Home Migration on digital news platforms: Using large-scale digital text analysis and time-series to estimate the effects of socioeconomic data on migration content
Article
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

Migration on digital news platforms: Using large-scale digital text analysis and time-series to estimate the effects of socioeconomic data on migration content

  • Sandra Simonsen ORCID logo EMAIL logo and Christian Baden
Published/Copyright: February 22, 2025
Communications
From the journal Communications

Abstract

The way digital news platforms represent migration issues can significantly impact intergroup relations and policymaking. A recurring question in the debate on the role of news platforms is whether they merely transmit information on migration, or actively hype specific issues. Drawing on a comprehensive set of socioeconomic statistics on migrants in Denmark, and employing a longitudinal automated content analysis of migration news content, we utilize time-series analysis to understand how four distinct categories of threat (security, economic, cultural, and generalized) relate to socioeconomic data on terror attacks, migrant crime levels, economic performance, and demographic trends. The results reveal a direct effect of terror attacks, economic performance, and demographic trends on migration news. We discuss the implications of socioeconomic and demographic developments as factors in digital media content to understand the role of media and substantiate contemporary debates.

References

Ahmed, S. (2012). Media portrayals of Muslims and Islam and their influence on adolescent attitude: An empirical study from India. Journal of Arab & Muslim Media Research, 5(3), 279–306. https://doi.org/10.1177/174804851665630510.1386/jammr.5.3.279_1Search in Google Scholar

Andreassen, R. (2007). Der er et yndigt land: Medier, minoriteter og danskhed [There is a lovely country: Media, minorities, and Danishness]. Tiderne Skifter.Search in Google Scholar

Azriel, O., & Bar-Haim, Y. (2020). Attention bias. In J. S. Abramowitz, & S. M. Blakey (Eds.), Clinical handbook of fear and anxiety: Maintenance processes and treatment mechanisms (pp. 203–218). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000150-01210.1037/0000150-012Search in Google Scholar

Baden, C., & David, Y. (2018). On resonance: A study of culture-dependent reinterpretations of extremist violence in Israeli media discourse. Media, Culture & Society, 40(4), 514–534. https://doi.org/10.1177/016344371773440410.1177/0163443717734404Search in Google Scholar

Baden, C., & Tenenboim-Weinblatt, K. (2016). Viewpoint, testimony, action. How journalists reposition source frames within news frames. Journalism Studies, 19(1), 143–161. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461670X.2016.116149510.1080/1461670X.2016.1161495Search in Google Scholar

Behr, R. L., & Iyengar, S. (1985). Television news, real-world cues, and changes in the public agenda. Public Opinion Quarterly, 49(1), 38–57. https://doi.org/10.1086/26890010.1086/268900Search in Google Scholar

Benford, R. D., & Snow, D. A. (2000). Framing processes and social movements: An overview and assessment. Annual Review of Sociology, 26, 611–639. http://www.jstor.org/stable/22345910.1146/annurev.soc.26.1.611Search in Google Scholar

Billig, M. (1995). Banal nationalism. Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/978144622164810.4135/9781446221648Search in Google Scholar

Blumler, J., & Gurevitch, M. (1995). The crisis of public communication (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/978020318177510.4324/9780203181775Search in Google Scholar

Bourdieu, P., & Wacquant, L. (1992). An invitation to reflexive sociology (1st ed.). Policy Press.Search in Google Scholar

Brighton, P., & Foy, D. (2007). News values (1st ed.). Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/978144621602610.4135/9781446216026Search in Google Scholar

Broersma, M. (2019). The legitimacy paradox. Journalism, 20(1), 92–94. https://doi.org/10.1177/146488491880673610.1177/1464884918806736Search in Google Scholar

Brosius, H.-B. & Esser, F. (1995). Eskalation durch berichterstattung? Massenmedien und fremdenfeindliche gewalt [Escalation through reporting? Mass media and xenophobic violence]. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften.Search in Google Scholar

Bødker, H., & Ngomba, T. (2018). Community repair through truce and contestation: Danish legacy print media and the Copenhagen shootings. Journalism Studies, 19(4), 579–593. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461670X.2017.138658410.1080/1461670X.2017.1386584Search in Google Scholar

Brüggemann, M. (2014). Between frame setting and frame sending: How journalists contribute to news frames. Communication Theory, 24(1), 61–82. https://doi.org/10.1111/comt.1202710.1111/comt.12027Search in Google Scholar

