The Media-Policy Nexus: Analyzing the Media’s role in Policy Formation in Pakistan

Abstract

Mass media plays an integral role in policy formulation, acting as a key influencer in the initial stages of the policy development by highlighting issues that attract the attention of politicians and policy makers. However, media’s role extends beyond this preliminary phase of agenda setting, affecting the policy process in various ways. This study investigates the interplay between media narratives and policy development processes. It seeks to address expert opinion on the development of a framework which would encourage opinion from the public sphere in the legislative and policy procedures. By utilizing qualitative methodology and gathering data from 10 in-depth interviews, this study investigates how media influences policy decisions and its contribution to policy development and implementation. Additionally, it examines the media’s watch dog function in policy formulation, assessing its impartiality, probing weather media outlets operate in an unbiased manner.  It also investigates how media, both social and traditional, set their agendas and their impact on policy making. The findings show the imperative impact of social media on problem identification which led to development of numerous policies in the recent period. On the contrary, the conventional role of traditional media is increasingly perceived as manipulative due to their own political agendas.   The research suggests that public engagement can be thoroughly reflected on policy formulation if social media is institutionalized in its information dissemination. This study contributes to the discourse on media influence in public policy, offering insights into the potential of social media as a transformative tool in policy development and public participation. 

 Keywords: Public Policy, social media, traditional Media, Policy formation, public participation