Examining Readers’ Perception of Newspaper Cartoons and Political Attitudes

Abstract

Newspaper cartoons have been an integral part of editorial stories, further giving birth to a whole new realm of Comic Journalism. The current study aimed at exploring how different demographic fragments consume the comic contents of a newspaper exploring their perception of the awareness and attitudinal change if any. A thorough survey based on quantitative methodologies was carried out covering the population very carefully through random sampling. Findings revealed that the majority of the respondents enjoyed reading newspaper cartoons and were able to understand them. They believed that newspaper cartoons highlight layman's political concerns help highlight political issues and provide insight into political matters. The majority of newspaper readers in Islamabad Capital Territory perceive that exposure to political cartoons can cause a change in political beliefs. Cartoons can create or distort readers' image of favorite politicians/parties. Respondents believe that this frequent exposure may lead to cause a change in political behaviors such as voting.