Agenda Setting Roles of Elite Urdu Press and Politicians in Pakistan

Mass media has taken our lives by a storm. No matter who we are, where we are and what we do, our lives have been made to depend on substantial knowledge of our surroundings in the age of global village. This is precisely where mass media fits into the scene. TV, radio, internet, newspapers and other channels of communication have become the part and parcel of our very lives. It is media that decides which issue should be given what kind of attention and what topic can be brought to people’s attention to elicit a predetermined reaction. In the current affairs, politics make up much of the bulk of the news that newspapers and other media report. In Pakistan, politicians set the tone of public sentiments in the day to matters whether it concerns the economics or the social affairs. There have been great many studies to reckon the overlapping effect of these two important instruments to mould public opinion in the west. This first of its kind study in Pakistan however, tends to gauge whether it is the mass media or politicians that have the stronger impact in opinion building and who sets the agenda of the agenda setters in Pakistan?