ORGIE I ANTISEMITISM. En kritisk diskursanalys av hur palestinademonstranter skildras i svensk media

Sammanfattning

The 7th of October 2023 and the following warfare in Gaza, (the latest escalation of the Israel-Palestine conflict), have triggered a wave of protest worldwide. This protest wave has led to widespread civil as well as political debate across Sweden about the action and goals of these protestors. Pro-Palestinian demonstrations have become a recurring feature in the public space, often accompanied by intense media attention and political commentary. The demonstrations are not only reported on as events but rather framed and valued in news discourse. How the media depicts protestors are therefore of great importance as the depictions formed in the media influence the understanding and legitimacy of protestors and their position within the democratic arena. The purpose of this study is to examine how pro-Palestinian protestors are depicted in Swedish news media and how these depictions function to legitimize or delegimize them. It's especially interesting to see how depictions differ between public service media and right-wing alternative media. The thesis is guided by three research questions: • How are pro-Palestinian protestors depicted in Swedish media? • In what ways do these depictions legitimize or delegitimize the protestors? • How do these depictions differ between public service media and right-wing alternative media? The thesis is grounded in framing theory, primarily drawing on Robert Entman’s (1993) conceptualization of framing as a process of selection and salience. This makes it possible to analyse how aspects of demonstrations are emphasized and downplayed in media reporting. In addition, the thesis draws on the work of Theo van Leewen’s (2007;2008) on the concept of legitimization and delegitimization. Which gives us analytical tools of how social actors and actions are legitimized through discourse. Together these theoretical concepts enable us to analyse how media depictions shape the protestors. Methodologically, the study applies Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), following the explanation by Berglez (2019), and an adapted analytical framework inspired by Carvalho (2008, referenced in Berglez, 2019). The analysis includes both textual and visual elements in order to capture how meaning is constructed in different forms. The analysed material consists of six news articles: three published by SVT, representing public service, and three published by Samnytt, representing right-wing alternative media. The articles cover three separate pro-Palestinian demonstrations in Sweden over two years, allowing comparative analysis across media types and time. The findings reveal clear differences in depictions. Public service media more often provide contextual background and include the protestors own perspectives, contributing to a more balanced portrayal. Right-wing alternative media more frequently use evaluative language that emphasizes conflict, disorder, and threat, thereby contributing to delegimizing the protestors. Overall, the thesis highlights how media framing plays a central role in shaping the perceived legitimacy of political protest in a polarized media landscape.