Många människor använder sig idag av olika sociala medier som sin främsta utgångspunkt för information och kommunikation. Bland de sociala medier som används mest har TikTok kommittill att bli en av de mest populära, främst bland den yngre publiken. Innehållet på TikTok har kommit till att bli ett nav för delvis humor och underhållning, men å andra sidan opinionsbildning och åsiktsspridning. Eftersom TikTok är en sådan ny plattform finns det stora forskningsluckorkring mediets funktioner och hur dessa funktioner kan användas för att sprida budskap av alla olika slag. Detta resulterar i spridning av åsikter som inte alltid är hälsosamma. Ett ämne som har på senare tid fått stor spridning på plattformen är kring vad det är att vara “man” idag. Det finns många studier om maskulinitet, men forskning om maskulinitet på TikTok är bristande. Denna studie är därav ämnad till att undersöka hur åsikter kring maskulinitet kan konstrueras i plattformens videomaterial. I denna studie analyserade vi, sammantaget, sex olika videoklipp från TikTok med hjälp av en multimodal kritisk diskursanalys. Den kvalitativa textanalys metoden valdes för att ge oss möjlighet till att analysera och utvinna så många olika visuella och auditiva komponenter i videoklippen somvi ansåg vara relevanta och på så sätt hitta underliggande konnotationer i allt från kroppsspråk till musikval. Vi analyserar videoklippen utifrån ett teoretiskt ramverk som består av bland annat representation, stereotyper och hegemoni. Vårt resultat gav oss två diskurser; Hotad maskulinitet och Maskulinitet som ett spektrum, som presenterar sambanden i vårt material. Det gav oss en ökad insikt om hur TikTok material konstruerar och reproducerar maskulinitet genom semiotiska resurser grundade i hegemoni. De åtskilda trenderna har en tendens att försöka positionera den motsvarande representationen av maskulinitet som överlägsen gentemot andra. Det konstrueras ytterligheter för att visa på rätt och fel. Slutsatsen är att konstruktionen av maskulinitet grundar sig i samma stam, men växer sig ut i olika förgreningar. Vår studie bidrar till insikt kring hur toxisk maskulinitet reproduceras genom TikTok, likt genom andra plattformar, och förhoppningsvis kan insikterna förebygga att detta mönster fortsätter att froda. / Many people today use various social media as their starting point for information and communication. Among the most used social media, TikTok has developed into one of the most popular, mainly among the younger audience. The content on TikTok has come to be a hub for partly humor and entertainment but on the other hand for advocacy and opinion spreading. Because TikTok is such a new platform, there are large research gaps around the medium's functions and how these functions can be used to spread messages of all different kinds. This results in the spread of opinions that are not always healthy. A topic that has recently been widely spread on the platform is about what it is to be a "man" today. There are many studies on masculinity, but research on masculinity on TikTok is lacking. This study is therefore intended to investigate how opinions about masculinity can be constructed in the platform's video material. In this study, we analyzed six different videos from TikTok using multimodal critical discourse analysis. The qualitative text analysis method was chosen to allow us to analyze and extract as many different visual and auditory components in the clips as we thought relevant and thus find underlying connotations in everything from body language to music choices. We analyze the clips based on a theoretical framework that consist of, among other things, representation, stereotypes and hegemony. Our result gave us two discourses; Threatened Masculinity and Masculinity as a Spectrum, which present the connections in our material. It gave us an increased insight into how TikTok material construct and reproduce masculinity through semiotic resources grounded in hegemony. The separate trends tend to try to position the corresponding representation of masculinity as superior to others. Extremes are constructed to demonstrate right and wrong. The conclusion is that the construction of masculinity is based on the same stem but grows in different branches. Our study contributes to insight in how toxic masculinity is reproduced through TikTok, much as through other platforms, and hopefully the insights can prevent this pattern from continuing to thrive.

Den här studien undersöker om det går att återfinna en gestaltning av en ung kvinna idag som använder sin sexualitet som främsta vapen i TV-serien Euphoria. Forskning imom humaniora tyder på att kvinnor i allt yngre ålder lär sig att använda sin sexualitet till sin fördel. Med multimodal kritisk diskursanalys har jag undersökt hur sexualiteten, med ett urval av semiotikens verktyg, i det här fallet färg, symboler och kameravinklar, gestaltas. Vidare har jag undersökt om den unga kvinnan av idag som gestaltas tycks göra just det, använda sin sexualitet som främsta vapen. Detta genom att se till om någonting talar för att hon använder sig av självrepresentation för att representera sexualiteten. Studiens viktigaste resultat är att det går att återfinna tydliga tecken som talar för att den gestaltade unga kvinnan använder sig av sin sexualitet för att gynna den egna självrepresentationen och vidare utvinna makt. / This study is looking to investigate the conscious use of represented sexuality by a young, female character from the TV-series Euphoria. Studies within humanities show that women at early ages learn how to use their sexuality as a weapon. Using multimodal critical discouse analysis, I aim to investigate how this sexuality, with semiotic tools such as color, symbols and angles, is represented. Furthermore, I aim to see if there are any signs of conscious self-representation or use of the sexuality by the young woman, and if it equal power. The most important results found are the clear signs that show how the young woman does indeed use her sexuality for her own benefit. As well as how she, by conscious self-representation gains power.

