A substantial body of literature exists on the media representation of migration across various geographical contexts. However, except for a few projects and papers focusing on discursive perspectives on migration outside the West, there is a predominant concentration on Western countries and the contemporary period. The aim of this paper is, therefore, to explore the often overlooked perspective of Migration Discourse originating from African countries, typically considered as countries of origin. By analyzing how countries of origin present migration discursively, this study seeks to illuminate an underrepresented aspect: how migrants are perceived by their countries of origin. Using a corpus-assisted discourse approach, the present study analyses a 1.8 million-word corpus (2015–2020) from major Nigerian newspapers. Findings reveal a focus on immigration and intra-African mobility, with limited attention to emigration. The most frequent metaphorical frames—WATER and OBJECTS—portray migrants as dehumanised masses or burdens, mirroring Western media patterns. In contrast, the more humanising TRAVEL frame appears rarely. These results suggest that Nigerian media reproduces global discursive patterns while also reflecting local migration dynamics.
Discursive perspectives from the Global South: the representation of immigrants and emigrants in Nigerian newspaper discourse.
Dario Del Fante
In corso di stampa
Abstract
A substantial body of literature exists on the media representation of migration across various geographical contexts. However, except for a few projects and papers focusing on discursive perspectives on migration outside the West, there is a predominant concentration on Western countries and the contemporary period. The aim of this paper is, therefore, to explore the often overlooked perspective of Migration Discourse originating from African countries, typically considered as countries of origin. By analyzing how countries of origin present migration discursively, this study seeks to illuminate an underrepresented aspect: how migrants are perceived by their countries of origin. Using a corpus-assisted discourse approach, the present study analyses a 1.8 million-word corpus (2015–2020) from major Nigerian newspapers. Findings reveal a focus on immigration and intra-African mobility, with limited attention to emigration. The most frequent metaphorical frames—WATER and OBJECTS—portray migrants as dehumanised masses or burdens, mirroring Western media patterns. In contrast, the more humanising TRAVEL frame appears rarely. These results suggest that Nigerian media reproduces global discursive patterns while also reflecting local migration dynamics.I documenti in SFERA sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
