VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY DANOL COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES POSTGRADUATE DEPARTMENT NGUYEN THU TRANG A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF CNN ONLINE AND BBC ONLINE NEWS ON BELJING OLYMPICS 2008 (PHÂN TÍCH DIỄN 'NGÔN PIÊ PHÁN TIN TỨC TRUYEN THONG VE OLYMPICS BAC KINTI 2008 TREN BAO ĐIỆN TU CNN VA BBC) M. minor thesis Field: English Linguistics Code: 60 22 15 HANOT, 2009 iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. it LIST OF TABLES. Rationale of the study T1 1.
dims and objectives of the study: 2 1. Scape of the siMẩy.ìàc cà cSiceeereee 2 1. Methods of the study 3 4. Design of the study 3 Chapter Il.
Critical Discourse Analysis 4 2. What is Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)2. The history of CDA. Critical, ideology and power 4 2.24 review of media news discourse XiẪïÈ3.3, Systematic fimetional granmuur and ils role itt CDA.
£0 Chapter HI: A Critical Discourse Analysis of CNN Online and BBC Online News on Beijing Olympics 2008. Content and presentation analysis.1, Llighlighted topies an 15 3. The use of pichures and videos 18 3.1, Use of neutral referring expressions for the event 22 3. Use positive references lo indicate the Gia 2 3.dn analysis of two sample t0X13 sososcvseumenenennnuniaeienmnmvmnvunnenen sn 23 3.1, Syntactic sirtcture analysis 23 3.1 The usc of transitive and intransitive scnlenees 23 3.
The use of active and passive voices. Suggestions for tết! SIMẨN ào. ĩ among other things, which discourse analysts conduct researches in solidarity and cooperation with dominated groups 2. The history of CDA.
In the Yate 19708, Crifival Lingnisties (CL) was dovelopod by # group of linguists and literary theorists at the Univers y of Fast, Anglia (Fowtcr of. al, 1979; Kross & Hodge, 1979), ‘Their approach was hased on Halliday's Systemic Funetional Linguistics (SFL). CL praclitioners such as Trew (1979a, p. 155) aimed al “isolaling ideology in discourse" and showing “how ideology and ideological processes are manifested as systems of linguistic characteristics and processes,” This aim was pursued by developing CL's analytical tools (Fowler et al., 1979: Fowler, 1991) based on SIL.
Following [Jalliday, these CL practitioners view language in use as. simultancously performing thice functions: idcational, interpersonal, and textual fimctions. According to Fowler (1994, p. 71), and Fairclough (1995b, p, 25), whereas the ideational function refers to the experience of the speakers of the world and its phenomena, the interpersonal function cmbadiss the inscrtion of speakers’ own altitudes and ovaluations aboul.
the phenomena in question, and establishing a relationshup between speakers and listeners Instrumental to these two functions is the textual function. It is through the textual function of tanguage that speakers are able to produce texts that are understood by listeners. Tis an enabling fimetion comecling discourse to the co-text and corelext in which it occurs. Halliday's view of language as @ "social act" is conual to many of CDA's practitioners (Chouliaraki & Fairclough, 1999; Fairclough, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1995b, 1995a; Fowler et al, 1979; Fowler, 1991: Llodge de Kress, 1979).
According to Vowler et al. (1979), CL, like sociolinguistics, asscrts that, "there arc strong and pervasive conneetions bctw: on linguistic structure and social structure" (p. However, whereas in sociolinguistics “the concepts ‘language’ and ‘society’ are divided.so that one is forced to talk of ‘links between the two", for CL "language is an integral part of social process" (Fowler ct al. 189) LIST OF TABLES Table 1.
Summary of process types (adapted from Ilalliday, 1994) Table 2: Topics focused in BBC online Table 3: Topics focused in CNN online ‘Table 4: Wording of competition fields in headlines of BBC online and CNN online Table S. References to Olympics Beijing 2008 in BBC and CNN online ‘Table 6. Number of transitive and intransitive sentences in two sample texts Table 7. Active and passive voices used in BBC and CNN texts Table 8.
Passive clauses found in the BBC article “Beijing bids farewell to Olympics” Table 9. Passive clauses found in the CNN article “Grand spectacle closes Beijing’s Olympics” Table 10, Conjunctions used in BBC article “Beijing bids farewell to Olympics” Table 11. Conjunctions used in “Grand spectacle closes Beijing's Olympics” of CNN Table 12. Referring words/phrases used in BBC article “Beijing bids farewell to Olympics” ‘Table 13, Referring words/phrases used in “Grand spectacle closes Beijing’s Olympies” of CNN Table 14, Analysis of transitivity used in BBC lex Table 15, Andlysis of transitivity used in CNN text Table 16: Summary of transitivity analysis data Chapter IT.1 Critical Discourse Analysis 2.1, What is Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)? Critical discourse analysis (CDA) is a type of discourse analytical research that primarily studies the way sovial power abusc, dominance, and incqualily are enacted, raproduced, and resisted by text and talk in thc social and political context, With such dissident research, critical discourse analysts take explicit position, and thus want to understand, expose, and ultinmlely resist social inequalily.
Some of the leneis of CDA cam already be found in the critical theory of the Frankfint School before the Second World War (Agger 19926). Its current focus on language and discourse was initiated with the "oritical linguistics" thai ernergsd (rnoslly in the UE and Australia) at the end of the 1970s (Fowler at al. 1979), CDA has also counterparts in “critical” developments in sociolinguistics, psychology, and the social sciences, some already dating back to the early 1970s. As is the case in these neighboring disciplines, CDA may he scan asa reuction against the daminant formal (oflen "asooial" or “umentical”) paratkigms of the 1960s and 1970s, CDA is not so much a dircction, school, or specialization next to the many other "approaches" in discourse studies.
