Air pollution remains a critical environmental and public health threat in India, with severe implications for the quality of life. In recent years, Indian newspapers have been flooded with reports of growing concern about air pollution. This study examines how air pollution is reported in Indian print media, specifically in The Times of India (English) and Navbharat Times (Hindi), using systematic content analysis from 2021 to 2024. The study identifies coverage patterns, headline framing, and dominant themes that display a holistic interplay of source, impact, and mitigating themes in media discourse through the lens of framing theory. The findings reveal that air pollution is often framed as a seasonal and urban issue, with significant emphasis on episodic events such as post-Diwali smog and their impact coverage (15.20%) is underreported compared to sources (41.75%) and mitigation (41.03%) frames. Regional bias and limited coverage of indoor air pollution, vulnerable groups, and long-term mitigation solutions further reflect structural media gaps. The study also highlights the media’s role in shaping public perception, amplifying stakeholder participation, and influencing policy discourse. This research contributes to the environmental communication literature and media advocacy by uncovering how Indian media constructs air-pollution frames and by suggesting pathways for more balanced, health-focused, and evidence-based reporting to inform public and policy engagement more effectively.
Lal et al. (Wed,) studied this question.