scholarly journals Linguistic Means in Image of COVID-19 (German Political Discourse in Media)

2020 ◽  
pp. 194-209
Author(s):  
Daniil A. Petrenko ◽  
Eduard V. Likhachev ◽  
Marina V. Chernyshova

The article is focused on the role of lexical and prosodic means of expression in the coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic in German political media discourse. As a research task, the authors identified an attempt to assess the dynamics of the image of the coronavirus phenomenon in the media and to identify the conditionality of the use of linguistic units at certain stages of the pandemic. The material for the study was transcripts and audio recordings of plots from leading German news channels in the first half of 2020. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of the frequency of the use of lexical units and the correlation of lexical and prosodic means of expression. In the course of linguo-stylistic analysis, the main stylistic means are established, depicting the course of the pandemic and the fight against the virus. The prosodic features of the informants' speech, which are determined in the course of the electroacoustic analysis of statements, are brought into consideration. The impact of COVID-19 on all spheres of public life in Germany and its maximum representation in the media determine the relevance of this study. The novelty of the study is seen in the application of a comprehensive methodology for analyzing expressive means in the speech of informants in the period from January to May 2020.

Author(s):  
Susana Guerrero Salazar

The press and social networks constitute the most recurrent platform for debate on the subject of “women and language”. The media discourse on this subject covers many aspects that have not yet been addressed in depth, including the discourse that is generated when the academic dictionary is taken as a point of reference. This article analyses sexism (or not) of some definitions in the dictionary through a press corpus obtained from the Hemeroteca Virtual de las Lenguas de España (HEVILE), which has allowed us, in the first place, to catalogue the words and definitions related to women which have been news in recent years and, therefore, the object of debate; secondly, to verify the beliefs and linguistic attitudes regarding the role of the Academy and its dictionary in society; and, finally, to decide what effects the debate generated (especially through social networks) on the latest changes carried out in some of these definitions.


Author(s):  
Tetiana Prudnykova ◽  

The process of close interconnection between stability and variability in the Ukrainian language system is reflected in economic news of Ukraine, financial reports of organisations, government, ministries, etc., where, along with the established terms, some nouns which are not characteristic of that specific text type are used, therefore, it makes the research more comprehensive and enables to achieve in-depth understanding of the problem. The purpose of the paper is systematic description of non-specialized nouns, and explanation of their semantic and functional-stylistic potential. The research objectives are to differentiate words with direct and abstract meanings, to identify new semantic colouring of analysed lexical items and to determine the features of derivative nominations. The dynamics of lexical-semantic system of the Ukrainian language reflects the use of nouns with a new meaning that has developed on the basis of non-derivative words with direct semantics. Such linguistic units that are used in economic paperss form two groups. The first one includes those that, like their correlate, are remained as specific nominations: бики, монстр, моцарт. The second one is formed by the substantives that, in the non-specialised functioning in the texts on economic content, show the transition to the sphere of the abstract ones: коридор, стеля, шторм. Enrichment of the media space on economic topics is achieved by nouns that are related to the derivative words. Usually, they mark different subject processes, rarely states and specific subjects. Such nominations have occurred as a result of reinterpretation of the meaning of the substantives for which the spoken verbs and the verbs that are used in figurative meaning serve as formative ones. The role of the formant falls on the suffixes -енн-, -інн-, -нн-, rarely – -тв-, -ок-, -ація: зміцнення, ослаблення, падіння, оготівковування, гонитва, стрибок, тінізація. Non-specialised nouns that function in the texts on economic topics have occurred as a result of reinterpretation of words formed by zero suffixation: розворот, відтік, навар, відкат. Limited efficiency in economic topics is shown by substantives formed from nouns by suffixation: бізнесюк, парасолька, as well as composites (банкопад) and juxtaposites (маски-шоу). The Ukrainian media discourse of the early XXI century is too sensitive to linguistic changes. The dynamics is characteristic of direct and abstract nouns that are used in economic papers and correlate with non-derivative and derivative substantives.


2021 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 586-610
Author(s):  
Franco Zappettini ◽  
Douglas Mark Ponton ◽  
Tatiana V. Larina

This special issue continues the discussion of the role of emotion in discourse (see Russian Journal of Linguistics 2015 (1) and 2018, 22 (1)) which, as testified by the burgeoning body of literature in the field, has become more prominent in different spheres and contexts of public life. This time we focus on emotionalisation of media discourse. We highlight the intensification of emotions in media and, showcasing contributions from international authors, critically reflect on constructions, functions and pragmatic purposes of emotions in media discourse. Our aim is to investigate emotions in the media from semiotic, pragmatic and discursive perspectives against the contemporary socio-political background in which traditional notions concerning the role of media are being noticeably changed. In this introductory article, we also put forward an agenda for further research by briefly outlining three main areas of exploration: the logics of media production and reception , the boundaries of media discourse, and the semiotic resources deployed to construct emotionality . We then present the articles in this issue and highlight their contributions to the study of linguistic representations of emotions. We then summarise the main results and suggest a brief avenue for further research.


There have been significant changes in the numbers, patterns, and circumstances of refugees and in the political landscape to support humanitarianism since the publication of the first edition of this collection. Like the first edition, this volume provides a multidisciplinary perspective on refugee health, tracing the health repercussions on individuals and populations from the drivers of forced mass movements of populations from situations of conflict and other disasters through to the process of resettlement in countries other than their countries of origin. Drawing on the expertise of academics, practitioners, and UN frontline experts, the collection covers three main aspects of refugee health: the concepts, definitions, and context from a human rights, humanitarianism, and social determinants of health perspective; the intersection of vulnerabilities across age groups and settings; and the ethical challenges for practitioners and researchers working with forcibly displaced populations seeking to resettle. The collection concludes with an analysis of the role of the media in shaping our perceptions of refugees and the impact on policy and access to care.


