Bias much?: Hugo Chavez media portrayal during the presidential election of 2012.

Abstract

This is a study in International Relations with the definition of International Relations as being how we understand what happens and even how we come to define some international events as more worthy of coverage than other. The aim of the study is to examine the portrayal of Hugo Chavez in the media agencies during his run for re-election in 2012 and a short period thereafter, 23rd of September until 14th of October. In this we ask; How is Hugo Chavez portrayed in the media selected during and after his election campaign and victory of 2012? Did the chosen media show any bias or tendency in its reporting of this and how can this be explained? This study hopes to give a deeper understanding of how hegemonic ideological discourse. The media is represented by five different news agencies and is analyzed with the help of an qualitative analytical model created by the author and an critical discourse analysis inspired by Teun Adrianus van Dijk and Norman Fairclough. The study concentrates on how the neoliberal hegemony is reproduced within these news agencies reporting. The neoliberal discourse was present in all news agencies and only one of the news agencies managed to remain somewhat close to unbiased in their reporting. This gives reason for consumers of media to be concerned by what is said in the media and especially by who and for what reasons.