Analyzing the Discourse of Political News in Persian and English Newspapers: A CDA Perspective

Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), as one of the most significant approaches to the analysis of discourse, has also contributed to media discourse analysis in the past decades. Thus, given the importance of the critical analysis of newspapers, the present study aimed at analyzing the content of twenty seven samples of newspapers published between March and April 2015 from a CDA perspective. The newspapers were selected from three different types: Persian newspapers published in Iran (Hamshahri and Iran), English newspapers published in Iran (Tehran Times and Iran Daily) and English newspapers published in the United States of America (New York Times and Wall Street Journal). Then, those pieces of news which were about the ISIS group were selected. To analyze them critically, Fairclough’s (1995, 2000, 2003) model was applied; three dimensions in every discursive event were considered: text, discursive practice (i.e., the production and interpretation of texts, and the reflection of power and identity through the selection of words), and social practice (or social relations). The results indicated that the newspapers published in Iran, either in English or Persian, selected more harsh words, implying I.R. Iran’s power against the ISIS. These types of newspapers also used more active words, indicating that the reporters and the writers of the Iranian newspapers dared to directly report the information about the ISIS group. On the other hand, English newspapers published outside Iran tend to hide some aspects of the ISIS news. The analysis of the Persian-speaking and English-speaking readers’ comments on the news they read also revealed that the selection of words in English newspapers published outside Iran has let the readers reflect upon the event(s) and come to a conclusion themselves.