Abstract
ABSTRACTThis article analyses vox pops in British television news programmes during the 2016 EU referendum. It is informed by a data set of 383 vox pops across the three main terrestrial TV news programmes: the BBC and ITV’s News at Ten and Channel 4 News. A quantitative overview confirms two points made by [Greg Myers (2004). Matters of opinion: Talking about public issues. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, namely that in vox pops the majority of respondents are anonymous, and their exchanges with journalists are minimal. However the argument here is that it is not appropriate simply to criticise vox pops as inadequate forms of political expression; rather a qualitative discourse analysis focuses on their use as illustrations in journalistic narratives, informed by changing news agendas. In the EU referendum, this often involved visits to provincial locations where the majority of respondents were Leave voters; and it culminated in visits to the communities of Brexit voters which can be seen as paradoxical. On the one hand they illustrated the cultural distance of these voters from the metropolitan elite; but on the other they gave voice to a populist political rhetoric widely reproduced in the Brexit public sphere.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
