Negotiating Group Identities in Multicultural Germany: The Role of Mainstream Media, Discourse Relations, and Political Alliances

by David Abadi

Overview

This study provides an interdisciplinary examination of media portrayals of ethnic and religious minorities in Germany. Using years of combined quantitative and qualitative research, the author compares parliamentary discourse with that of the mainstream media and analyzes the politicized uses of collective identities.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781498557009
Publisher:	Lexington Books
Publication date:	09/20/2017
Series:	Communication, Globalization, and Cultural Identity
Pages:	262
Product dimensions:	6.33(w) x 9.28(h) x 0.87(d)

About the Author

David Abadi is a PhD graduate in the social sciences from the Institute for Media Studies at the University of Leuven, Belgium, where he has been researching political alliances, media discourses and social identities across Germany’s multicultural society. Prior to his academic research, he has worked as a news media analyst for a leading international broadcaster, evaluating the coverage on global politics, EU public affairs, migration and integration policies as well as diaspora communities in Germany. He has also contributed to various ICT projects for multiple corporations in the fields of web intelligence analysis, (social) media monitoring and digital marketing research.

Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter 1: The Current State of Affairs in Germany’s Multicultural Society Chapter 2: Theoretical Grounding and Methodologies Chapter 3: Recent Trends in German Integration Discourse: From the Sarrazin Controversies to the Decline of Political Correctness Chapter 4: Leitkultur and Discourse Hegemonies: German Mainstream Media Coverage on the Integration Debate between 2009 and 2014 Chapter 5: Leitkultur 3.0: A Latent Class Cluster Analysis of German Integration Discourse within Bundestag Plenary Protocols and Mainstream Newspapers Chapter 6: Wutbürger in the Lügenpresse: A Relational Discourse Analysis of the New German Populism in Mainstream Newspapers (2013–2015) Chapter 7: Conclusion

Editorial Reviews

This book is a stimulating and intelligent analysis of the portrayal of migrants in Germany. The discrepancy between a more rational debate in the German legislature and executive and a somewhat sensationalist discourse in the media based on news values is dysfunctional—what we need is a reorientation of mass media towards normative goals of the rational public sphere.

Kai Hafez

Deploying an impressive combination of methods, this study examines discursive struggles in German newspapers as well as in the German parliament. While some commentators praise (or loathe) Germany for its ‘political correctness’ and welcoming attitude, David Abadi demonstrates decreasing inhibitions to associate Muslims, ethnic minorities, and refugees with extremism, criminality, or terrorism.

Justus Uitermark