Date of this Version

2013

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

Dr. Shakil Afridi has received a 33-year term imprisonment due to his involvement with the raid against Al Qaida chief Osama bin Laden. Over the course of his incarceration divergent views have been formed within U.S. and Pakistan over his reputation. This study speaks to the literature on reputation, an important topic in collective memory study and cultural sociology. Specifically, it uses this particular case to address a general issue: social construction of reputation in different public spheres that transcends national boundaries. The purpose of this research is to analyze who is creating, challenging, and refuting Dr. Shakil Afridi’s reputation and why. This research employs qualitative methodology that explores the lack of social uniformity within two national spheres. The unit of analysis is the media outlets in United State and Pakistan. The study was able to understand the motivations behind Dr. Shakil Afridi’s reputation from the standpoint of U.S. policy makers, Pakistani Military and Government along with the two media. It also highlights how reactive reporting by the media can lead into divergent views of a news story. In the case of Dr. Shakil Afridi, it led to two very different viewpoints over his reputation.

Comments

Bin Xu, Primary Professor

Steven Heine, Secondary Professor

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