http://ir.bdu.edu.et/handle/123456789/1935 2026-08-27T20:12:17Z 2026-08-27T20:12:17Z Mastewal, Misganaw http://ir.bdu.edu.et/handle/123456789/17056 2026-08-21T06:00:07Z 2025-10-01T00:00:00Z

The Representation of the Northern Ethiopia Conflict: Ethiopian and International News Outlets in Focus Mastewal, Misganaw The Northern Ethiopia conflict between the Federal government and the Tigray armed forces has reportedly resulted in over half a million deaths. The violent conflict has received much more attention from various media outlets in Ethiopia and around the world. The study aimed at examining how the Ethiopian and international media outlets have represented the conflict, with a particular focus on Al Jazeera, BBC, CGTN, CNN, EBC and Tigray TV. More specifically, the study investigated the dominant types of frame employed in reporting the conflict across the selected Ethiopian and international media outlets; identified the sources cited in news items related to the conflict; examined how media outlets represented the conflict and its key figures; explored the extent to which journalistic professionalism was exercised in reporting; and analysed the factors that have influenced the reporting practices of journalists covering the conflict from November 03, 2020, to December 23, 2021. The study employed an explanatory sequential mixed research design through quantitative content analysis, textual analysis, corpus-based critical discourse, and thematic analysis. The study was informed by media representation theory, framing theory, the hierarchy of influences model and the propaganda model. The findings revealed that the selected international media predominantly utilised the military conflict frame over other important issues, such as the violence of war, diagnostic, and human-interest frames. On the other hand, the law and order frame was the dominant one in EBC’s coverage of the conflict. Although the global and Ethiopian media struggled to represent all parties in their war reporting impartially, Al Jazeera and the BBC demonstrated better efforts to cover multiple perspectives and utilised the most diverse range of sources. The examined Ethiopian media outlets faced critical challenges as they failed to represent all stakeholders. The use of anonymous sources remained a major issue in the media reporting of the conflict; while the BBC consistently provided rationales for relying on anonymous sources, many others failed to do so. The findings of the corpus analysis revealed that international media depicted Tigray as a region suffering from military aggression by the federal government and as a key agent of resistance. Al Jazeera and CNN represented Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed as a controversial figure who faced political and military challenges by juxtaposing the Nobel Peace Prize and violence. The BBC portrayed Debretsion, chief administrator of Tigray regional state, as a political leader seeking justice and diplomatic efforts, and was also described as a key figure at the heart of the conflict. The representation of "Ethiopia" by CGTN appears to be consistent with the foreign policy positions of the Chinese state with regard to respecting sovereignty, non-interference and maintenance of stability. Evidently, the representation of opposing parties by EBC and Tigray TV reflected starkly polarised narratives. The EBC represented the TPLF using ideologically charged terms like ‘terrorist’ and ‘junta’ to justify the action of the Federal government and to delegitimise the regional administration. In contrast, Tigray TV frequently used politically loaded terms to represent Abiy Ahmed and his government as the chief architect of a ‘fascist’ regime. Seemingly, journalistic practices in reporting the conflict were not only shaped by individual or professional orientations but also by entrenched political, structural, and organisational forces that restricted autonomy and credibility. The selected Ethiopian media outlets took partisan ideological positions and, thus, acting beyond the bounds of professionalism, served as government propaganda apparatuses and functioned in the interests of their patrons rather than operating as institutions accountable to the public. These constraints were further amplified by limited access, communication blackouts, and safety concerns, which resulted in incomplete and often compromised reporting. The research concludes that the media contributed to deepening divisions and intensifying the conflict in Northern Ethiopia via inflammatory and polarising reporting.

