Paper Example. Conflict Between Turkey and the European Union

The liberal and egalitarian discourses impact the quality of outgroup constructs in modern society. Arguably, the critical human disasters of slavery in the USA and the Holocaust in Europe have affected the older discourses on out-groupings and have aligned them to take the focus of quasi-argumentative elaboration, which is focused on culture and not race in the creation 'us' versus 'them.' British newspapers have, within such context, increasingly engaged in dialogs about refugees, asylum seekers, and immigration, through various international and domestic issues. The paper will focus on how British newspapers represent outgroups in the current conflict between Turkey and the European Union.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

1.1 Aim

This academic essay investigates the discursive strategies used by several British newspapers in how they represent refugees, immigrants, and asylum seekers in recent news articles about the current conflict between the European Union and Turkey. This academic essay applies Faircloughian CDA as a theoretical and methodological approach.

2. Background

2.1 situational context

On February 28, 2020, turkey opened its gates to Greece, which led to the entry of refugees to the EU and as a result of the threats by Erdogan and set a scene for a new refugee crisis. The clash between the two countries has created a crisis that has dramatically affected refugees, immigrants, and asylum seekers. They have been denied access to Greece, being discriminated against in the EU, and moved back to their countries. However, both sides blame each other for the breach of the deal they signed among themselves in 2016. Security forces in Greek have prevented people from trying to enter their country, and this has led to many confrontations. There are cases where migrants have reported being assaulted by security forces as they try to enter into Greek, and being forced back into their country. Besides, the media of the British newspapers have played a vital role in the process through their biased news reporting about the refugees, migrants and, asylum seekers.

2.2 Possible broader theory/ the theory of media representation

Besides studying the discursive strategies of British media, one could examine the differences in the discourse between the refugee crisis in 2016 and the a recent one, with a broader theory of media representation. This theory allows for an even more significant, in-depth understanding of the link between linguistic and media representation. The linguistics Norman Fairclough and Roger Fowler provide the above information in their books Language in the News: Discourse and Ideology in the Press by Fowler (1991) and Media Discourse by Fairclough (1995).

2.3 CDA

In his book Critical discourse analysis: the critical study of Language, Norman Fairclough (1995) presents Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) as a three-dimensional framework with three different, yet very connected forms of analysis. He describes them as "analysis of (spoken or written) language texts, analysis of discourse practice (processes of text production, distribution, and consumption) and analysis of discursive events as instances of sociocultural practice." (Fairclough, 1995, p. 2). Fairclough explains this theoretical and methodological approach as a way to study Language in its connection to power and ideology (p.1). Furthermore, John E. Richardson (2007) further elaborates on Fairclough's three-dimensional framework. He explains that discourse is understood through a text's form and function, then the text's relation to how the version is produced and consumed, and the relation of the production and consumption to the broader society in which the book occurs (Richardson, p. 37). Additionally, Richardson suggests his readers, to follow the Faircloughian way of CDA by starting with a textual analysis followed by discursive and social practice analysis (p.37). Moreover, Simpson. P, Mayr, and Stratham (2019), in their book Language and Power, explain CDA as a theory that handles all of the interrelated categories; discourse, power, ideology, and social structure (Simpson, Mayr, & Statham, 2019, p. 59). CDA's primary purpose is to decode and denaturalize ideology strategies to reveal the power structures in the discourse, which can cause social problems (p.60). Ultimately, the mentioned advocates of CDA provide excellent methods for researching within the field of CDA.

3. Design of The Study

The study design will form the backbone of this analysis as it will determine how and which methods to use in the data analyses. The review will be done using Norman Fairclough's framework of texual analysis. It will cover media reporting and its impact on the refugee crisis in Europe, including the current conflict between EU and turkey. The study area was selected due to its role in the current affairs of refugees around the world. The selection of the media text is made through the sifting of media that contains strong content, high readership, and political views. The analysis will include tabloids and broadsheets to widen the scope of understanding on how the media shapes opinion regarding refugees matters. These being an analytical study, it will test the relationship between press presentations on refugees and the impact they have on the image and opinion of readers on refugees. The study will answer the question of why media presentations are essential in shaping opinion. It will involve a cross-sectional analysis and case studies to analyze the material.

Norman Fairclough's framework of analyzing text will help analyze texts through analysis of social and cultural practices that frame discourse practice and writings. The micro-level study will involve text syntax, metaphoric structure, and rhetorical devices. The meso-level will consist of looking at the production of the text and power options. The macro-level deals will deal with the intertextual relationship and how external factors influence how the text is analyzed.

