Abstract
This chapter investigates representations of blackness in the social and political context of the migrant and refugee “crisis” in America. A content analysis of mainstream online news articles examines British reporting on the separation of migrant children from families in the US. It includes a critical analysis focusing on framing theory to deconstruct political framing of migrants in British news reporting. It considers the implications of “otherization” on political resolutions for race-based demographics, on the basis of social class. This chapter demonstrates the media's ability to apply a process of otherization to itself to support its institutionalized state and demonstrates otherization is a cyclic process of interchangeable identities, ideologies and intersectional contexts projected through a manufactured mediated prism and lens.
TopIntroduction
This chapter investigates representations of blackness in the social and political context of the migrant and refugee ‘crisis’ in America. A content analysis of mainstream online news articles will examine British reporting of two pinnacle aspects in US political affairs; the first, on Trump’s personal and political attack towards migrants and refugees. Secondly, the US enforcement of separational policies, including implementing the detachment of children from parents, and institutionalised detainment executed through detention centres. Critical analysis will focus on Framing Theory to deconstruct methods of political framing of migrants in news reporting. Analysis offers an external perspective on considering the implications of ‘otherisation’ on political resolutions for race based demographics, on the basis of social-class. This deconstruction of news production depicting representations of migrants and refugees, contributes to the debate on the impacts of framing in media and competing concepts of multiculturalism and assimilationism (see Borooah and Mangan, 2009; Triadafilopulous, 2011) within the socially constructed, colour continuum. This chapter considers the extent to which British news coverage contributes to the formation of hierarchies of ‘blackness’ and ‘otherness’ on the basis of social class statuses and frames British news reports on American political affairs, as ones constructed by the other, of the other.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Framing: A mediated and/or digitized paradigm embodying narratives that become embedded in society contributing to the formulation of stereotypes, norms and prejudices.
Narrative: An identifiable story, series of themes or patterns of behavior.
Otherization: Otherization is a cyclic process of interchangeable identities, ideologies and intersectional contexts that can be manipulated through a mediated lens.
Trumpism: A constructed social reality and ideology embedded within media driven narratives.