Identitary Frames and Political Discourse about Immigration in the Spanish Press during the April 2019 General Elections

Abstract

This work studies political discourses on immigration from a sample of eight national and regional Spanish newspapers during the month previous to the general elections celebrated on April 28, 2019. The aim is to analyse the discourses stated by different political actors, paying special attention to the main framings in which media and its sources focus their messages. In order to study the content of the selected pieces, identity framings have been used to label the analysis units depending on their proactive, reactive or neutral vision of immigration. According to this analysis discourses on the matter seem to have favoured more reactive positions, especially in centre-right parties, probably derived from the greater presence in media of the party Vox, as this issue has become their rallying cry. By comparing national and regional newspapers there seems to be some nuances which tend to fit with their editorial lines, rather than their scope of dissemination.