Discursive Construction of territorial disputes: foreign newspaper reporting on the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands dispute

Most studies of the news discourse surrounding territorial disputes focus on the domestic newspapers of the conflicting countries from the perspective of “us” and “them”. This study examines how the newspapers of foreign countries discursively construct a territorial dispute within the framework of an intergroup conflict schema. A qualitative and quantitative analysis of articles on the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands dispute published online in five newspapers of record (the New York Times, the Guardian, the Sydney Morning Herald, Le Monde, and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) reveals two main points: First, the articles published by these newspapers share a similar intergroup conflict schema that is based on competition and the pursuit of national interests as interpreted in conformance with the national interests of the respective countries (USA, UK, Australia, France, and Germany). Second, in terms of how news discourse is framed, there are noticeable differences between the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and the other four which may reflect the influence of Germany’s socio-historical context on domestic public opinion.     

Coverage of bombings for political advantage: Turkish on-line news reporting of the 2016 Ankara attacks

On 17 February 2016, a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 28 people and injuring another 61 in the “heart” of Turkey’s capital Ankara. A few hours after the attack, the Turkish government blamed Salih Neccar from the (mostly) Kurdish-Syrian People’s protection Unit (YPG). Two days later, the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK) claimed responsibility and named the bomber as Abdülbaki Sömer a Turkish citizen. The bombing is part of a resumption of violence in Turkey between Turkish government authorities and Kurdish groups. In this paper, we examine how on-line news stories recontextualise the bombing. We assert that news sources multimodally recontextualise the bombing in ways which are advantageous to the news organisations’ owners, political alliances and supporters. By each news source representing their political interests unquestionably positive and opposition unconditionally negative, polarisation in Turkish politics is articulated. This does nothing to solve problems and heal wounds in a time of national crisis.     

From a threatening “Muslim migrant” back to the conspiring “West:” race,religion, and nationhood on Russian television during Putin’s third presidency

This article analyzes official discourse of the nation during Vladimir Putin’s third presidency, as reflected in Russian television coverage of Islam and migration. It argues that the replacement of earlier deliberately ambiguous definitions of Russian nationhood with clearly framed exclusive visions reflects the change in the regime’s legitimation strategy from one based on economic performance to one based on its security record. In this context, the systematic promotion of Russian ethno-nationalism for the purpose of achieving the regime’s general stability began not at the time of Crimea’s annexation, as it is often assumed, but at the time of Putin’s re-election amidst public protests in 2012. The goal of representing the authorities as attentive to public grievances in a society where opinion polls register high levels of xenophobia has prompted state-controlled broadcasters to use ethnoracial definitions of the nation that they had previously avoided. The media campaigns analyzed here also reflect abrupt changes in the precise identity of Russia’s main Others. Such instrumentally adopted sharp discursive swings are unlikely to constitute an appropriate tool for societal consensus management and for the achievement of political stability in the long term.     

Fear of Islam in Greece: migration,terrorism, and “ghosts” from the past

The article explores the “fear of Islam” through a specific series of political debates about Islam and the future of the Greek-Orthodox national identity. The analysis is based on the method of qualitative content analysis, which makes use of thematic categories and draws on the proceedings of the Greek parliament. The main questions the article will try to address are: How have Greek political parties reacted to public demand for the construction of a mosque? What have been the rhetorical tropes they use? How have they capitalized on current and old fears about Islam? What have been the implications of this discourse on state policies toward Islam? Have there been any differences in this discourse over time? The analysis highlights the role of historical interpretations of Greek national identity and contemporary problems related to new waves of migration due to Greece’s place on the border with Turkey and with the broader Islamic world.     

Learning and teaching to care for young people

“What is youth work, and what are the best ways to teach someone to be a high quality youth worker?” This is a thorny and contested question that many scholars (Emslie, 2013 Emslie, M. (2013). Toward a youth work profession. Child and Youth Services, 34, 125–138.[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]; Fusco &; Baizerman, 2013 Fusco, D. &; Baizerman, M. (2013). Professionalization deconstructed: Implications for the field of youth work--guest editors' comments. Child and Youth Services, 34, 85–88.[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]; Magnuson &; Baldwin, 2014 Magnuson, D. &; Baldwin, C. (2014). In defense of professionalism: A response to Fusco and Baizerman. Child and Youth Services, 35, 4–15.[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]; Starr, Yohalem &; Gannett, 2009; Walker &; Larsen, 2012 Walker, K. &; Larsen, R. (2012). Youth worker reasoning about dilemmas encountered in practice: expert-novice differences. Journal of Youth Development, 7(1), 5–23. [Google Scholar]) and directors of higher education programs in youth work (VanderVen, 2015 VanderVen, K. (2015, March 24-25). Advancing child and youth work through professional preparation: Proceedings of the summit on higher education in child and youth work at the University of Pittsburgh. Milwaukee, WI: The Association for Child &; Youth Care Practice. Retrieved from: http://www.acycp.org/advancing-child-and-youth-work-through-professional-preparation [Google Scholar]) have been asking as youth work has emerged as a field of higher education study in the U.S. and other countries. Although there are many positions within the professionalization debate, most agree about the importance of better defining a knowledge base that describes youth work (Emslie, 2013 Emslie, M. (2013). Toward a youth work profession. Child and Youth Services, 34, 125–138.[Taylor &; Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]). This base includes defining both content knowledge and context-dependent practices. For instance, Walker &; Gran (2010 Walker, K. &; Gran, C. (2010). Beyond core competencies: Practitioner expertise as a critical component of quality. St. Paul, MN: University of Minnesota Extension Center for Youth Development. [Google Scholar]) distinguish between competencies, which are discrete skills and content knowledge, and competence, which is the practice of knowing how to apply multiple skills and knowledge in particular situations and contexts. She writes that competence, “... is the knack for doing youth work skillfully, gracefully; for doing the right thing at the right time...While most of us know it when we see it, as a field we don't have a very reliable way of identifying it, let alone intentionally producing it” (p. 3). In this article, I name and describe one youth work practice, caring for, towards developing reliable ways that youth work professionals can engage and develop competence in learning and teaching to care for young people.     