Arts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 8
Author(s):  
Sławomir Gawroński ◽  
Dariusz Tworzydło ◽  
Kinga Bajorek ◽  
Łukasz Bis

This article deals with the issues of architectural elements of public space, treated as components of art and visual communication, and at the same time determinants of the emotional aspects of political conflicts, social disputes, and media discourse. The aim of the considerations is to show, with the usage of the principles of critical analysis of media discourse, the impact of social events, political communication, and the activity of mass communicators on the perception of the monument of historical memory and the changes that take place within its public evaluation. The authors chose the method of critical analysis of the media discourse due to its compliance with the planned purpose of the analyses, thus, providing the opportunity to perform qualitative research, enabling the creation of possibly up-to-date conclusions regarding both the studied thread, and allowing the extrapolation of certain conclusions to other examples. The media material relating to the controversial Monument to the Revolutionary Act, located in the city of Rzeszów (Poland), was selected for the analysis. On this example, an attempt was made to evaluate the mutual relations between politically engaged architecture and art, and the contemporary consequences of this involvement in the social and political dimension.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 301-315
Author(s):  
Hanna Pułaczewska

Abstract In the article, we consider the impact of adolescence upon the usage of Polish in Polish-German bilinguals raised and living in Germany and demonstrate how adolescence surfaces as a socially based “critical period” in this usage using results from a survey and interviews conducted with 30 teenagers. In the quantitative part of the study, we seek to establish whether adolescents’ age affected the pattern and quantity of their usage of Polish in the media and contacts with age peers, whether the latter two facets of growing up with Polish were interrelated, and which other factors affected peer-relevant activities in Polish. Both age and peer contact turned out to significantly affect the use of the media in Polish, while peer contact in Polish was affected by the parental use of Polish in parent-child communication. The qualitative part presents the context and motivation for using Polish by the youths in peer-relevant activities. We integrate the results with insights provided by child development psychology from the perspective of language socialisation theory and interpret the age-related decline of interest in the Polish media as an effect of a diminishing role of parents and the increasing role of age peers as role models in personal development.


1974 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 223-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald L. Kanter

Dr. Kanter presents a summary of his research assessing the role of OTC advertising in Influencing drug usage. His work represents the only systematic study of the impact of commercial advertising on drug usage. He stresses that advertising in itself does not directly lead to drug misuse but should be considered as part of a host of factors in the social environment and in the media environment that have significant influence in determining people's behavior. He also urged that the existing pharmaceutical advertising codes, which are often violated, be reviewed and strengthened.


Religions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 221
Author(s):  
Yanchao Zhang

This article explores transformations in the worship of popular goddess Mazu as a result of (religious) tourism. In particular, it focuses on the role of transnational tourism in the invention of tradition, folklorization, and commodification of the Mazu cult. Support from the central and local governments and the impact of economic globalization have transformed a traditional pilgrimage site that initially had a local and then national scope into a transnational tourist attraction. More specifically, the ancestral temple of Mazu at Meizhou Island, which was established as the uncontested origin of Mazu’s cult during the Song dynasty (960 to 1276), has been reconfigured architecturally and liturgically to function as both a sacred site and a tourist attraction. This reconfiguration has involved the reconstruction of traditional rituals and religious performances for religious tourism to promote the temple as the unadulterated expression of an intangible cultural heritage. The strategic combination of traditional rituals such as “dividing incense” and an innovative ceremony enjoining all devotees of “Mazu all over the world [to] return to mother’s home” to worship her have not only consolidated the goddess as a symbol of common cultural identity in mainland China, but also for the preservation of Chinese identity in diaspora. Indeed, Chinese migrants and their descendants are among the increasing numbers of pilgrims/tourists who come to Mazu’s ancestral temple seeking to reconnect with their heritage by partaking in authentic traditions. This article examines the spatial and ritual transformations that have re-signified this temple, and by extension, the cult of Mazu, as well as the media through which these transformations have spread transnationally. We will see that (transnational) religious tourism is a key medium.


2010 ◽  
pp. 67-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Basten

Much research has been conducted in the field of utilising the media - television and radio in particular - to promote particular public health messages. However, a burgeoning canon has examined how mass media can play a role in affecting change in fertility preferences and outcomes. In this paper we review these researches which have primarily focussed upon higher fertility settings. The impact of mass media presentation of families and children in low fertility settings has not yet been subject to rigorous sociological investigation so its impact can not be accurately inferred. However, given the pervasive nature of mass media and celebrity culture, we suggest that this is an important avenue for future research. We conclude that television plays a multi-faceted role in shaping individuals decision-making procedures concerning both demographic events and public health interactions. To illustrate this, we present a model which demonstrates a sliding scale of intent - but not impact - of various genres in order to understand the actual role of the media in shaping attitudes towards family size - either explicitly in terms of edutainment or implicitly as a forms of normalization.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Yantseva

This study undertakes a systematic analysis of media discourse on migration in Sweden from 2012 to 2019. Using a novel data set consisting of mainstream newspapers, Twitter and forum data, the study answers two questions: What do Swedish media actually talk about when they talk about “migration”? And how do they talk about it? Using a combination of computational text analysis tools, I analyze a shift in the media discourse seen as one of the outcomes of the European refugee crisis in 2015 and try to understand the role of social media in this process. The results of the study indicate that messages on social media generally had negative tonality and suggest that some of the media frames can be attributed to a migration-hostile discourse. At the same time, the analysis of framing and sentiment dynamics provides little evidence for the discourse shift and any long-term effects of the European refugee crisis on the Swedish media discourse. Rather, one can hypothesize that the role of the crisis should be viewed in a broader political and historical context.


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