Critical discourse Analysis of Media Representations

The campaigns of both supporters and opponents of BREXIT, the many photos on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and the debate on whether media should speak of immigrants or refugees underline the importance of language and images in (social) media. This course teaches you the skills to study the possible meanings of media texts and, if applicable, the juxtaposed images. You learn how particular words, phrases and visual elements can be interpreted in terms of a broader debate in society. Other key elements of the course are the role of the national and ideological context in the production of a media text, and the underlying power relations in society. Further, you learn how to develop a coherent analytical framework and structure for your research paper or thesis. In a step by process, you will address these questions by applying a critical discourse analysis (CDA) method. You will write a paper in which you will use the method of Richardson (2007), or a method of your own choice, to analyze discourses in one or more news articles or social media posts. Interactive lectures and roundtable discussions help you prepare for the different steps in the writing process.

Course leader

L.A.S. van Efferink

Target group

▪ Strong motivation and good command of English are essential to get a pass for the course;
▪ Basic knowledge of textual analysis is recommended;
▪ Aimed at Bachelor/ Master/ PhD students in Media Studies/ Journalism/ Cultural Studies/ Linguistics/ Political Sciences/ International Relations/ Geography/ History. If in doubt, please contact Leonhardt for personal course selection advice.

Course aim

▪ Designing a framework to study discourses in (social) media, in line with your research objectives.
▪ Developing a qualitative method to conduct critical discourse analysis of media representations and select the relevant textual (and possibly visual) elements.
▪ Addressing the role of the national and ideological context in which media operate.
▪ Understanding the complexity of text-image relations and their role in meaning-making processes.
▪ Compiling a dataset for your dissertation or thesis that is manageable and relevant.

Credits info

2 EC
Maastricht Summer School awards academic credit (ECTS) for courses successfully completed during the programme. To include these credits in the curriculum of your degree, you need to obtain official approval from the responsible department at your home institution.

Upon completion of a course, the Maastricht Summer School issues a transcript. The transcript states the student’s name, student ID-number, the grade or Pass/Fail and the number of ECTS credits.

Fee info

EUR 600: This 1-week course costs €600,-.