Ideological Functions and Nationalism in the main news bulletins

Abstract

The paper attempts to investigate the role of mass media in shaping public perceptions of the Greek-Turkish conflict in the Aegean and the Southeastern Mediterranean. The purpose of the paper is to analyze the messages conveyed in the light of Ideology and Nationalism, to present the ideological functions of journalistic discourse, the presence of ethnocentric discourse as a coherent element and to highlight the relations between the above notions. The study derives its theoretical base from the literature referring to the approaches to Ideology and the theoretical Schools of Nationalism. The methodology utilizes Critical Discourse Analysis and Content Analysis (quantitative & qualitative). The research demonstrates the dense existence of ideological discourse, as well as the existence of ethnocentric discourse in the transmitted messages. Furthermore, it analyzes both qualitatively and quantitatively, the relations and sequences between the ideological functions and the theoretical approaches of the study of Nationalism. The paper suggests that there is a strong presence of ideological functions in the transmitted messages, a permanent presence of nationalist discourse, a discriminatory construction of national identity, but also a necessary decoding of ethnocentric rhetoric regarding social
practice in the protest about peace.