Caple, H., & Bednarek, M. (2016). Rethinking news values: What a discursive approach can tell us about the construction of news discourse and news photography. Journalism, 17(4), 435–455. https://doi.org/10.1177/146488491456807810.1177/1464884914568078Search in Google Scholar

Caviedes, A. (2015). An emerging ‘European’ news portrayal of immigration? Journal of. Ethnic and Migration Studies, 41(6), 897–917. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2014.100219910.1080/1369183X.2014.1002199Search in Google Scholar

Chong, D., & Druckman, J. N. (2007). Framing theory. Annual Review of Political Science, 10(1), 103–126. https://doi.org10.1146/annurev.polisci.10.072805.10305410.1146/annurev.polisci.10.072805.103054Search in Google Scholar

Cohen, S. (1972). Folk devils and moral panics: The creation of the mods and rockers. MacGibbon and Kee.Search in Google Scholar

Cook, T. E. (1998). Governing with the news: The news media as a political institution. University of Chicago Press.Search in Google Scholar

Danmarks Statistik. (2021). Indvandring i Danmark [Migration in Denmark]. https://www.dst.dk/da/Statistik/nyheder-analyser-publ/Publikationer/VisPub?cid=34714Search in Google Scholar

Dearing, J. W., & Rogers, E. M. (1996). Agenda-setting. Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/978145224328310.4135/9781452243283Search in Google Scholar

Eberl, J.-M., Meltzer, C. E., Heidenreich, T., Herrero, B., Theorin, N., Lind, F., Berganza, R., Boomgaarden, H. G., Schemer, C., & Strömbäck, J. (2018). The European media discourse on immigration and its effects: A literature review. Annals of the International Communication Association, 42(3), 207–223. https://doi.org/10.1080/23808985.2018.149745210.1080/23808985.2018.1497452Search in Google Scholar

Eilders, C. (2006). News factors and news decisions: Theoretical and methodological advances in Germany. Communications, 31(1), 5–24. https://doi.org/10.1515/COMMUN.2006.00210.1515/COMMUN.2006.002Search in Google Scholar

Entman, R. M. (1993). Framing: Toward clarification of a fractured paradigm. Journal of Communication, 43(4), 51–58. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.1993.tb01304.x10.1111/j.1460-2466.1993.tb01304.xSearch in Google Scholar

Fink, K. (2019). The biggest challenge facing journalism: A lack of trust. Journalism, 20(1), 40–43. https://doi.org/10.1177/146488491880706910.1177/1464884918807069Search in Google Scholar

Galtung, J., & Ruge, M. H. (1965). The structure of foreign news: The presentation of the Congo, Cuba and Cyprus crises in four Norwegian newspapers. Journal of Peace Research, 2(1), 64–90. https://doi.org/10.1177/00223433650020010410.1177/002234336500200104Search in Google Scholar

Goidel, R. K., & Langley, R. E. (1995). Media coverage of the economy and aggregate economic evaluations: Uncovering evidence of indirect media effects. Political Research Quarterly, 48(2), 313–328. https://doi.org/10.2307/44907110.1177/106591299504800205Search in Google Scholar

Gilbert, L. (2013). The discursive production of a Mexican refugee crisis in Canadian media and policy. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 39(5), 827–843. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2013.75669310.1080/1369183X.2013.756693Search in Google Scholar

Greussing, E., & Boomgaarden, H. G. (2017). Shifting the refugee narrative? An automated frame analysis of Europe’s 2015 refugee crisis. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 43(11), 1749–1774. https://doi.org10.1080/1369183X.2017.128281310.1080/1369183X.2017.1282813Search in Google Scholar

Hagelund, A. (2020). After the refugee crisis: Public discourse and policy change in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Comparative Migration Studies, 8(1), https://doi.org/10.1186/s40878-019-0169-810.1186/s40878-019-0169-8Search in Google Scholar

Hanitzsch, T. (2011). Populist disseminators, detached watchdogs, critical change agents and opportunist facilitators: professional milieus, the journalistic field and autonomy in 18 countries. International Communication Gazette, 73(6), 477–494. https://doi.org/10.1177/174804851141227910.1177/1748048511412279Search in Google Scholar

Hänggli, R. (2012). Key factors in frame building: How strategic political actors shape news media coverage. American Behavioral Scientist, 56(3), 300–317. https://doi.org/10.1177/000276421142632710.1177/0002764211426327Search in Google Scholar

Hepp, A., Hjarvard, S., & Lundby, K. (2015). Mediatization: Theorizing the interplay between media, culture and society. Media, Culture & Society, 37(2), 314–324. https://doi.org/10.1177/016344371557383510.1177/0163443715573835Search in Google Scholar