The study employs critical discourse analysis, which is part of the qualitative method. The method of Fairclough's CDA is concerned with understanding a pressing issue in the social setting, which in this case, is the issue of media misrepresentation of the refugees, migrants and, asylum seekers in the EU. The analysis focus on the use of texts by newspapers to make sense of the impact media has on opinions held by people in host countries and the world. The analysis will construct social relations and actions in everyday life. At the same time, build individuals and text positions to make possible different meanings, versions, and ideas of impacts of media reporting (Simpson, Mayr, & Statham, 2018). Various British news articles were analyzed to establish how they represent the outgroup minorities: refugees in the European Union and among the newspapers, including The Guardian, Daily Mail, and Sunday Times. Furthermore, the comparison between various publications in terms of their headlines, context, and textual framing is vital in portraying the message media outlets relay to people.

4. Results and Discussion

The result of this study will be analyzed three-tier results and presentation based on the framework deduced by Norman Fairclough. The main problem of the failure of EU leaders to take a more direct approach to refugee issues is the high level of public anxiety about the subject. Several reasons necessitate the shift in attitude is due to the visibility of migrants, economic and security factors. Measures instituted since the financial crisis of 2008 has elicited a feeling of economic and social insecurity. These shortcomings and the threat of national security has led to the growth of far-right anti-migratory crusades and movements. However, it is essential to consider the contribution of mass media in shaping public opinion about these issues in society. The media present news to citizens, and from it, they decide where they stand on a particular issue depending on the impact of information given by media outlets. As studies have, refugees have been painted as adding to a nation's problems other than human beings who need help and protection after fleeing internal conflicts in their countries.

Many media outlets in Britain newspapers on refugee crisis present biased news, and in one of their news articles, The Guardian states, "Female asylum seekers have staged a demonstration at the Turkish border demanding to be let into the EU as part of protests around the world on International Women's Day." Besides, the newspaper has also represented the refugees in harmful ways with regards to employment, food security and promoting dpread of diseases. Such reporting has led to hostility towards the asylum seekers moving into Greece with the Athens voicing their concerns that those crossing the borders into their country could carry the virus.

News coverage of refugees, migrants, and asylum seekers is mainly based on the negative impact of the refugees on the host country other than the actual plight and problems faced by a refugee in consecration camps. They mostly source their reports from statements by local and international politicians who are campaigning against the refugees. For example, the Sunday Times made a report from Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Greek prime minister, stating that "Our islands, which are already bearing a public health burden, must be protected." From such news, the newspaper becomes biased and try to portray the refugees as the sole vectors of the virus, and that they should not be allowed into Greece.

Asylum seekers have been portrayed negatively, using terms representing that unbearably due to their large numbers and that they pose an economic and security threat to the host country. There are high frequencies where the newspapers use metaphors and rates to portray the large numbers of refugees. Metaphors of large quantities such as exodus, water bodies, and influx constitute a negative representation of the asylum seekers. For example, in its headline, the Daily Mail, 'The authorities and aid groups were unprepared for yesterday's influx.' The same newspaper incorporated in one of its news that "Families welcomed the refugees in Kukes, but the ever-swelling numbers could not be accommodated. Albania flooded by the rising tide of refugees." The Guardian has also shown similar trends in portraying the large numbers of refugees.

There was a swift response by the Europeans on March 3, 2020, whereby presidents from leading Greece EU institutions were available, which demonstrated the unity and the willingness of the countries to face the situation together. However, past experiences, especially the refugee crisis in 2015, highlighted the gaps in the internal and external dimensions of the EU migration policy. It is impossible ignoring the role played by mass media in influencing elite and public political attitudes towards migration and asylum.

The narrative by media representation is changing with a case and point being the image of a drowned Syrian refugee, a boy aged three years which dotted newspaper headlines in the UK. The news headlines were a depiction of sympathy, with many newspapers reporting the dire need to change opinions regarding refugees. It is not clear whether the image contributed positively to a change in views and willingness of EU leaders to rethink immigration policies. The story of the Syrian boy by the media, however, shaped the narrative for media reporting as the case had no biasness but sympathy for the plight of refugees. The three-dimensional framework of Norman Fairclough of critically analyzing text through a three-tier framework is employed to investigate the texts and provide a final analysis.