Context: Leading up to the March 2020 global COVID-19 lockdown, an important movement was building power across so-called Canada. What began as a continuation of the decades-long, localized struggle for self-determination in Wet’suwet’en territory quickly became a focal point for nationwide Indigenous resistance, refusal, and solidarity. Analysis: Drawing from literature on media framing, this article examines the use of war frames in early 2020 news depictions of mobilizations in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en. The analysis suggests that war frames are operationalized to simultaneously naturalize police violence while also validating the sovereignty of Indigenous nations. Conclusion and implications: This work contributes not only to the literature on the framing of protests by the mainstream media but also to the ongoing project of unsettling conditions of settler colonial power in Canadian society.
{"title":"“Invading Indigenous Territory is Not Reconciliation”: Problematizing War Frames in News Coverage of Wet’suwet’en Solidarity Actions","authors":"Rebecca Hume, Kevin Walby","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0004","url":null,"abstract":"Context: Leading up to the March 2020 global COVID-19 lockdown, an important movement was building power across so-called Canada. What began as a continuation of the decades-long, localized struggle for self-determination in Wet’suwet’en territory quickly became a focal point for nationwide Indigenous resistance, refusal, and solidarity. Analysis: Drawing from literature on media framing, this article examines the use of war frames in early 2020 news depictions of mobilizations in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en. The analysis suggests that war frames are operationalized to simultaneously naturalize police violence while also validating the sovereignty of Indigenous nations. Conclusion and implications: This work contributes not only to the literature on the framing of protests by the mainstream media but also to the ongoing project of unsettling conditions of settler colonial power in Canadian society.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139026262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-12-01DOI: 10.3138/cjc-48.4-editorial
Andrea Zeffiro
{"title":"Repetitions, Rhythms and Future Imaginaries: Currents in Canadian Communication Studies","authors":"Andrea Zeffiro","doi":"10.3138/cjc-48.4-editorial","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-48.4-editorial","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139015998","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Contexte : Les promoteurs ont tendance à avoir recours à un « modèle du déficit » qui mise sur l’expertise pour informer et convaincre les populations du bien-fondé d’un projet. Analyse : Au moyen de deux cas discutés dans le contexte québécois puis rejetés par manque d’acceptabilité sociale, nous montrons que le modèle du déficit a à chaque fois contribué à envenimer les conflits, les populations ayant réagi à cette approche en opposant une contre-expertise crédible aux discours des promoteurs. Conclusions et implications : Notre analyse nous permet de tirer des leçons qui s’appliquent à d’autres projets. La reconnaissance d’une science plurielle, pas encore consensuelle, autour des projets discutés ainsi qu’une gestion participative du risque aurait pu mener à une discussion plus féconde sur les conditions d’acceptabilité de tels projets.
{"title":"Du « modèle du déficit » au tournant participatif en communication des risques : les luttes d’expertise au cœur de l’acceptabilité sociale des projets d’exploitation des ressources naturelles","authors":"Stéphanie Yates, Justine Lalande, M. Lalancette","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0005","url":null,"abstract":"Contexte : Les promoteurs ont tendance à avoir recours à un « modèle du déficit » qui mise sur l’expertise pour informer et convaincre les populations du bien-fondé d’un projet. Analyse : Au moyen de deux cas discutés dans le contexte québécois puis rejetés par manque d’acceptabilité sociale, nous montrons que le modèle du déficit a à chaque fois contribué à envenimer les conflits, les populations ayant réagi à cette approche en opposant une contre-expertise crédible aux discours des promoteurs. Conclusions et implications : Notre analyse nous permet de tirer des leçons qui s’appliquent à d’autres projets. La reconnaissance d’une science plurielle, pas encore consensuelle, autour des projets discutés ainsi qu’une gestion participative du risque aurait pu mener à une discussion plus féconde sur les conditions d’acceptabilité de tels projets.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139014918","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: Using the term “cultural diversity” as an analytical framework and normative guideline to assess cultural flows, this article analyzes the catalogs of major platforms for subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) in Mexico and Canada. Analysis: This study systematized the catalogs’ content titles to produce statistics on country of origin as indicators of “supply diversity.” Conclusions and implications: The results reveal that (1) content from the United States and Europe predominates; (2) tech platforms offer a higher degree of international content (“external diversity”) than platforms from traditional Hollywood studios and local companies; and (3) for most platforms, local content is scarce, which could indicate lower “internal diversity.”
