Discursive de/humanizing: A multimodal critical discourse analysis of television news representations of undocumented youth

Abstract

This article addresses television news coverage of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act of 2010, which would have created a path to legal residency for thousands of undocumented immigrants in the United States. Considering the role that news media play in socially constructing groups of people, through an analysis of English- and Spanish-language evening television news coverage of the DREAM Act of 2010, the author examined discursive practices used to represent undocumented youth in both dehumanizing and humanizing ways. The author discusses the implications of these types of discourses for education policy understanding by the public and education stakeholders.

(Un)deserving Mexican activists: How online news media during the Trump era (un)justly represents undocumented students in higher education across differing state contexts.

“…Furthermore, the findings align with previous literature that have highlighted the discourse around undocumented students as “young” (López, 2020; Patler & Gonzales, 2015; Pérez Huber, 2015). The notions of undocumented students being described as “young” creates a narrative of infantilization that undocumented students may be treated as if they are not capable or even allowed of making their own decisions (Nicholls, 2013; Pérez Huber, 2015).…”

“…Researchers analyze various forms of mass communication mediums related to undocumented students in higher education. These means of communication include federal and state policy texts, published statements by politicians and higher education administrators, and print and televised news media (Alemán & Alemán, 2013; Gildersleeve, 2017; López, 2020; Patler & Gonzales, 2015; Pérez Huber, 2015; Rodriguez, 2018; Serrano et al, 2018). Research has found that the way undocumented immigrants are framed can influence the public perception of the undocumented immigrant population, which can influence public policies.…”

“…Growing out of advocacy for the Dream Act, legislation that would provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, the Dreamer narrative focuses on stories of high-achieving undocumented youth who were denied entrance to college because of their legal status (Gonzales, 2016; Nicholls, 2013). The news describes youth who fit the Dreamer profile in particularly nonthreatening language such as “‘young immigrants,’ ‘youngsters,’ and ‘students’” (Pérez Huber, 2015, p. 26) or “jóvenes” and “estudiantes” (López, 2020, pp. 14–15; Patler & Gonzales, 2015).…”

“…“Undeserving” immigrants are often parents of undocumented children and/or workers. López (2020), Gildersleeve (2017), and Pérez Huber (2015) found that media messaging can perpetuate anti-immigrant ideologies by presenting undocumented immigrants as “illegals” and “aliens” who are a threat to society. The social construction of “illegality” is dangerous because it can lead to harassment, bullying, detention, and/or deportation that not only impacts undocumented immigrants but people of color more broadly (Menjívar & Kanstroom, 2014).…”

Examining the Undocumented College Student Policy Implementation Environment Through a Contextual Interaction Theory Lens

“…Extant literature suggests wider sociocultural and sociopolitical contexts are particularly powerful influences (Flores & Oseguera, 2009; Nguyen, 2019; Nienhusser, 2015) as undocumented students’ access to higher education is often highly politicized and divisively presented in mass media (López, 2020). Concerns in public discourse and national debates can also shape institutional policy implementation landscapes (Chase, 2016; Huisman & Currie, 2004; Mills & Hyle, 2001) by serving as issue frames, or how conditions and events in society come to be understood (Reich & Barth, 2010).…”