Hall, S., Critcher, C., Jefferson, T., Clarke, J., & Roberts, B. (1978). Policing the crisis: Mugging, the state, and law and order. Palgrave.10.1007/978-1-349-15881-2Search in Google Scholar

Hervik, P. (2002). Mediernes muslimer: En antropologisk undersøgelse af mediernes dækning af religioner i danmark [The media’s Muslims: An anthropological study of the media’s coverage of religions in Denmark]. Nævnet for Etnisk Ligestilling.Search in Google Scholar

Hussain, M., Yilmaz, F., & O’Connor, T. (1997). Medierne, minoriteterne og majoriteten [The media, minorities and the majority]. Board for Ethnic Equality.Search in Google Scholar

International Organization for Migration. (2017). World migration report 2018: Chapter 3. https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/wmr_2018_en_chapter3.pdfSearch in Google Scholar

Jacobs, L., Damstra, A., Boukes, M., & De Swert, K. (2018). Back to reality: The complex relationship between patterns in immigration news coverage and real-world developments in Dutch and Flemish newspapers (1999–2015). Mass Communication and Society, 21(4), 473–497. https://doi.org/10.1080/15205436.2018.144247910.1080/15205436.2018.1442479Search in Google Scholar

Joyce, N. & Harwood, J. (2014). Improving intergroup attitudes through televised vicarious intergroup contact: Social cognitive processing of ingroup and outgroup information. Communication Research, 41(5), 627–643. https://doi.org/10.1177/009365021244794410.1177/0093650212447944Search in Google Scholar

Lecheler, S., Matthes, J., & Boomgaarden, H. G. (2019). Setting the agenda for research on media and migration: State-of-the-art and directions for future research. Mass Communication and Society, 22(6), 691–707. https://doi.org/10.1080/15205436.2019.168805910.1080/15205436.2019.1688059Search in Google Scholar

Lee, T.-T. (2005). The liberal media myth revisited: An examination of factors influencing perceptions of media bias. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 49(1), 43–64. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15506878jobem4901_410.1207/s15506878jobem4901_4Search in Google Scholar

Lubbers, M., Scheepers, P. & Wester, F. (1998). Ethnic minorities in Dutch newspapers 1990–95: Patterns of criminalization and problematization. International Communication Gazette, 60(5), 415–431. https://doi.org/10.1177/0016549298060005010.1177/0016549298060005004Search in Google Scholar

Macek, S. (2006). Urban nightmares: The media, the right and the moral panic over the city. University of Minnesota Press.Search in Google Scholar

McCombs, M. E., & Shaw, D. L. (1972). The agenda-setting function of mass media. The Public Opinion Quarterly, 36(2), 176–187.10.1086/267990Search in Google Scholar

McQuail, D. (1992). Media performance: Mass communication and the public interest. Sage.10.22230/cjc.1993v18n4a783Search in Google Scholar

Mertens, S., Standaert, O., d’Haenens, L., & De Cock, R. (2019). Diversity in Western countries: Journalism culture, migration integration policy and public opinion. Media and Communication, 7(1), 66–76. https://doi.org/10.17645/mac.v7i1.163210.17645/mac.v7i1.1632Search in Google Scholar

Myllylahti, M., & Treadwell, G. (2021). In media we trust? A comparative analysis of news trust in New Zealand and other Western media markets. Kōtuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online, 17(1), 90–100. https://doi.org/10.1080/1177083X.2021.194887310.1080/1177083X.2021.1948873Search in Google Scholar

Mosley, P. (1984). ‘Popularity functions’ and the role of the media: A pilot study of the popular press. British Journal of Political Science, 14(1), 117–129. https://doi.org/10.1017/S000712340000346X10.1017/S000712340000346XSearch in Google Scholar

Phillips, A. (2015). Journalism in context: Practice and theory for the digital age. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/978020311174110.4324/9780203111741Search in Google Scholar

Scheufele, D. A., & Tewksbury, D. (2006). Framing, agenda setting, and priming: The evolution of three media effects models. Journal of Communication, 57(1), 9–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0021-9916.2007.00326.x10.1111/j.0021-9916.2007.00326.xSearch in Google Scholar

Schultz, I. (2007). The journalistic gut feeling. Journalism Practice, 1(2), 190–207. https://doi.org/10.1080/1751278070127550710.1080/17512780701275507Search in Google Scholar

