Terrorism and the Performance of Journalists in Balochistan

Abstract

Purpose: Freedom of speech and freedom of the press is generally attributed to an independent society where the basic rights of citizens are ensured. Balochistan, the western and resources rich province of Pakistan with its huge geopolitical importance has been under a strong wave of terrorism for the last two decades. This menace of terrorism has severely affected citizens of the province including media workers. Design/Methodology/Approach: This research endeavor is an attempt to explore the impact of terrorism on the performance of media professionals in Balochistan. The study is based on the Hierarchy of Influence model which provides ground to explore the influence of terrorism. In this quantitative study, the researchers employing the systematic sampling technique have selected 50 media professionals out of 194 registered journalists of five press clubs; Quetta, Chaman, Noshki, Mastung, and Loralai. Findings: The survey findings show that terrorism has badly affected the quality of their reporting. The study also reveals that objective journalism is hard to follow in the province by journalists as they are always threatened not only by terrorists but also by the law enforcement agencies to mold the reports in their favor. Implications/Originality/Value The findings also indicate that terrorism has also affected journalists’ personal lives.

Keywords

• Balochistan
• Terrorism
• Journalism
• Media Freedom
• Hierarchy of Influence Model