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The Language of Risk and Vulnerability in Covering the COVID-19 Pandemic in Swedish Mass Media in 2020: Implications for the Sustainable Management of Elderly Care

Author

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  • Katarina Giritli Nygren

    (Forum for Gender Studies, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mid Sweden University, 85170 Sundsvall, Sweden)

  • Maja Klinga

    (Risk and Crisis Research Centre, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mid Sweden University, 83125 Östersund, Sweden)

  • Anna Olofsson

    (Risk and Crisis Research Centre, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mid Sweden University, 83125 Östersund, Sweden)

  • Susanna Öhman

    (Risk and Crisis Research Centre, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mid Sweden University, 83125 Östersund, Sweden)

Abstract

The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic—in terms of climate, economy and social aspects—cannot yet be fully assessed, but we can already see how the pandemic is intensifying already existing socio-economic inequalities. This applies to different population groups, particularly the elderly. In this article, our goal is to identify the linguistic constructions of elderly citizens in Swedish mass media coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 from a sociological and corpus linguistics perspective. More specifically, our aim is to explore the discursive formations of the elderly in Swedish media during the pandemic and how these formations relate to risk as well as the discursive constructions of in- and out-groups. Drawing on corpus-assisted discourse studies (CADS), inspired by discourse–historical analysis (DHA), we examine the media coverage of COVID-19 by three Swedish newspapers published during 2020: Aftonbladet , a national tabloid; Svenska Dagbladet , a national morning newspaper; and Dalademokraten , a regional morning newspaper. In this article, the news articles and their messages are considered performative to the extent that—for example, at the same time as a story is expressed—the elderly are at risk of becoming seriously ill due to COVID-19; moreover, a position of vulnerability for the elderly is simultaneously created. The result reveals that the elderly were constructed as an at-risk group, while visitors, personnel and nursing homes were constructed as being risky or a threat to the elderly.

Suggested Citation

  • Katarina Giritli Nygren & Maja Klinga & Anna Olofsson & Susanna Öhman, 2021. "The Language of Risk and Vulnerability in Covering the COVID-19 Pandemic in Swedish Mass Media in 2020: Implications for the Sustainable Management of Elderly Care," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-15, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:19:p:10533-:d:641041
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jamie K. Wardman, 2008. "The Constitution of Risk Communication in Advanced Liberal Societies," Risk Analysis, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(6), pages 1619-1637, December.
    2. Katarina Giritli Nygren & Anna Olofsson, 2020. "Managing the Covid-19 pandemic through individual responsibility: the consequences of a world risk society and enhanced ethopolitics," Journal of Risk Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(7-8), pages 1031-1035, August.
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