Mismanagement, Mistrust and Missed Opportunities: a study of The Economist’s coverage of Bulgaria’s post-accession problems and place in international affairs
Author: Kalina Bratanova
Abstract
Summary:
The object of this study is The Economist’s coverage of Bulgaria and its role in international affairs in a period following the country’s accession to the EU (2007-2011). The discourse strategies applied in newspaper’s commentaries are the subject of this paper, which holds the view The Economist has consciously sought for and purposefully selected certain strategies to construct Bulgaria’s image of a country of mistrust and missed opportunities. The analysis employs the tools of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) in an attempt to reveal the hidden mechanisms of manipulation or persuasion through which The Economist reinforces the country’s image, which can be attributed to the newspaper’s ideologies as well as those of its presumed readership.