Ideological Constructs and Discursive Strategies in Arab English-Language Online Newspapers: A Critical Discourse Analysis

Subject Areas :

Hikmet Khaleel Talib Al-Shibban ¹ , Bahram Hadian ² , salih Mahdi Adai Al-Mamoory ³ , Atefesadat Mirsaeedi ⁴

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Received: 2024-07-17 Accepted : 2024-09-26 Published : 2025-09-15

Keywords: Critical Discourse Analysis, Ideology, Discursive Strategies, Arab Media, Conflict Framing,

Abstract :

This study explores the ideological perspectives and discursive strategies employed by Arab English-language online newspapers in representing the Israeli-Lebanese and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts. Utilizing Fairclough's three-dimensional framework, the research analyzes media arti-cles, highlighting their ideological underpinnings, framing mechanisms, and rhetorical devices. Key findings suggest diverse ideological stances shaped by historical, political, and cultural con-texts. The analysis reveals a predominance of resistance narratives (30%) and victimization frames (22.5%) in the sampled articles, aligning with previous research on Arab media's empha-sis on resilience. The study also identifies a significant use of war and conflict-related meta-phors (37.5%), underscoring the media's focus on framing the situation in terms of urgency and high stakes. The research design employs a qualitative, exploratory approach with a focus on descriptive analysis. Using purposive sampling, the corpus consists of 50 English-language arti-cles from five prominent Arab English-language online newspapers, representing diverse politi-cal perspectives. The coding framework, developed based on existing CDA research, examines the textual, discursive, and socio-cultural dimensions of the chosen corpus. The findings high-light the importance of balanced reporting, informed policymaking, and critical media consump-tion in fostering constructive dialogue on these conflicts. Implications of this research extendto media literacy, academic discourse, and practical applications in policy and education. By re-vealing ideological biases and strategic framings, the study serves as a tool for empowering au-diences to engage more critically with conflict-related content in the digital age.

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