Introduction
Importance of study
Identity is of major concern for an individual that is what
makes it both strategic and constructed. The identity is created on the basis
of building blocks of self-image, our interactions with each other, and the
conceptual structure given to us by our society and family. Individual identity
is, on the same time, contradictory and multifaceted. Identity is impregnated
with potent but subtle power relations that are taken for granted because we
think of it as a natural part. We spread these different facets strategically,
ideally or sometimes situationally. Similar to personal identity, “Nationalism”
is not a national phenomenon either. Just like “Race”, it is construction. It
is “Nationalism” that bestow the world with the genera of poetry dipped with
the ideals of freedom, brotherhood of man and justice. However, in the
meantime, it has also given this world grievances and humiliation, lust of
revenge and hatred. It has a great contribution in two world wars and numerous
small wars and many holocausts and genocide
Pakistan is an amalgam of folklores and cultural practices.
Dress, qissas, theatre, architects, festivals and most importantly music and
poetry express the specific identities and traditions. These expressions
contribute to build cultural, political, social, historical and national
narrative. Pakistan emerge as a bilateral state with strong challenge of its
creators related to culture and tradition. At that time cinema, theatre, poetry
and music played a significant role. Poetry often mix with music, sometimes
orally recited, published in magazines made in home and single sheets was a
notified feature of processions and rallies against Pakistan
Visual content blend with enthusiastic poetry impart a
strong image on a human mind. Visual contents roam around to picture a finer
narrative to build a motivating and encouraging image of something on the
brains of audience. It is the thought of an outsider where the identity of
country actually lays. There is a vital relationship between poetry, visuals
and image building. It is a well-known fact that everything having a visual
appearance pose an impact on audience ultimately
Pakistani army, as a conclusive weapon of country,
understand its responsibility. Since the time of independence from 1947, its
legitimate progress should be seen by nation. The image of Pakistan is still
uprising from the hopelessness, darkness, religious extremism. The
Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) is effectively and steadily working in
this regard to yank the image of forces and more importantly, Pakistan from
this awe-aspiring pit.
It is
importance to understand how the positive image is carved through poetical
songs and visual expressions.
Objectives of research
Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) is endeavor to boost
and build the positive image of Pakistan by the dint of categories; dramas,
movies, documentaries and most notably “National songs”. To reengage the
audience to their country, the ISPR visual presentation that fall under the
titles, “Aik Pal Ki Jannat”,
Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Faseel-e-Jaan Se
Aagay, The
Price of Peace, The Glorious Resolve, Sounds of Silence, Ragoon Main Jitna
Khoon Hai, Ye Ghazi have successfully put forth their efforts. With the war
with terrorism and engagement of country with three wars, the image of country
in other people’s mind was a free fall. But, with connoisseurs aspiration,
optimism and hard work it’s been expected to yank the country out of this pit
by making its image better.
Considering
this, the main objectives of this study is to dig about the ISPR role in
building nationalist narrative through poetical songs. The more specific
objective is to investigate the influence impose by this institute through
visual content, on the country’s image building.
Research Questions
The
sensible story of episodes and a thought model is called narrative (Bruner, J. (1991).Narratives are guide
to our goals, identities and objectives. Pakistan faced and still facing
the problems of radicalization, intolerance and extremism, which divides and
destabilize society. Such issues grotesque the image of Pakistan internally and
externally on international level. The Inter-Services Public relation (ISPR) is
working to develop a nationalist narrative that may unify the nation and
construct an internal stability. However, the narrative of Pakistan faced
drastic changes from military to civil regimes. With the always-altering
security and political landscape, an upgrade in narrative of Pakistan is
overdue.
This research
covers the ideas, themes and values created and induced by the state’s media to
develop its long-term goals and narratives. This study concerns about the contribution
made by the Inter-Services Public relation (ISPR) through visual channels in
building the nationalist narrative of Pakistan. Moreover, do this upgraded
narrative by ISPR covers the national interests and long-term policies of
providing security and prosperity to the nation. The visual media of ISPR is
successful or not in framing a long-term policies decisions related to
ideological fissures, identity crises, resources distribution, economic
stagnation, civil-military imbalance, political paralysis, governance crisis
and poor international vision.
Literature review:
Literature review
Propose
of this study is to know about contribution of visual contents of
Inter-Services Public Relation (ISPR) to build the image of Pakistan. Author
presumed that the national image depend on the internal and external image. The
use of visual media tries to combine ideological and cultural gaps between
masses and state. The recent study use the assumed questionnaire entitled “Role
of Visual Contents of ISPR in Image Building of Pakistan” by implementing the
quantitative method to examine the special effects of ISPR's created visual
contents on building the image of Pakistan. In the perspective of Pakistan, the
study on the national image believes in set of the two basic frames; the first
one is presented by ISPR and this is the public frame which chained with
coordinated picture of Pakistan the second is private frame and this is
cultivated in public minds (concerned with humans' observation). The result of
the study is that about 42% respondents consider visual contents of the ISPR
more accurately deal with values of our culture and 74% respondents think that
the visual contents of the ISPR are more trustworthy than our outdated media.
