The intricate construction of projection in news reports

Abstract

This paper looks at projection in the discourse of news reports in English and Spanish. The analysis reveals the extent to which projection pervades these texts, not only at clause complex level – the traditional object of study of projection – but also below the clause complex, at clause simple and at group level. The discussion of a number of examples from English and Spanish news reports serves to answer the three research questions guiding this research, which concern (a) the preferred types of projection in news reports, (b) the preferred realizations of the different types of projection in news reports, and (c) the main cross-linguistic similarities and contrasts of projection in news reports. The answers to these issues ultimately contribute to a broader understanding of the concept of projection.