{"title":"Supply Diversity in Subscription Video-on-Demand Platforms in Mexico and Canada","authors":"Argelia Muñoz Larroa","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0081","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0081","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Using the term “cultural diversity” as an analytical framework and normative guideline to assess cultural flows, this article analyzes the catalogs of major platforms for subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) in Mexico and Canada. Analysis: This study systematized the catalogs’ content titles to produce statistics on country of origin as indicators of “supply diversity.” Conclusions and implications: The results reveal that (1) content from the United States and Europe predominates; (2) tech platforms offer a higher degree of international content (“external diversity”) than platforms from traditional Hollywood studios and local companies; and (3) for most platforms, local content is scarce, which could indicate lower “internal diversity.”","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139022702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: In 2023, the Canadian government passed legislation empowering the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to require streaming platforms to ensure the “discoverability” of Canadian content. These debates about discoverability provisions primarily focused on the promotion of Canadian content, with little emphasis on gender and racial equity. Analysis: Through interviews with stakeholders in the Canadian screen industry, we explore views on recommendation systems and questions of gender and race bias in streaming recommendations. Conclusion and implications: Interviews revealed concerns beyond promoting “Canadian” content that the broadcast reform initiative focuses on, including concerns about streaming recommendations’ tendencies to promote a narrow range of content and their failure to “see” and recommend content from racialized women.
{"title":"Discoverability and Algorithmic Recommendations in Video Streaming Platforms: Exploring Algorithmic Gender and Race Bias as a Canadian Broadcast Policy Concern","authors":"Fizza Kulvi, Sara Bannerman, Faiza Hirji, Manveetha Muddaluru, Emmanuel Appiah, Leandra Greenfield, Erica Rzepecki, Christine Quail","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0054","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0054","url":null,"abstract":"Background: In 2023, the Canadian government passed legislation empowering the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to require streaming platforms to ensure the “discoverability” of Canadian content. These debates about discoverability provisions primarily focused on the promotion of Canadian content, with little emphasis on gender and racial equity. Analysis: Through interviews with stakeholders in the Canadian screen industry, we explore views on recommendation systems and questions of gender and race bias in streaming recommendations. Conclusion and implications: Interviews revealed concerns beyond promoting “Canadian” content that the broadcast reform initiative focuses on, including concerns about streaming recommendations’ tendencies to promote a narrow range of content and their failure to “see” and recommend content from racialized women.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139024799","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: This case study investigates how dominant narratives and hegemonic ideals shape technological discourses in explanatory journalism. It examines dominant media frames in articles on technology, artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics in a multinational outlet for explanatory journalism. Analysis: Before and during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, media frames in articles on the aforementioned topics were analyzed to determine their prevalence and impact. Conclusions and implications: Framing robotic and AI-powered technologies shapes the perception of these technologies and of the institutional bodies surrounding them. This research explores connections and considers the initial impact of COVID-19 on the use of media frames and hegemonic narratives.
{"title":"Media Framing of Dominant Ideologies in Explanatory Journalism Concerning Artificial Intelligence and Robotics","authors":"Lauren Dwyer, Charlotte Crawford, Frauke Zeller","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0017","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0017","url":null,"abstract":"Background: This case study investigates how dominant narratives and hegemonic ideals shape technological discourses in explanatory journalism. It examines dominant media frames in articles on technology, artificial intelligence (AI), and robotics in a multinational outlet for explanatory journalism. Analysis: Before and during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, media frames in articles on the aforementioned topics were analyzed to determine their prevalence and impact. Conclusions and implications: Framing robotic and AI-powered technologies shapes the perception of these technologies and of the institutional bodies surrounding them. This research explores connections and considers the initial impact of COVID-19 on the use of media frames and hegemonic narratives.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139021061","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
David Dumouchel, Yannick Dufresne, Richard Nadeau, William Poirier
Background: This study reflects on the low adoption rate of COVID Alert, the Canadian contact-tracing application, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysis: Using data from two representative surveys conducted in Canada in 2020, this article examines how the application’s attributes and citizens’ attitudes on the sanitary crisis and on technology may have influenced the low adoption rate of COVID Alert. Conclusions and implications: The results suggest that the application design was socially acceptable, that it was seen as useful, and that it was not perceived as risky or hard to use. Contrasting this evidence with the unpopularity of COVID Alert leads to the suggestion that the barrier to greater uptake may have partly come from the inability of its developers to effectively promote the application.
{"title":"A Missed Opportunity? Making Sense of the Low Adoption Rate of <i>COVID Alert</i>, Canada’s Contact-Tracing Application","authors":"David Dumouchel, Yannick Dufresne, Richard Nadeau, William Poirier","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0055","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0055","url":null,"abstract":"Background: This study reflects on the low adoption rate of COVID Alert, the Canadian contact-tracing application, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysis: Using data from two representative surveys conducted in Canada in 2020, this article examines how the application’s attributes and citizens’ attitudes on the sanitary crisis and on technology may have influenced the low adoption rate of COVID Alert. Conclusions and implications: The results suggest that the application design was socially acceptable, that it was seen as useful, and that it was not perceived as risky or hard to use. Contrasting this evidence with the unpopularity of COVID Alert leads to the suggestion that the barrier to greater uptake may have partly come from the inability of its developers to effectively promote the application.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135735180","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background: In July 2021, in France, the hashtag “#NousSavons” (“#WeKnow”) emerged, aimed at rallying COVID skeptics on Twitter. Creating a genuine online community, this hashtag mobilized its members by having them question dominant forms of knowledge. This article examines the architecture of the discourses developed by the members of the #NousSavons community. Analysis: The analysis considers two of this community’s initiatives that supported a conspiracy-based perception of COVID-19: establishing the legitimacy of their perception of the crisis and publicizing this perception. Conclusions and implications: This article shows the diversity of evidence put forward by the community as well as the latter’s singular positioning with regard to the truth. It also analyzes the refinement of the communication practices that were implemented in order to convince members of the public sphere of the legitimacy of their viewpoint.
