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Orientalist Regimes of Representation: Comparing Swedish Media Portrayals of Syrian and Ukrainian Refugees

Mårtensson, Minja LU (2024) SIMZ41 20231
Graduate School
Abstract
This thesis compares portrayals of Syrian and Ukrainian refugees in Swedish main stream media in 2015 and 2022, through a mixed methods approach employing frame analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis. By examining how these two groups are represented, the study reveals quantitative and qualitative patterns of differential portrayals demonstrating a moral exclusion of Syrian refugees. Viewed through the critique raised by Edward Said in Orientalism (1979), ambiguous, contradictory, and interchangeable constructions in the news coverage of Syrian refugees as stereotypes of victimhood and threat are interrogated. This duality is understood as rooted in a regime of representation shaped by Orientalism, and stemming from a (neo)-colonial... (More)
This thesis compares portrayals of Syrian and Ukrainian refugees in Swedish main stream media in 2015 and 2022, through a mixed methods approach employing frame analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis. By examining how these two groups are represented, the study reveals quantitative and qualitative patterns of differential portrayals demonstrating a moral exclusion of Syrian refugees. Viewed through the critique raised by Edward Said in Orientalism (1979), ambiguous, contradictory, and interchangeable constructions in the news coverage of Syrian refugees as stereotypes of victimhood and threat are interrogated. This duality is understood as rooted in a regime of representation shaped by Orientalism, and stemming from a (neo)-colonial moral order giving rise to exclusionary practices, othering, and dehumanization. Ultimately, this thesis argues that by largely failing to transcend an Orientalist regime of representation, Swedish media contributes to a moral hierarchy which privileges certain groups over others, further entrenching divisions and perpetuating the marginalization of Syrian refugees. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Mårtensson, Minja LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMZ41 20231
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Orientalism, media framing, Syrian refugees, Ukrainian refugees, Sweden
language
English
id
9176511
date added to LUP
2024-11-04 13:27:42
date last changed
2025-03-03 03:42:36
@misc{9176511,
  abstract     = {{This thesis compares portrayals of Syrian and Ukrainian refugees in Swedish main stream media in 2015 and 2022, through a mixed methods approach employing frame analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis. By examining how these two groups are represented, the study reveals quantitative and qualitative patterns of differential portrayals demonstrating a moral exclusion of Syrian refugees. Viewed through the critique raised by Edward Said in Orientalism (1979), ambiguous, contradictory, and interchangeable constructions in the news coverage of Syrian refugees as stereotypes of victimhood and threat are interrogated. This duality is understood as rooted in a regime of representation shaped by Orientalism, and stemming from a (neo)-colonial moral order giving rise to exclusionary practices, othering, and dehumanization. Ultimately, this thesis argues that by largely failing to transcend an Orientalist regime of representation, Swedish media contributes to a moral hierarchy which privileges certain groups over others, further entrenching divisions and perpetuating the marginalization of Syrian refugees.}},
  author       = {{Mårtensson, Minja}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Orientalist Regimes of Representation: Comparing Swedish Media Portrayals of Syrian and Ukrainian Refugees}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}