%A6%9F%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%BE%E0%A7%9F-%E0%A6%B8%E0%A6%B9%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%82%E0%A6%B8%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%9B%E0%A7%9C%E0%A6%BF%E0%A7%9F%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%9B%E0%A7%87-%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A8%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A5%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%87
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Copyright (c) 2026 Md. Mamun Abdul Kaioum, Sheikh Salman, Fatema Tuz Johora
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