The National Film Board of Canada and the Canadian Discourses of Immigration
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21883046 |
|---|---|
| Authors | M Ayaz Naseem, Adeela Arshad‐ayaz (0000-0001-8076-9394), Hedia Hizaoui, Liam McMahon, Muhammad Akram (0000-0002-2950-7556) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 25 |
| Pages | 89-115 |
| Publication date | 2024-08-25 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Acta Universitatis Sapientiae Film and Media Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2065-5924 • E-ISSN: 2066-7779 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.47745/ausfm-2024-0006 |
| OpenAlex | W4402235824 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 24 |
In this paper, we examine the articulation of immigration discourse in the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) film productions. We also address the interdiscursivity of “racialized discourse” and “economic discourse” regarding immigration, as articulated in these films. Specifically, we use insights from Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis to examine how documentary films by the National Film Board of Canada both construct and hide Canadian exceptionalism. We argue that exceptionalism constituted in NFB media discourse creates an “imaginary” of immigration as an altruistic and ethical practice. At the same time these discourses obscure the fact that Canada’s immigration discourse is largely driven by economic motivations. White Canadians are portrayed as good global citizens with virtues such as tolerance, neutrality, openness, inclusiveness, fairness, social justice, etc. On the other hand, only those immigrants who are willing to assimilate/integrate into the Canadian imaginary are included in the imaginary. We take a sample of three documentary films produced by NFB from 1949 to 1998 to have a longitudinal look at the propagation and perpetuation of exceptionalist discourses on immigration and to argue that notwithstanding the benevolence inherent in policy and academic discourses the prime motivation behind acceptance of immigrants has always been economic
Immigration · Media studies · Political science · Sociology · Canadian Identity and History · Law · Legal Systems and Institutions · Media Studies and Communication
Introducing Social Semiotics
Legitimation in discourse and communication
Deconstructing Canada’s discourse of immigrant integration
Projecting Canada
Analysing Discourse
Critical and Emerging Discourses in Multicultural Education Literature
Other” Troubles
Immigrants Can Be Deadly”
Canadian National Cinema
Bad versus Big Canada
Immigration Policy in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States
Constructing undesirables
Nation and Anti-Nation
Canada's Immigration Policy since 1945
Immigrants and the Western media
Branding 'Canadian Experience' in Immigration Policy
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |