Author: Gwenaëlle Bauvois
When mainstream media reports on the viewpoints of anti-immigration and anti-vaxx groups, they grapple with responsibly and ethically presenting these perspectives while also avoiding undue amplification of their extreme messages.
Examining the consequences of mainstream media coverage of radical groups, as well of far right politicians, is certainly not a recent occurrence. As far back as the early 2000s, scholars were already analysing the impact of traditional media coverage in legitimising these actors and their actions. Additionally, journalists have long been reflecting on this crucial issue and interrogating their own practices when covering radical groups.
The ‘what’ and the ‘how’ of reporting
The central concerns revolve around both what is being reported and how it is being reported. What is being chosen to be reported can of course shape the reader’s perspectives and emotions regarding a specific subject. More importantly, we need to interrogate how certain actors – anti-immigrationists, anti vaxxers, far right politicians and radical right figures – are being reported, especially how often, how much and how positively or negatively.
This last point is particularly crucial: mainstream coverage of extreme actors is overwhelmingly unfavourable, yet this coverage can sometimes appear disproportionate, creating a magnifying glass effect. For instance during the 2015 -16 ‘refugee crisis’, anti-immigration groups – such as the Finnish street patrolling group Soldiers of Odin – attracted considerable media attention in Finland and abroad. Even though the mainstream media shone a negative light on this group, this extensive coverage contributed to move their vigilantism activities from the margins to international attention, leading to the creation of numerous chapters abroad. Without this spotlight, the Soldiers of Odin might have remained relatively confidential, confined to their local towns and marginal social media platforms.
Similarly, during the Covid-19 pandemic, anti-vaxx groups and their leading figures received extensive mainstream media coverage. This is particularly observable in Finland where anti vaxx movements – both Finnish and international – were heavily reported on. The Finnish anti vaxx movement attracted a lot of media attention during the pandemic, especially in the Swedish-speaking regional press. This extensive reporting granted a raised public profile to anti vaxxers in regions where prior to the pandemic, vaccination rates were already lower than in other parts of the country and where the anti vaxx movement was already well-established. The increased public visibility of extreme actors can contribute to a heightened perception of their significance among the general public. The more powerful the media projection, the more it enhances the perceived credibility of these actors and movements.
Here lies the main paradox: the media’s ethical imperative is to report on potentially dangerous movements and its duty is to inform the general public about important societal issues. However, even when this coverage is ethical and critical towards extremism, it can inadvertently amplify extreme voices.
Gwenaëlle Bauvois holds a PhD in sociology and works as a researcher at the University of Helsinki (Aleksanteri Institute). She has conducted research in diverse projects on e.g. post-truth politics; radical right movements; hybrid media and right-wing populism in different national contexts. As a visiting scholar at Stanford University (2023), she studied conspiracy theories in the USA. She is currently working in the Horizon project Analysis and Responses to Extremist Narratives (ARENAS).
References:
Bauvois, G (2023, July 25). The Vaccine Fighters. The normalisation of the anti-vaxx discourse in Finnish mainstream media. DiscourseNet (International Association for Discourse Studies) Congress. University of Valencia.
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Pyrhönen, N, Bauvois, G & Rosenström, S. (2021). Soldiers of Odin as Peril or Protection? Hybrid Mediatization of Oppositional Framings on Anti-Immigration Responses to the ‘Refugee Crisis’, Nordiques. https://doi.org/10.4000/nordiques.1464
