Media Framing of the Rohingya Crisis and Its Implications for Regional Diplomacy in South Asia, 2017-2026

Nearly nine years after the 2017 mass displacement of Rohingya from Myanmar, the crisis remains one of the world's largest and most protracted refugee situations. This article examines how media framing of the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and selected international outlets evolved from 2017 to 2026, and how these frames have shaped regional diplomatic responses. Using a mixed-methods design, the study combines quantitative analysis of UNHCR, IOM, and UN OCHA data on refugee populations, humanitarian funding, and maritime movements with qualitative framing analysis of a comparative corpus of 1,071 English-language reports from nine outlets, as coded by Islam and Shuchy (2026), and of later 2025-2026 coverage. Results show a clear shift from atrocity-centred reporting in 2017 toward humanitarian-managerial and securitised frames by 2026, even as the registered Rohingya population in Bangladesh grew to 1,204,492 and funding shortfalls deepened. The framing patterns sit beside diplomatic stagnation: Myanmar's repeated symbolic repatriation pledges without implementation, Bangladesh's rising security and fiscal costs, and a 96 percent increase in embarked refugees in early 2026. The article argues that humanitarian visibility without sustained genocide recognition depoliticises state responsibility and weakens pressure for durable solutions. It concludes with recommendations for newsrooms, donors, and regional bodies.