About 59% respondents approved that the visual contents of the ISPR were more
firmly building the image of Pakistan than outdated media and round about 54%
responded think that Visual contents of the ISPR were concerned with public
awareness about Pakistan. According to international Research on the nexus and
impressions of those people who have not been visited Pakistan, compared the
apparent internal image and external image considered by the current Study
(Syed Mazher Hussain, 2019)
The
article reports the role of the national images in the international relations
to develop an organizational framework for the study. It determines that the
study of national image should involve private frames linked with the supposed
images of the other nations. The public frames mentioning about the projected
media’s image of the other nations with the help of a framing theory. It
proposes that detailed interview with the intermediate elites can made an
employed to discover the deductive or the inductive approaches to the public
frames and the private frames. There is the recognition that conducted within
the historical context and in shadow of the dynamic world politics, and the
public diplomacy may be used for the building of national reputation. The
associations between the private and public frames of the given country is
prepare the traditions for identification of the framing devices and
alternative frames that may the result in difference in contributing to the
building of an image of a nation, under study the public opinion, and encourage
the understanding and the relationships between different countries (Xiufang Li
(Leah), 2009).
This
study discovers about the socio-cognitive methods involved in production of the
Pakistani musical videos with the political narratives. This study shows that
the music videos are a powerful and newest tool to build political narratives
with the help of disintegrative and integrative themes in the Pakistan. With
the help of these narratives the audience is stimulate. The study involves the
qualitative analysis concluded detailed interviews of producers of the music
videos, singers and lyricists. For using the purposive sampling technique, five
respondents have been selected for interviews. Then themes are find out from
answers of respondents. The theoretical perception integrated to deduce the
results, it is the Rick Altman’s approach of film Category (1987). The
conclusions suggest that the extension in the Altman’s ideological method.
Conclusions also shows the positive theme is mostly represented in Pakistani
socio-political musical videos with sponsorship of the state institutions
(Rabia Noor, 2018)
Pakistan
is facing issues of radicalization, intolerance and extremism in the society
since spans, which has commanded to destabilized and to divided society. Youth
is deceived by giving them the thought that constitution of the Pakistan is not
related to the teachings of the Islam and anti-state features, which mislead them;
the democratic system of the country is un-Islamic. In December 2014 APS attack
has been turning the point for the civilian government and Pakistan’s military
to support its resolution to fight terrorism and extremist views after it. The
Solution for these problems is provided by the Paigham- e- Pakistan, an
announcement drafted in light of Sunnah & Qur’ān (Sunnah of Holy Prophet Muhammad
(SAAW) by the Islamic Research Institute, Islamabad. This declaration supports
the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the purposes at
eradicating hatred, extremism, terrorism & violence from the Pakistani
society and encouraging the peace and enlightenment through the intellectual Jihad.
It delivers the counter description for the Pakistani youth observing to
radical and violent the Islamic ideologies. This ideology gathers the religious
scholars of different vision the, academia, civil society & intellectuals
on a combined declaration. This declaration reflects collective thinking of
State of the Pakistan. With the help of this declaration, it is targeted to
bring stability and peace within country, change an inclusive society, and to
plan the Pakistan as a very strong and the stable modern nation in
international community (Dr. Aayesha Rafiq, 2012)
Research Methodology
Research approach
The research methodology is the combination of certain
techniques and procedures that are utilized to identify, analyze, Process and
select information regarding any topic
Research started by giving a very brief and comprehensive
introduction. Then the common research methodologies and approaches are applied
to evaluate and analyze the data. There are basically two type of approaches
i.e. deductive and inductive. Inductive approach is responsible to form
theories while deductive approach is responsible to test theories. This report
revolves around the inductive approach as it is destined to construct general
theory and formulate the hypothesis around the working of organization and the
effect of its visual and verbal content on the audience.
There are further two methods for data analyses; one is
qualitative while the other is quantitative. Qualitative research approach is
something that emphasizes on the words and their meanings rather than indulging
in analyzing and collection of the data
Source of Data
The current research measures the impressions of Pakistan,
by way of viewed from classified the country. This study verified how permanent
Pakistani citizens view (a) people of their specific nation, and (b) their
awareness about the country established by visual content of ISPR.
So as to maintain some mechanism over factors for example
age, socio-economic class and education only campus students were experienced.
Apparently, university students have at least considerably access to the
influences other than the television and movies, and more probably than rest of
populations. Because of an equivalent educational level, along with other
commonalities of university involvement, one may influence the expected higher
cross-cultural similarity than the case with a model from general population.
The mark population was students who contributed for the
course credit at four universities. The two universities were public and the
two were private from Pakistan, province Punjab. All members lived their lives
in country and they were attending a different and comprehensive Universities
with the open admissions. Seven hundred feedback form were dispersed by using
stratified unplanned probability sampling technique, and results were created
on received six hundred and sixty eight responses.
