Discourse & Society current issue

Discourse and striving for power: an analysis of Barisan Nasional's 2004 Malaysian general election manifesto

Aman, I. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

This study analyses the political party of Barisan Nasional's victory in the llth Malaysian general election 2004, looking at the way it manipulated and utilized language or discourse in order to retain and gain political power. Using a critical discourse analysis framework, this article holds that discourse is able to portray social practices, such as the striving for political power. This study also holds that political-power striving is a part of the organization's discourse management. The discourse chosen for this study is the Barisan Nasional's 2004 general election manifesto. The finding shows that the striving for political power by Barisan Nasional is manifested through textual features and discursive properties of discourse. The discursive properties are shown by certain processes in the production, distribution, consumption, force of utterances, and semiotic aspect of the discourse. The textual aspects of the discourse, on the other hand, are shown by certain features of grammar, vocabulary, and the generic structure tenet of the discourse.

Defending whiteness indirectly: a synthetic approach to race discourse analysis

Foster, J. D. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

This article examines the discursive method utilized by a sample of white college students in the United States when engaging in racetalk. Findings reveal myriad contradictions within their responses. It is suggested that these contradictions are not coincidental; rather, they serve two important functions for the speakers: first, they aid the interlocutors in their impression management (i.e. their image of a non racist); and second, the rationalization of the racial order. Utilizing an integrative approach, it is argued that this form of racetalk, whether intentionally or unintentionally, defends the white racial frame. This racetalk allows respondents to (1) project blame onto nonwhite Americans for race problems in US society, and (2) acknowledge racial difference only in contexts in which it favors whites.

'Excusing the inexcusable': justifying injustice in Nelson's Sorry speech

Hastie, B. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

Political discourses reflect and shape public constructions of past and present events, and social ‘problems’. This article examines how Australia’s Opposition Leader, Brendan Nelson, worked to undermine the attempted reconstruction of the past by the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, through a political apology designed to recognize injustice and reframe the ‘problem’ of Indigenous Australians. This is achieved through two strategies: (1) mitigating blame of those involved in removal of children; and (2) ascribing blame for the current circumstances of some Indigenous peoples to recent events. A number of discursive strategies are drawn upon to accomplish this, allowing Nelson to be seen to apologize, while at the same time justifying the injustices experienced by Indigenous peoples in the past and the present. This research adds to our knowledge of the ways in which resistance to redefinitions of the past are accomplished, by denying Indigenous peoples’ sovereignty and excluding explanations for current disadvantage grounded in the ongoing colonial project.

Argumentation, metadiscourse and social cognition: organizing knowledge in political communication

Martinez Guillem, S. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

The present article attempts to contribute to a multidisciplinary approach to communication phenomena that emphasizes the interplay among cognition, discourse and society. I propose an examination of the role that these three elements play in argumentation and meta-discourse as a useful starting point for understanding, first, how arguments are formed and second, the role that meta-discursive devices play in this process. In the first two sections I conduct a brief review of literature on the concepts of argumentation and meta-discourse to show how a socio-cognitive approach can enlighten our understanding of both. This model is then applied in the analysis section to look at a plenary session at the European Parliament. I conduct a socio-cognitive discourse analysis, based on which I identify different relevant paths followed by speakers when constructing arguments: (re)framings, (re)definitions, quotations and references to previous events. The findings demonstrate how the different levels of meta-discourse — intra-textual, inter-textual and contextual — are equally relevant for argumentative communication. Through meta-discourse, speakers invoke knowledge about both the ongoing interaction and other past or future communicative events. These other discourses, however, are not only constituted by the actual words uttered, but they encompass the context and situation models (Van Dijk and Kintsch, 1983) that allow participants to make sense of them.

Language and ideology: gender stereotypes of female and male artists in Taiwanese tabloids

Wang, H.-C. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

This study adopts the Critical Discourse Analysis approach in order to examine gender stereotypes in Taiwanese tabloid culture. Focusing on a gossip-filled entertainment column in a tabloid, this study collected 111 news reports released in May 2008. All news entries were probed to discern pervading gender stereotypes held regarding female and male artists. A subsequent online survey investigated any stereotypical depictions that had been identified. Administered to 120 respondents, this survey attempted to evaluate how representative views held throughout society were pervading gender stereotypes in media discourse. Results showed that female artists, as portrayed in the tabloids, were commonly associated with belligerence, money worship, and social pressures with respect to marriage and sexuality. By contrast, portrayals of male artists focused on personal defects in physical appearance and love affairs, and invariably involved manipulation of how the private lives of these artists were viewed. Most stereotypical depictions were further shown to be highly defined beliefs shared among the survey respondents. This article concludes with a discussion on the close-knit nature of tabloid culture and social ideology.

Book review: LOUISE MULLANY, Gendered Discourse in the Professional Workplace. Basingstoke, Hampshire and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007. xii+236pp. CECILIA E. FORD, Women Speaking Up: Getting and Using Turns in Workplace Meetings. Basingstoke, Hampshire and New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. xi + 202 pp

de Silva Joyce, H. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

Book Review: RUTH WODAK and MICHAL KRZYZANOWSKI (eds), Qualitative Discourse Analysis in the Social Sciences. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. xi+216pp

Lischinsky, A. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT

Book Review: ANNELIES VERDOOLAEGE, Reconciliation Discourse: The Case of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 2008. x ii + 192 pp

Leonard, D. J. — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:36:26 PDT