When crisis hits, will we break?: Crisis journalism and framing of terrorist attacks in The Guardian and The Sun
Ilkka, Ilmo (2021)
Ilkka, Ilmo
2021
Journalistiikan maisteriohjelma - Master's Programme in Journalism
Informaatioteknologian ja viestinnän tiedekunta - Faculty of Information Technology and Communication Sciences
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2021-05-19
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202105054505
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202105054505
Tiivistelmä
The purpose of this thesis was to identify the various frames that were constructed in two different British newspapers relating to the framing of two different terrorist attacks. The attacks were the November 2015 attack in Paris and the June 2015 attack in Sousse. Framing theory allows the researcher to identify and ascertain the various ways a text is constructed, either unconsciously or consciously. These frames are then used to construct and modify the surrounding world.
Furthermore, the aim of this thesis was to find out how the ideals of crisis journalism area realized in the coverage of the two attacks. These ideals help the journalists and other media professionals to work in an ethically sound manner in times when journalism is most needed to inform and reassure the audience. The data for the thesis came from eighty-three articles from The Guardian and The Sun Second newspapers. The data was collected in two different segments for each paper: first, on the day of the attack and the following day, and then seven days after this time period.
The motivation to research the framing of the attacks was to offer insights into how the two papers represent an unexpected crisis that could have effects on their audiences. The reason for researching this through the ideas of crisis journalism was to see how well the ideals were fulfilled, as this would offer insights into how journalists could better cover such crisis in the future.
The analysis identified five dominant frames: the clash of civilizations frame, the anti-liberté frame, the little Britain frame, the human suffering frame, and the war frame. These frames were constructed through identifying problems, recognizing actors of the events, suggesting remedies, and representing moral judgements. The analysis further found that both of the papers failed to a large extent in fulfilling the ideals of crisis journalism.
Furthermore, the aim of this thesis was to find out how the ideals of crisis journalism area realized in the coverage of the two attacks. These ideals help the journalists and other media professionals to work in an ethically sound manner in times when journalism is most needed to inform and reassure the audience. The data for the thesis came from eighty-three articles from The Guardian and The Sun Second newspapers. The data was collected in two different segments for each paper: first, on the day of the attack and the following day, and then seven days after this time period.
The motivation to research the framing of the attacks was to offer insights into how the two papers represent an unexpected crisis that could have effects on their audiences. The reason for researching this through the ideas of crisis journalism was to see how well the ideals were fulfilled, as this would offer insights into how journalists could better cover such crisis in the future.
The analysis identified five dominant frames: the clash of civilizations frame, the anti-liberté frame, the little Britain frame, the human suffering frame, and the war frame. These frames were constructed through identifying problems, recognizing actors of the events, suggesting remedies, and representing moral judgements. The analysis further found that both of the papers failed to a large extent in fulfilling the ideals of crisis journalism.