A Critical Discourse Analysis of the Representation of the Russian-Turkish Conflict in Western and Arab Newspapers: An Appraisal Model

Abstract

News articles vary considerably in ideological perspective depending on the type and the stance of the newspaper. The present study employs CDA approach with a view of assessing the Western and Arab newspaper articles motivated by a specific ideology with regard to the ongoing conflict between Turkey and Russia after the downing of the Russian Su-24 on 24 November 2015. It aims at showing how the portrayal of the Self and Other reveal the hidden ideologies of these newspapers. Additionally, the present study aims to explore the evaluative stances and attitudinal positioning of Western and Arab newspapers. The study draws on Van Dijk’s (1998) ideological square of positive Self-presentation and negative Other – presentation to clarify different views and ideologies. The Appraisal model is the linguistic framework employed in the current study at both qualitative and quantitative levels. The data comprises of 68 articles taken from Western newspapers and news agencies and 30 news report from the Arab newspapers. The findings of the analysis in both Arab and Western Newspapers indicate that the number of judgmental resources exceeds that of affectual resources in both Western and the Arab newspapers. This means there is an emphasis on constructing an ideology that appeals to the readers’ moral and social rather than emotional aspects that invites the readers' sympathy.