Thinking and Doing Prevention: A Critical Analysis of Contemporary Youth Crime and Suicide Prevention Discourses

In this article, we have traced some of the dominant cultural narratives shaping current understandings of youth crime and suicide. We have aimed to show some of the ways that our received understandings of what the problem is and what should be done about it are social constructions that privilege a certain kind of scientific explanation. By starting from the premise that narrow, highly regulated approaches to studying these complex problems are bound to be inadequate we have argued that alternative ways of thinking, studying and doing prevention need to be considered. A number of theoretical frameworks, including constructionist, critical, and postmodern paradigms, have been identified as having a useful contribution to make. We conclude by recommending ways of thinking and doing prevention that capitalize on young people's wisdom, recognize more collaborative approaches to knowledge-making and community building, and enable multiple forms of critical engagement and resistance as well as engendering practices of hope and solidarity.     

The discursive flexibility of ‘flex crops’: comparing oil palm and jatropha

‘Flex crops’ such as corn, oil palm and soy are understood to have multiple, interchangeable uses; they have material flexibility. We propose that discursive flexibility – the ability to strategically switch between discourses to promote an objective – equally shapes the political economy of flex crops, and thereby patterns of agrarian and environmental change. Comparing oil palm and Jatropha curcas, we find that actors who cast oil palm as a multi-scale solution to food and energy insecurity, climate change and (rural) poverty successfully reinforce its high material flexibility. Jatropha's proponents compensate for low material flexibility by positioning the crop as a ‘sustainable’ energy source that achieves both global and local goals. While this paper focuses on discourses that reinforce the oil palm and jatropha projects, understanding the power of discursive maneuvering can also inform efforts to contest them.     

Conceptual Reflection on Responsive Environmental Governance

This article discusses the conceptual base of the term of responsive environmental governance. Theme is important, as combining the greater demand for material wealth and sustainable use of natural resources is difficult. Successful and sustainable environmental management is possible only when active local support exists, that is, when governance is responsive. The article argues that action space for citizens on eco-social dependency is called for. People’s participation in decision-making and public debate; clear responsibilities and accountability measures of duty-bearers; and clearly articulated rights of citizens make governance responsive.     

How can emerging powers speak? On theorists,native informants and quasi-officials in International Relations discourse

Emerging powers like China, India and Brazil are receiving growing attention as objects in International Relations (IR) discourse. Scholars from these emerging powers are rarely present as subjects in mainstream IR discourse, however. This paper interrogates the conditions for scholars in emerging powers to speak back to the mainstream discipline. It argues, first, that ‘theory speak’ is rare from scholars based in periphery countries perceived to be ‘emerging powers’. Despite increasing efforts to create a ‘home-grown’ theoretical discourse in China, India and Brazil, few articles in mainstream journals present novel theoretical frameworks or arguments framed as non-Western/Southern theory or even as a ‘Chinese school’ or ‘Brazilian concepts’. Second, scholars from emerging powers tend to speak as ‘native informants’ about their own country, not about general aspects of ‘the international’. Third, some scholars even speak as ‘quasi-officials’, that is, they speak for their country.     

Pedagogical discourses of gender,peace, and equality: Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards

This article discusses a feminist critical discourse analysis research project of award-winning books of the Jane Addams Peace Association. Children’s books carry societal messages that are gendered, raced, and classed, with award-winning books carrying an additional message of exceptionality as they are viewed as deserving of attention. Thus, the discourses they circulate are important points of analysis. This research, using data from the Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards (focusing on books for older children – young adult literature), takes a feminist antimilitarist perspective to explore the sociocultural implications of children’s literature for education and learning. I examine research with respect to award-winning literature, define my theoretical framework of feminist antimilitarism, explain my methodology of feminist discourse analysis, and detail my findings. I conclude that the awards as a whole function pedagogically to define conflict in ways that privilege colonial discourses, with women represented in essentialist ways and inequality perceived as absent in the contemporary West.