The portrayal of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) in Pakistan’s leading newspapers remains largely event-driven and episodic, with 76.8 per cent of coverage focusing on the problem rather than solutions such as preparedness, early warning, adaptation and long-term resilience-building measures, a new study has found.
The findings are based on rigorous analysis of GLOF-related news stories, editorials and opinion articles published in different English and Urdu national newspapers between June 1 and September 30 in 2023 and 2024.
Conducted by Muhammad Saleem Shaikh, a climate policy advocacy expert and MPhil research scholar at Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU), the empirical research study ‘Framing of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods in National Newspapers of Pakistan’ critically examined the frequency, prominence, themes, framing patterns and orientation of GLOF coverage in Pakistan’s national print media.
Carried out during 2024-25 under the supervision of Prof Dr Saqib Riaz, former chairman of AIOU’s Department of Mass Communication and a postdoctoral scholar at Indiana University, United States, the study found a significant gap between the scale of GLOF risks confronting Pakistan’s mountain communities and sustained media attention to the issue.
Coverage generally increased when GLOF incidents occurred, rather than maintaining sustained attention to risk reduction, preparedness, adaptation and early warning. English-language newspapers provided comparatively greater and more detailed coverage than their Urdu-language counterparts, while GLOF stories rarely received prominent front-page placement during the study period.
The Economic Consequences frame was the most dominant, followed by the Conflict and Human Interest frames. Coverage also tended to highlight immediate impacts and damage rather than longer-term coping strategies, resilience and policy responses.
With more than 13,000 glaciers, Pakistan’s northern region represents a critical freshwater reservoir for South Asia, according to the Pakistan Glacier Inventory published in 2024 by Italy-based research organisation EvK2CNR.
The findings are particularly significant for Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where nearly two million people face recurring GLOF risks, said Muhammad Asif Sahibzada, Director General, Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination.
“The scale of the GLOF threat makes sustained and effective public communication an essential component of climate-risk management. Timely and sustained media reporting can help communities understand early warnings, preparedness measures and evacuation risks, while keeping GLOF-related vulnerabilities on the policy agenda and encouraging stronger institutional action for protecting lives, livelihoods and infrastructure in the country’s vulnerable mountain regions,” he said.
Prof Dr Saqib Riaz, supervisor of the study, said the research highlighted the need to view GLOF risk not only as a disaster-management challenge but also as a communication challenge.
“The findings demonstrate the need for Pakistani media to move from episodic reporting towards sustained, locally grounded and solutions-oriented coverage that can further strengthen public awareness, preparedness and resilience among vulnerable mountain communities. The study provides useful evidence for journalists, policymakers and other stakeholders seeking to further strengthen climate and disaster-risk communication in Pakistan,” he said.
Khalil Ahmed, climate expert at UN-Habitat Pakistan and former National Project Manager of the GLOF risk-reduction project, said the findings were relevant to Pakistan’s efforts to strengthen disaster preparedness and community resilience.
“Effective disaster-risk reduction depends not only on early warning systems and physical interventions, but also on sustained public awareness and access to timely, understandable information. The study provides useful evidence for media organisations to strengthen climate and disaster-risk reporting and for government institutions to improve public communication, preparedness and community engagement,” he said.
The study recommends that media organisations move beyond episodic disaster reporting and give GLOF risks greater and sustained editorial attention, supported by specialised capacity-building for journalists, stronger collaboration with climate scientists and disaster-risk experts, and greater incorporation of local community voices.
It also calls for newspapers to use their agenda-setting role to elevate GLOF risks from episodic disaster news to a sustained public-policy concern, helping improve public awareness, preparedness, institutional response and resilience among vulnerable mountain communities.
Mr Shaikh successfully defended his thesis at the AIOU university before a viva voce committee headed by Prof Dr Syed Hassan Raza, Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, AIOU.
The committee included Prof Dr Bakht Rawan, Chairman, Department of Mass Communication; Dr Babar Hussain; Dr Shahid Hussain; and Dr Saadia Anwar Pasha.
The thesis had earlier undergone external evaluation by scholars of national and international repute, including Dr Mudassir Mukhtar, Associate Professor, Department of Media and Communication Studies, NUML, Islamabad, who earned his PhD in Communication Studies through a split programme at the University of the Punjab, Lahore, and Florida State University, USA.
“The research significantly contributes to scholarship on climate change communication, disaster-risk communication and media framing in Pakistan, while highlighting the role of news media in improving public understanding of GLOF risks and strengthening preparedness and resilience among vulnerable communities,” said UN-Habitat Pakistan’s climate expert Khalil Ahmed.
