QUALITATIVE DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF FAKE PROPAGANDA AGAINST HPV VACCINE HANDLING BY FEDERAL MINISTERS OF PAKISTAN: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF DAWN AND THE NATION (SEPTEMBER-NOVEMBER 2025)
Keywords:
Discourse analysis, HPV vaccine, public health communication, media framing, misinformation, Pakistan, vaccine hesitancy, health governanceAbstract
The paper presents a qualitative analysis on the fake news about the HPV vaccine and its coverage in the federal ministers by the dawn and The Nation, the top Pakistani dailies during the early stages of the launch in September to November of 2025 in Pakistan. Through the application of the critical discourse analysis method, the paper examines the way in which the media text shapes the notion of misinformation as a barrier to public health, shapes the way in which the government responds, and shapes the notion of citizens in the vaccine discourse. The analysis of 45 news pieces reveals the presence of the ideological perspective. The dawn adopts a critical research stance, while the Nation adopts a pro-government stance.
The results suggest that the effectiveness of the promotion of the HPV vaccine may be constrained by the existing strategy of public health communication that primarily considers the subjects as mere recipients rather than active agents in the health rights arena.