2025-10-01T00:00:00Z Areyam, Enyew http://ir.bdu.edu.et/handle/123456789/17012 2026-08-18T09:21:19Z 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z

Examining the Crisis Communication Practice In The Amhara Region Communication Bureau: The Case Of The Fano- Government Conflict Areyam, Enyew The study examined crisis communication practices in the Amhara region communication bureau, focused on the Fano and government conflict. Political and security tensions in the Amhara region have escalated significantly since the conflict between the federal government of Ethiopia and the Fano militia began in 2023. The study explores how the Amhara Communication Bureau communicates the conflict between Fano militants and government forces. The study employed a qualitative research approach, including interviews and content analysis, to gather in-depth data on crisis communication practices, using a case study design to generate detailed insight into the bureau's communication practices. The research is guided by Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT) as its theoretical framework. The study findings reveal that the Amhara Region Communication Bureau functioned as an instrument of the government, communicating official narratives during the conflict. The bureau primarily conveyed the government's propaganda through a one-way communication system and served as the government's mouthpiece. The study findings indicate that the bureau had a passive role and lacked a well-defined crisis communication strategy. These findings contrast with the principles of public relations roles during crises. The bureau targeted different audience segments, including elite and ordinary citizens, during crises. The institution's social media platforms to reach diaspora and elite audiences through a counterpropaganda communication system, while maintaining strong ties with mainstream government media to inform and reach local citizens. The study identified several institutional challenges during the Amhara region conflict, notably the declaration of a state of emergency, poor organizational coordination, a lack of clearly defined job descriptions, and varying staff perceptions of the crisis. The study concludes that communication institutions in Ethiopia have a problem with their communication strategies in times of crisis. The study will provide practical information about crisis communication strategies for institutions in a crisis. On the other hand, academically, it will enrich crisis communication literature and serve as a reference for future research

2026-04-01T00:00:00Z Melkamu, Setie http://ir.bdu.edu.et/handle/123456789/16990 2026-08-18T06:04:05Z 2026-06-01T00:00:00Z

Communication Strategies and Practices in Urban Development: A Case Study of Bahir Dar City Administration Mayor’s Office Melkamu, Setie This study focused on “Communication Strategies and Practices in Urban Development: A Case Study of Bahir Dar City Administration Mayor’s Office.’’ It aimed to assess how development issues, including corridor development initiatives, have been communicated to the public, the communication strategies which were predominantly employed to support developmental activities, the communication tools and media platforms were used to disseminate information about developmental activities and communication opportunities and challenges existed in engaging the community regarding development initiatives in Bahir Dar city. It is a qualitative study design and the data were collected through semi structured interview, FGD and document analysis. The finding indicated that the city administration mayor’s office had practiced one way and top down communication, gave less attention to participatory communication, used event based communication approach, and did not prepare social media platform and less media coverage for the initiative. The result also showed that the city administration did not have clear communication strategy. There was limited community participation. The community lacks decision makings roles. The social media platforms of the mayor office entirely focused on corridor development success stories, the city should give diverse voice, practice two-way balanced and participatory communication approach and provide engagement room for stakeholders and should engage in clear communication so as to enlist the participation of community members in development issues.

2026-06-01T00:00:00Z Sewmehon, Alazar http://ir.bdu.edu.et/handle/123456789/16981 2026-08-17T07:29:03Z 2025-12-01T00:00:00Z

Media Narratives Of The Amhara Region Conflict: A Comparative Analysis Of Local And International Media Outlets Sewmehon, Alazar This study compares how local and international media outlets covered the ongoing conflict in the Amhara Region, using the Amhara Media Corporation (AMC), Abay TV, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), and the Voice of America (VOA) as cases. Two hundred forty-five (245) news articles from purposively selected media outlets, taken from a purposively chosen time frame between August and December 2023, were analysed using a convergent parallel mixed-methods design and compared with a comparative case study framework. Quantitative content analysis and qualitative text analysis were utilised to collect data. The quantitative data were processed in SPSS and presented as descriptive statistics (tables, graphs, and percentages), while qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. Notable differences between local and international media outlets were observed in their coverage of the conflict. Across media outlets, government officials are the dominant source, whereas international media outlets utilise a wider range of sources. The study findings revealed that media ownership affects how the media practice conflict reporting. The study employed agenda-setting and framing theory. The study recommended that media outlets should give a diversity of voices during times of conflict. It requires greater effort to enhance media outlets’ role in serving as a voice for the voiceless. Finally, it is recommended that further holistic research on the topic include interviews with participants, as this study is based on media content.

2025-12-01T00:00:00Z