Rather, it aims to offer a different "mode" or *perspeclive" of theorizing, aralysis, arel application throughoul the whots fistd. We may find 2 more or less critical perspective im such diverse arcas as pragmatics, conversation analysis, narrative analysis, rhetoric, stylistics, soviolingnisties, ethnography, or media analysis, among others Crucial for critical discourse analysts is the explicit awareness of their role in society. Continuing a tradition that rejects the possibilily ofa “valus-free" science, they argue thal science, and especially scholarly discourse, are inherently part of and influenced by social structure, and produced in social interaction. Instead of denying or ignoring such a relation bolwoon scholarship and socicty, they plend that such relations be studied and accounted for in their own tight, and that scholarly practices be based on such insights.
Theory formation, description, and explanation, also in discourse analysis, are socio-politically “situated,” whelhar we like it or nol, Reflsction on the rokz of scholars in socicty and the polity thus becomes an inherent part of the discourse analytical enterprise. This may mean, Chapter I. Introduction 11 Rationale of the study ‘The Beijing Olympics 2008, which took place fiom the 8th August to 24th August 2008 in China, is one of the most successful Olympic Games which won great approval from the inedia world, With a total of 11,468 athletes ftom 204 countries and regions, aboul 100,000 Olympic voluntccrs, 400,000 city vohuntccrs, and 1 million social volunteers, Beijing saw the largest number of female athletes competing in the history of the Games. As the NBC Universal assesses, the Beijing Olympics is the most-watched U.
television cvoul of all lime. More tum 220 iclevision azencics and over 25,000 journulists covered the event. The IOC site logged 5 million clicks during the entire process of the Beijing Games, whereas it logged 2.8 million clicks during the Athens Olympics. More than 80 heads of states and governments participated in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games.
About 80 percent of the people in China and aboul. half of the people in the United States and Europe watched the opening ceremony on television This was a record nuuuber. Few other events have received so much attention. The closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics recewed wide coverage by most U.
media outlets, with many praising the Games as the most memorable summer Olympics. It was described as "the mosl memorable Olympics ever.” Ina picce tilled "Truly exceptional Games," NBC said the Beijing Olympies made history “in virtually every regard. media outlets heaped praises on the Chinese volunteers at the Beijing Games; the Los Angeles ‘limes praised the Chinese volunteers for their friendhiness and efficiency. BBC (The British Broadcasting Corporation) and CNN (Cable News Network) are the world's largest broadcasters which are very familiar with English users.
BBC has bases or correspondents in more than 200 countries and, as officially surveyed, is available to more than 274 million households, Ihough also possibly far more individual persous and groups tham smveys can gather, and iL is the oldest surviving entity of ils kind and is more widely known internationally than any other news organization As of Junz 2008, CNN is available in over 93 million U. Broadcast coverage extends to over 890,000 Chapter IT.1 Critical Discourse Analysis 2.1, What is Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)? Critical discourse analysis (CDA) is a type of discourse analytical research that primarily studies the way sovial power abusc, dominance, and incqualily are enacted, raproduced, and resisted by text and talk in thc social and political context, With such dissident research, critical discourse analysts take explicit position, and thus want to understand, expose, and ultinmlely resist social inequalily. Some of the leneis of CDA cam already be found in the critical theory of the Frankfint School before the Second World War (Agger 19926). Its current focus on language and discourse was initiated with the "oritical linguistics" thai ernergsd (rnoslly in the UE and Australia) at the end of the 1970s (Fowler at al.
1979), CDA has also counterparts in “critical” developments in sociolinguistics, psychology, and the social sciences, some already dating back to the early 1970s. As is the case in these neighboring disciplines, CDA may he scan asa reuction against the daminant formal (oflen "asooial" or “umentical”) paratkigms of the 1960s and 1970s, CDA is not so much a dircction, school, or specialization next to the many other "approaches" in discourse studies. Rather, it aims to offer a different "mode" or *perspeclive" of theorizing, aralysis, arel application throughoul the whots fistd. We may find 2 more or less critical perspective im such diverse arcas as pragmatics, conversation analysis, narrative analysis, rhetoric, stylistics, soviolingnisties, ethnography, or media analysis, among others Crucial for critical discourse analysts is the explicit awareness of their role in society.
Continuing a tradition that rejects the possibilily ofa “valus-free" science, they argue thal science, and especially scholarly discourse, are inherently part of and influenced by social structure, and produced in social interaction. Instead of denying or ignoring such a relation bolwoon scholarship and socicty, they plend that such relations be studied and accounted for in their own tight, and that scholarly practices be based on such insights. Theory formation, description, and explanation, also in discourse analysis, are socio-politically “situated,” whelhar we like it or nol, Reflsction on the rokz of scholars in socicty and the polity thus becomes an inherent part of the discourse analytical enterprise. This may mean, Another central assumption of CDA and SIL is that speakers make choices regarding vocabulary and graromar, and that the choi are consciously or angonscio lý “principled and systematic"(Fowler et al.
‘Thus choices are ideologically based. According to Fowler et al. (1979), the “relation between form and content is not arbilrary or conventional, bul. form signifies conlent".
Tn sum, language is a sovial act and it is ideologically driven. Further development of CDA Over the years CL and what recently is more ficquently referred to as CDA (Chouliaraki & Fairclough, 1999; van Dijk, 1998a) has been further developed and broadened, Recent work has raised some concerns with the earlier work in CL. Among (he concerns was, first, taking into consideration the role of audiences and their interpretations of discourse possibly different ftom that of the discourse analyst. ‘The second concern has called for troadening the scope of analysis beyond the textual, extending i to the inlorlextual analysis, Fairclough (1995b) has raised both issues.