Furthermore, the current study engaged the following facts
analysis techniques to attain its objectives. To attain the objective of the
study imaginative statistics and the Pearson correlation are chosen statistical
approaches to the address research questions almost the relationships between
variable.
Analysis
The
public narrative of the country, Pakistan, was built with the Islam as a
national identity and a glue to bind all the ethnic groups in the country. The
Pakistan was titled with the guardian and savior of Muslims and Islam around
the globe. The national narrative of the country; Pakistan, adopted heavy
overtones of Islam in 1970’s. This was the time of a great shift in regional
and internal politics of country. This was again targeted in initial years of
twenty-first century when jihadi rage upon the country. This created a
secreterian and pan-Islamic narrative of the country due to which the state
suffers a lot in defending its nationalist narrative
In
respect to Galanter, Pribram and Miller (1960), evidently in the Image theory,
resolution makers utilize three different scientific knowledge conformations to
arrange their assessment about the verdicts (Lee Roy
Beach, n.d.). Such
arrangements are considered as images. First part of composition is value
images, to which targets are core beliefs of decision maker. These are the
important for any individual to conduct the organization somewhere an
individual assists as an uncompromising principle for incorrectness or
correctness of some precise assessment on plan. Second component of composition
is the path images in which the previously expected goals are selected. This
kind of image defines the proposed position and achievements in the upcoming of
decision makers, organizations and individuals. Last and third image is the
strategic image on which targets are those series of strategies, which are
reserved on to finish the goals of the
Each plan is brief order of the possible movements that separately begin and the end with aim setting
to its success. ISPR’s visual matters would be emerging the pro-instigative
appearance in minds of viewers. With situation to the beyond-stated theory and
with its three simple attributes for example the strategic image, trajectory
image, and value image are made in result of powerful demonstration of visual
contents. The credibility, hegemony and validity of institution support to
create relationship among the audiences and ISPR’s visual productions
Gibson (1972) discussed that the perception is actually a
bottom-up procedure, which said that the data collected by senses are analyzed
in single direction; from easy analysis of crude sensory data up to the complex
data analysis by visual system
Conclusion
The main objective behind the ISPR’s visual productions is
to persuade and influence the viewers to get and think as per the promoted
objectives of ISPR. According to the framing theory, which has two frameworks;
social and natural, which assist, people to understand and infer experiences.
The content of ISPR contain a very effective language, strong heart penetrating
poetry, strong thoughts, anticipative approach and influential language that
cajole the audience towards the main object of production and portrayed
information and make them to adapt the change which is depicted by ISPR in the
visual content
References
DAVID ABERBACH. (2003). The poetry of nationalismn. Research
Gate, 21.
David Wilkinson. (2000). Research Support:
Research Methodology. Retrieved from libguides:
https://libguides.wits.ac.za/c.php?g=693518&p=4914913
Khuram Iqbal, S. K. (2019). Critical evaluation of
Pakistan’s counter-narrative. Journal of Policing, Intelligence and
Counter Terrorism, 18.
Lee Roy Beach. (n.d.). Image Theory: an
Alternative to Normative Decision Theory. Retrieved from The association
of consumer research:
https://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/7441/volumes/v20/NA-20#:~:text=Zee%2C%201992).-,IMAGE%20THEORY,whose%20work%20inspired%20image%20theory.
Meinhof. (1998). Language learning in the age of
satellite television. Oxford University Press.
Dr. Aayesha Rafiq, National Narrative
for Peaceful and Moderate Pakistani Society Based on Islamic Principles,
Research JournalAl Baṣīrah(Vol: 7, Issue: 2)
Rabia Noor, Socio-cognitive Approach:
A study of Political Music Videos of Pakistan (2007-2017), Pakistan Journal of Social Sciences (PJSS)
Vol. 38, No. 2 (2018), pp. 687-694
Xiufang Li (Leah); Chitty, Naren,
Reframing national image: A methodological framework, Conflict &
Communication. 2009, Vol. 8 Issue 2, p1-11. 11p.
Nazneen Ahmed. (2012). The poetics of nationalism:
Cultural. Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 15.
Raimo Streefkerk. (2019). Qualitative vs.
quantitative research. Retrieved from scribbr:
https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/qualitative-quantitative-research/#:~:text=Quantitative%20research%20deals%20with%20numbers%20and%20statistics%2C%20while%20qualitative%20research,ideas%20and%20experiences%20in%20depth.
Saul McLeod. (2018). Visual Perception Theory.
Retrieved from simplypsychology:
https://www.simplypsychology.org/perception-theories.html#:~:text=Gibson%20(1972)%20argued%20that%20perception,analysis%20through%20the%20visual%20system.
shamil, Q. A. (2017). 21st Century and Pakistan’s
New Narrative for national stability. 16.
Syed MazherHussain, D. M. (2019). ISPR'S Visual
Contents’ Role in Image Building of Pakistan. Orient Research Journal of
Social Sciences, 15.
0 Comments