The concept of symbolic power as a resource for understanding the political dimension of the mass media: towards a possible articulation between the proposals of Pierre Bourdieu and John B. Thompson

Abstract

This article analyses the concept of symbolic power made by authors such as Pierre Bourdieu and John B. Thompson, among others, to propose a possible joint articulation in tribute to a complex understanding of the political role that the mass media play in the public sphere. The considerations made by these authors can help to explain the position of the media in the development of symbolic struggles in specific sociohistorical contexts while also promoting a more accurate definition of the multiple tensions in one’s everyday ac.