Egyptian news websites' frameworks for handling natural disasters. The January 2025 California wildfires as a model "A comparative analytical study"

Author

Department of Journalism and Publishing, Faculty of Mass Communication for Girls, Al-Azhar University

Abstract

The study aimed to identify the extent of interest Egyptian news websites have shown in the California wildfire disaster, reveal the most prominent topics the websites focused on, and identify the frameworks used by websites to address the California wildfires, the objectives of this coverage, and the artistic templates used in the California wildfires. The current study relies on a media survey approach, and the research community is represented by Egyptian news websites. The researcher selected the study sample, which included the Youm7 website, the Al-Ahram Online Portal, the Masrawy website, and the Al-Wafd Online Portal. The researcher conducted the analytical study from January 7, 2025, to February 7, 2025. The study reached several conclusions, including:
1) "Youm7" topped the study's websites in terms of coverage of the California wildfires, with 30.36% of the total, followed by "Masrawy" in second place with 24.82%, "Al-Ahram Online" in third place with 23.37%, and "Al-Wafd" in fourth and final place with 21.45%.
2) "News" ranked first with 49.9% of the content on the study's websites, covering topics related to the January 2025 California wildfires. "Reports" came in second place with 34.2%, and "Human Stories" in third place with 5.3%.
 3) "Financial and property losses" ranked first among the topics covered by the Egyptian websites in the study sample in their coverage of the 2025 California wildfires, accounting for 12.5% ​​of all other topics. This was followed in second and second place by "human losses" and "forest fires," each with 10.1% of the total. This was followed in third and third place by "stock exchange and financial markets" and "water crisis," each with equal percentages of 9.9%.
4)More than one goal" ranked first with 30.8%, followed by "informational" in second place with 22.7%, and "explanatory" in third place with 17.1%.
5) The "more than one framework" category ranked first with 21.0%, followed by "economic results" in second place with 11.8%, and "human interests" in fifth place.

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