108. Name: Hesham Moustafa Title: Representation in War Reporting: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Al Jazeera and the BBC Web-based English News Coverage of the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War Institution: Lancaster University Country: United Kingdom Date: 2013 Language: English Abstract: This study aims to explore web-based news reports by the BBC and Al Jazeera relating to the reporting of the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war, with a view to discovering any significant representation of the selected event. By conducting a linguistic analysis of the selected news texts in the light of the socio-political and historical context of these texts and of the covered event, this study presents findings concerning the ways different news outlets can offer varying representations of the same event by employing varying textual structures. Analysis of Al Jazeera and the BBC reveals contrasting representations in the two news outlets reporting on the 2006 war. The similarities in the representation of the covered war reflect the news outlets endeavor to adhere to journalistic values. The factual style of hard news reporting and considerations of the targeted audience, leave limited potential for partial or unbiased coverage of events. The discerned differences highlight the ways in which varying political positions and ideologies can shape news reporting and the ways in which differences in ownership and source of revenue affect editorial freedom and professional journalistic reporting.
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