The International Journal of Digital Research (IJDR) is pleased to announce the publication of a new research article by Naima Ferdous, examining how domestic and international news organizations portrayed Nepal’s youth-led protests in September 2025.
The article, titled “Protest or Disorder? Media Narratives and Framing of 2025 Youth Mobilization in Nepal,” has been published in International Journal of Digital Research, Volume 2, Issue 3 (2026).
About the Research
The study investigates how three prominent news outlets—The Kathmandu Post, BBC News, and Al Jazeera English—framed Nepal’s September 2025 Gen Z protests.
Using quantitative content analysis of 102 news articles published over a 22-day period, the research applies the five-frame model developed by Semetko and Valkenburg (2000) to examine how media narratives emphasized conflict, human interest, responsibility, morality, and economic consequences.
The findings identify Human Interest (32%) and Attribution of Responsibility (24%) as the two most prominent frames in the analyzed coverage.
The study also reveals differences between domestic and international reporting. While The Kathmandu Post provided extensive contextual coverage of the protests and their implications for political reform, international outlets demonstrated different editorial emphases, including conflict, human experiences, and political accountability.
By examining the relationship between news framing, youth mobilization, and representations of political legitimacy, the article contributes to ongoing academic discussions in media studies, political communication, and digital activism.
Part of IJDR’s Special Conference Section
This publication forms part of a special section in IJDR Volume 2, Issue 3 (2026):
Selected Papers from the Global Communication Association Conference 2026 and the European Writing Centers Association Conference 2026
The two international conferences were hosted by the American University in Bulgaria (AUBG) in June 2026.
The special section brings together scholarly contributions associated with these academic events, reflecting IJDR’s commitment to international research collaboration, interdisciplinary dialogue, and the dissemination of contemporary scholarship.
The inclusion of this study highlights the importance of examining how communication, digital media, and public discourse intersect with political participation and social change.
Access the Published Article
Author: Naima Ferdous
Article: Protest or Disorder? Media Narratives and Framing of 2025 Youth Mobilization in Nepal
Journal: International Journal of Digital Research, 2(3), 98–113 (2026)
Read the full article:
https://ijdr.net/volume-2-year-2026/volume-2-issue-3/nepal-gen-z-protests-media-framing-analysis/
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63711/ijdr.aubg.gca-ewca2026.01
Zenodo Repository:
https://zenodo.org/records/23314879
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https://ijdr.net/current-issue/
The article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license, supporting open access, scholarly exchange, and the wider dissemination of research.
IJDR congratulates Naima Ferdous on the publication and is pleased to feature her contribution in this special international conference section.
