De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape

Abstract This article focuses on media representations of ‘the South in the North’ crosscutting the European mediascape in 2015 and the beginning of 2016. Assuming that both identities and perceptions of in/security are socially constructed, particularly by means of discourse, that security is gende...

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Main Authors: Rita Santos, Sílvia Roque, Sofia José Santos
Format: Article
Language:Spanish
Published: Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro
Series:Contexto Internacional
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0102-85292018000300453&lng=en&tlng=en
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author Rita Santos
Sílvia Roque
Sofia José Santos
author_facet Rita Santos
Sílvia Roque
Sofia José Santos
author_sort Rita Santos
collection DOAJ
description Abstract This article focuses on media representations of ‘the South in the North’ crosscutting the European mediascape in 2015 and the beginning of 2016. Assuming that both identities and perceptions of in/security are socially constructed, particularly by means of discourse, that security is gendered and gender constructions are in turn built on dynamics of in/security, and that gendered power relations and representations are always entangled with other structures of inequality and domination such as racism, this article argues that gendered categories of othering in the media’s representations have been critical to produce and justify 1) hegemonic narratives of securitisation that aim to protect an imagined European identity and 2) counter-narratives denouncing the racial and cultural discrimination tied to the ‘North’s’ hegemonic representations of refugees. Theoretically, the article proposes a dialogue among critical, feminist, and postcolonial peace and security studies. Methodologically, it analyses through discourse analysis three highly mediatised cases by examining the social representations of the refugees, namely their gendered components put forward by representative European media outlets based in the UK. It explores their implications in terms of the consolidation of stereotypes and hierarchies of suffering according to criteria of credibility/suspicion and vulnerability/threat, and identifies some examples of media counter-narratives on refugee flows through specific gendered and racialised representations.
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spelling doaj.art-320fb7e0135f415688d8426ae623aea92022-12-22T01:39:40ZspaPontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de JaneiroContexto Internacional1982-024040345347710.1590/s0102-8529.2018400300003S0102-85292018000300453De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European MediascapeRita SantosSílvia RoqueSofia José SantosAbstract This article focuses on media representations of ‘the South in the North’ crosscutting the European mediascape in 2015 and the beginning of 2016. Assuming that both identities and perceptions of in/security are socially constructed, particularly by means of discourse, that security is gendered and gender constructions are in turn built on dynamics of in/security, and that gendered power relations and representations are always entangled with other structures of inequality and domination such as racism, this article argues that gendered categories of othering in the media’s representations have been critical to produce and justify 1) hegemonic narratives of securitisation that aim to protect an imagined European identity and 2) counter-narratives denouncing the racial and cultural discrimination tied to the ‘North’s’ hegemonic representations of refugees. Theoretically, the article proposes a dialogue among critical, feminist, and postcolonial peace and security studies. Methodologically, it analyses through discourse analysis three highly mediatised cases by examining the social representations of the refugees, namely their gendered components put forward by representative European media outlets based in the UK. It explores their implications in terms of the consolidation of stereotypes and hierarchies of suffering according to criteria of credibility/suspicion and vulnerability/threat, and identifies some examples of media counter-narratives on refugee flows through specific gendered and racialised representations.http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0102-85292018000300453&lng=en&tlng=enNarrativesGenderRaceIdentityMigrants and RefugeesMediaSecuritisation
spellingShingle Rita Santos
Sílvia Roque
Sofia José Santos
De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape
Contexto Internacional
Narratives
Gender
Race
Identity
Migrants and Refugees
Media
Securitisation
title De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape
title_full De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape
title_fullStr De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape
title_full_unstemmed De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape
title_short De-securitising ‘the South in the North’? Gendered Narratives on the Refugee Flows in the European Mediascape
title_sort de securitising the south in the north gendered narratives on the refugee flows in the european mediascape
topic Narratives
Gender
Race
Identity
Migrants and Refugees
Media
Securitisation
url http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0102-85292018000300453&lng=en&tlng=en
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