{"title":"#NousSavons : en mission pour dire la vérité","authors":"Axel Boursier","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0067","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0067","url":null,"abstract":"Background: In July 2021, in France, the hashtag “#NousSavons” (“#WeKnow”) emerged, aimed at rallying COVID skeptics on Twitter. Creating a genuine online community, this hashtag mobilized its members by having them question dominant forms of knowledge. This article examines the architecture of the discourses developed by the members of the #NousSavons community. Analysis: The analysis considers two of this community’s initiatives that supported a conspiracy-based perception of COVID-19: establishing the legitimacy of their perception of the crisis and publicizing this perception. Conclusions and implications: This article shows the diversity of evidence put forward by the community as well as the latter’s singular positioning with regard to the truth. It also analyzes the refinement of the communication practices that were implemented in order to convince members of the public sphere of the legitimacy of their viewpoint.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135895882","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pauline Amiel, Olivier Baisnée, Jérôme Berthaut, Cyriac Gousset, Nicolas Hubé, Peter Maurer, Cornelia Mothes, Jérémie Nollet
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed journalistic practices and media roles in France and Germany. Analysis: As part of the Journalistic Role Performance Project (JRP), 9,438 articles published in France and Germany in 2020 were analyzed to determine trends in journalistic sources and the presence of six professional roles (watchdog, loyal facilitator, interventionist disseminator, service, infotainment, and civic) in news coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions and implications: Professional roles in French and German media production are similar despite the countries having distinct media systems. However, notable differences exist in terms of journalistic practices. German media are characterized by the use of sources to justify institutional decisions. In contrast, French journalistic content is less politicized with a focus on “health” sources.
{"title":"Permanences and Mutations in the French and German Media Systems during the COVID-19 Pandemic","authors":"Pauline Amiel, Olivier Baisnée, Jérôme Berthaut, Cyriac Gousset, Nicolas Hubé, Peter Maurer, Cornelia Mothes, Jérémie Nollet","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0057","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0057","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed journalistic practices and media roles in France and Germany. Analysis: As part of the Journalistic Role Performance Project (JRP), 9,438 articles published in France and Germany in 2020 were analyzed to determine trends in journalistic sources and the presence of six professional roles (watchdog, loyal facilitator, interventionist disseminator, service, infotainment, and civic) in news coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions and implications: Professional roles in French and German media production are similar despite the countries having distinct media systems. However, notable differences exist in terms of journalistic practices. German media are characterized by the use of sources to justify institutional decisions. In contrast, French journalistic content is less politicized with a focus on “health” sources.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135738140","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Victor Piaia, Sabrina Almeida, Tatiana Dourado, Marcela Canavarro, Dalby Dienstbach, Maria Sirleidy Cordeiro, Lucas Roberto da Silva, Danilo Carvalho
Background: This article looks at discourses using alleged scientific sources to support or oppose political positions on the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Analysis: The authors analyzed more than 3.3 million tweets, sorted according to linguistic rules, from a broader database of tweets related to the pandemic. The focus of this analysis was tweets containing affirmations, allusions, or questionings allegedly referring to scientific studies and hypotheses or authoritative sources in order to legitimize a position as being based on scientific truth. Conclusion and implication: The study shows that scientific sources are largely mobilized in networks of information and disinformation and are heavily present in a vast proportion of anti-science and negationist arguments.
{"title":"Science For All? Relating Actors, Links, and Discourses with (Fake) Scientific Claims About COVID-19 on Twitter","authors":"Victor Piaia, Sabrina Almeida, Tatiana Dourado, Marcela Canavarro, Dalby Dienstbach, Maria Sirleidy Cordeiro, Lucas Roberto da Silva, Danilo Carvalho","doi":"10.3138/cjc-2022-0060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3138/cjc-2022-0060","url":null,"abstract":"Background: This article looks at discourses using alleged scientific sources to support or oppose political positions on the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Analysis: The authors analyzed more than 3.3 million tweets, sorted according to linguistic rules, from a broader database of tweets related to the pandemic. The focus of this analysis was tweets containing affirmations, allusions, or questionings allegedly referring to scientific studies and hypotheses or authoritative sources in order to legitimize a position as being based on scientific truth. Conclusion and implication: The study shows that scientific sources are largely mobilized in networks of information and disinformation and are heavily present in a vast proportion of anti-science and negationist arguments.","PeriodicalId":45663,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Journal of Communication","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135738115","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}