Framing Austerity in Spain

The Influence of Sources and Economic Policies Over the Media Discourse

Bibliographic Data

ID12909409
AuthorsRaul Rios-Rodríguez (0000-0003-2614-1875, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, corresponding author)
Year2020
Volume16
Issue6
Pages1100-1116
Publication date2020-10-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournalism Practice (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1751-2786 • E-ISSN: 1751-2794
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/17512786.2020.1834870
OpenAlexW3097734944
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited43

European countries responded to the economic crisis of 2008 by adopting austerity policies that deeply transformed their economic and social model, leading to a general decline in welfare. This study attempts to demonstrate how the media contributed to legitimise this kind of policies by portraying them as the only possible alternative, focusing on the Spanish press. To this end, we carry out a Content Analysis of the frames used by two Spanish newspapers to address the policies applied in response to the crisis between 2008 and 2015. Additionally, this article links through a Z-test the frames reproduced by the media with the type of sources that promoted them, a dimension of the crisis coverage that remains largely unexplored. It also analyses the evolution of the media discourse throughout the crisis. The results show how coverage was dominated by frames that legitimised austerity by presenting it as the only existing option. In a relevant way, both elitist and alternative sources mostly promoted frames that legitimised austerity, although in a different way. On the other hand, the legitimisation of austerity was exercised more intensely in the crisis periods in which these policies were being applied more strongly

Austerity · Framing (construction · Geography · Media studies · Newspaper · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Law · Populism, Right-Wing Movements

Tools

Open DOI