Framing labour migration as a social problem on Russian Telegram

Abstract

The paper upholds the problem of the discursive representation of the migrant workers from Central Asia and Transcaucasia on Telegram. The premise is that social problems become more ‘salient’ in discourse due to framing. The objective of the research is to identify frames interpreting labour migration, explain how telegrammers generate meanings about the outgroups and what frames contribute to the problematization of the social issue. The study focuses on the mechanisms by which the ethnic groups are presented to the subscribers. A cognitive-discursive approach is claimed central as it enables the author to concentrate on the cultural, social, cognitive and linguistic aspects of the phenomenon. The deductive approach to systematizing frames is prioritized. To gain understanding of the foci of the frames in the context of labour migration debate the discourse analysis and the frame analysis are employed. The paper presents a case study based on the relevant posts published on Telegram between 2019 and 2023. The results show that on the generic level framing of labour migration activates the Law and Order macro frame. On the issue-specific level the frames of a higher degree of precision problematize the social issue in the aspects of crimes and delinquencies committed by the migrant workers, and crimes committed by the locals in relation to the ongoing economic situation. In the Russian Telegram discourse, framing specifies the image of the migrants, bringing to the fore their collective criminal activity and fatal threat to the citizens. The most prominent foci of the frames are analyzed on the contextual level. Negative presentation of the migrants has been revealed as the leading discursive strategy that ‘cements’ pejorative stereotypes about the ethnic groups they belong to. The findings contribute to Discourse studies and could be used to tackle the problems of migrant adaptation.