Seabold, S. & Perktold, J. (2010). Statsmodels: Econometric and statistical modeling with Python [Software]. https://www.statsmodels.org/10.25080/Majora-92bf1922-011Search in Google Scholar

Shoemaker, P. J., & Reese, S. D. (1996). Mediating the message: Theories of influence on mass media content (2nd ed.). Longman.Search in Google Scholar

Simonsen, S. (2020). Bacteria, garbage, insects and pigs: Conceptual metaphors in the Ultra-Orthodox, anti-military “Hardakim” propaganda campaign. Journal of Language and Politics, 19(6), 938963. https://doi.org/10.1075/jlp.19109.sim10.1075/jlp.19109.simSearch in Google Scholar

Simonsen, S. (2023). Social actor representation in media discourse: How neutral linguistic cues get endowed with meaning that signifies ethnicity. The Journal of Language, Discourse & Society, 11(1), 926. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10439709Search in Google Scholar

Simonsen, S. (2024). Discursive blame attribution strategies in migration news frames: How blame for perceived migration-related problems is mediated in journalistic framing. Discourse, Context & Media, 58 (3), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2024.10077210.1016/j.dcm.2024.100772Search in Google Scholar

Smith, T. J. (1988). The vanishing economy: Television coverage of economic affairs, 1982–1987. Media Institute.Search in Google Scholar

Strömbäck, J., & Esser, F. (2014). Mediatization of politics: Transforming democracies and reshaping politics. In K. Lundby (Ed.), Mediatization of communication (pp. 375–403). De Gruyter Mouton. https://doi.org/10.1057/978113727584410.1515/9783110272215.375Search in Google Scholar

Strömbäck, J., Andersson, F., & Nedlund, E. (2017). Invandring i medierna. Hur rapporterade Svenska tidningar åren 2010–2015? [Migration in the media. How did Swedish newspapers report during the years 2010–2015?]. Delegationen för Migrationsstudier.Search in Google Scholar

Tabachnick, B., & Fidell, L. (2018). Using multivariate statistics (7th ed.). Pearson. doiSearch in Google Scholar

Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In W. G. Austin, & S. Worchel (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–37). Brooks/Cole.Search in Google Scholar

Tenenboim-Weinblatt, K., & Baden, C. (2018). Journalistic transformation: How source texts are turned into news stories. Journalism, 19(4), 481–499. https://doi.org/10.1177/175063521770207110.1177/1464884916667873Search in Google Scholar

Tuchman, G. (1978). Making news: A study in the construction of reality. Free Press. doiSearch in Google Scholar

Van der Linden, M., & Jacobs, L. (2017). The impact of cultural, economic, and safety issues in Flemish television news coverage (2003–13) of North African immigrants on perceptions of intergroup threat. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 40(15), 2823–2841. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2016.122949210.1080/01419870.2016.1229492Search in Google Scholar

Van Klingeren, M., Boomgaarden, H. G., Vliegenthart, R., & de Vreese, C. H. (2014). Real world is not enough: The media as an additional source of negative attitudes toward immigration, comparing Denmark and the Netherlands. European Sociological Review, 31(3), 268–283. https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcu08910.1093/esr/jcu089Search in Google Scholar

Vasterman, P. (Ed.) (2018). From media hype to Twitter storm (1st ed.). Amsterdam University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt21215m010.2307/j.ctt21215m0Search in Google Scholar

Vliegenthart, R., & Boomgaarden, H. G. (2007). Real-world indicators and the coverage of immigration and the integration of minorities in Dutch newspapers. European Journal of Communication, 22(3), 293–314. https://doi.org/10.1177/026732310707967610.1177/0267323107079676Search in Google Scholar

Vliegenthart, R., Boomgaarden, H. G., & Boumans, J. W. (2011). Changes in political news coverage: Personalization, conflict and negativity in British and Dutch newspapers. In K. Brants, & K. Voltmer (Eds.), Political communication in postmodern democracy (pp. 92–110). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/978023029478310.1057/9780230294783_6Search in Google Scholar

Wu, H. D., Stevenson, R. L., Chen, H.-C., & Güner, Z. N. (2002). The conditioned impact of recession news: A Time-series analysis of economic communication in the United States, 1986–1997. International Journal of Public Opinion Research, 14(1), 19–36. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijpor/14.1.1910.1093/ijpor/14.1.19Search in Google Scholar

Published Online: 2025-02-22

© 2025 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Downloaded on 7.9.2025 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/commun-2024-0011/pdf
Scroll to top button