Construction of “pandemic pregnancy” : A frame analysis on how the perception of teenage pregnancy shifted in Ugandan newspapers from pre-COVD to COVID period

Abstract: During the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many reports of an increase in teenage pregnancy in developing countries. The media portrays girls as more vulnerable to gender-based violence and forced marriage in times of crisis, leading to a worsening situation of early pregnancy. Yet, few studies have been done to explore how this development problem has been shaped and reconstructed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this study aims to explore the framing of "teenage pregnancy” before and during the pandemic. The position of this research is at the intersection of Development studies and Media studies. Frame analysis is used to identify how teenage pregnancy has been socially constructed before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ugandan newspapers. The results show a significant shift in the framing of teenage pregnancy, from a stagnated problem to an urgent issue. New framing such as the pandemic frame, victimization frame and equality frame were identified during the COVID period, portraying pregnant girls as victims of the pandemic and deserving the right to education. The findings indicate vulnerability can be reconstructed and perceived differently during crisis; in this case, the blame is shifted from individual choice to being forced by the circumstance (lockdown and school closure), and from a domestic issue to a social responsibility.