How emotions resonate: A comparative multimodal critical discourse analysis of the campaigns Det är inte för sent and Jag lovar, det är inte värt det. This study aims to identify communication strategies in campaigns against children in gang violence, which is relevant as the challenge shows an increasing tendency in Sweden. This is done by using a multimodal critical discourse analysis on the Det är inte för sent campaign from 2023 by the Swedish non-profit association Bris and Jag lovar, det är inte värt det from 2023 by the Swedish Police. The empirical data has been analyzed through a theoretical framework and chosen analytical tools such as modality, connotation and interaction.Based on the multimodal critical discourse analysis, it has been possible to identify different communication strategies in the campaigns. The result from the analysis shows that there are both similarities and differences between the campaigns. Both campaigns feature accounts from people who have experienced the consequences of gang violence, evoking emotions such as sadness and empathy in the viewer. The main difference between the campaigns is based on its framing. In Det är inte för sent, the message is framed around the idea that young people are affected by gang crime and are not considered perpetrators, while Jag lovar, det är inte värt det.

ABSTRACTEnglish translation of the title: The woman’s right to life – A multimodal critical discourse analysis of abortions rights in RFSU: s external communication.  A topic that has sparked more controversy in recent times, is the abortion rights of women. Lately ideas surrounding the abolishment of abortion rights have been more normalized in society. Restrictive abortion laws have been implemented in countries such as the USA and Poland. The aim of this study was to investigate how the organization RFSU is communicating reproductive rights, specifically the abortion rights and abortion resilience discourse, as well as their organizational identity. The study also aimed to investigate how an organization can encourage people to engage and participate in a digital environment. To answer these aims, two main categories of theories were used. The first category focused on social movements theory and framing, which helps to understand how social movements are presented on social media. The second category focused on external communication and visual identity and provided a perspective on how an organization can use external communication to portray the abortion rights discourse and increase participation among recipients in digital social movements. A qualitative method was used, combining a multimodal critical discourse analysis process with Fairclough’s three-dimensional model. The results of the study showed that maternal mortality, abortion, and sexual information were common themes communicated on RFSU’s Instagram. The results also showed that the abortion rights discourse was usually mentioned in relation to the abortion resilience discourse. However, abortion rights were portrayed as necessary for women’s reproductive rights and threatened by the increasing prevalence of abortion resilience ideas in society. The abortion resilience discourse was represented as a problem due to the danger that restrictive abortion laws pose to women’s lives. Participation was encouraged using hashtags that encouraged people to forward the information on social media or took place in real life and afterwards posting on social media. The organizational identity was portrayed using the same red colour and realistic photos, creating recognition for the organization. In conclusion, abortion rights were portrayed as necessary due to the increasing prevalence of abortion resilience ideas in the world.  Keywords: Abortion, Abortion rights, Multimodal critical discourse analysis, external organization communication, Participation

Uppsatsens syfte är att genom en multimodal kritisk diskursanalytisk metod undersöka representationen av personer med funktionsnedsättningar i två olika situationskomedier, från två olika tidsperioder. Dessa är Different Strokes, från mitten på 1980-talet, och Speechless från 2016. Fokus ligger på en karaktär från respektive situationskomedi, Kathy från Different Strokes och JJ från Speechless. Vidare är syftet också att diskutera kring huruvida representationerna kan förstärka olika stereotyper och fördomar i samhället. Urvalet består av fyra (4) avsnitt från respektive serie, det vill säga totalt åtta (8) avsnitt. Personer med funktionsnedsättningar avbildas allt som oftast på ett stereotypt vis, oftast med själva funktionsnedsättningen i fokus. Bilden som förmedlas via medier har idag stor påverkan på mottagaren. Uppsatsen kommer fram till att situationskomedierna avbildar personer med funktionsnedsättningar på ett förhållandevis stereotypt vis, vilket i relativt stor mån kan påverka hur mottagaren uppfattar personer med funktionsnedsättningar. Slutligen kommer uppsatsen också fram till att det är av största vikt att avbilda personer med funktionsnedsättningar på ett respektfullt vis. Detta kan, med stor sannolikhet, leda till att redan existerande stereotyper och fördomar förstärks och därmed också stigmat i samhället. / The purpose of the study is to investigate the representation of people with disabilities in two different sitcoms, from two different time periods. The analysis is made by a multimodal critical discourse analysis method. The sitcoms are Different Strokes, from the mid 1980s, and Speechless from 2016. The focus will be on one character from each sitcom, Kathy from Different Strokes and JJ from Speechless. Furthermore, the purpose is also to discuss whether the representations can reinforce different stereotypes and prejudices in society. The selection consists of four (4) episodes from each series, i.e. a total of eight (8) sections. People with disability are often depicted in a stereotypical way, most of the time with the disability it self in focus. The image that is conveyed via the media has a great influence on the recipients today. The study concludes that both sitcoms depicted people with disabilities in a relatively stereotyped manner, which to a relatively large extent can influence how the recipient perceives people with disabilities. The study also concludes that it is of the utmost importance to depict persons with disabilities in a respectful manner. This may otherwise lead to the strengthening of existing stereotypes and prejudices and thus stigma in society.

The My Stealthy Freedom (MSF) movement on social media has garnered over 1 million likes on Facebook and continues to make headlines in major media outlets. The founder Masih Alinejad routinely speaks out against obligatory veiling in the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). This study analyses hijab and the MSF movement from a Marxist feminist perspective, evaluating the emancipatory potential for women. The study attempts to untangle Islam from the discourses around the oppression of women to find the material roots of oppression upon which the discourse has been built. The legislation of women’s clothing and women’s bodies has a long history, with just the hijab having been made compulsory and forbidden three times in Iran within the previous century. Through the use of Multimodal Critical Discourse analysis, photographs and videos from the MSF movement are compared to hijab propaganda by the IRI to identify whether the concern of the MSF movement is limited to obligatory hijab, or if it places within the broader movement for women’s emancipation. The results show that despite the visual emphasis on the hijab, the MSF movement has a broader aim emancipating women as expressed by the activists of the movement.

During the last decade, the Swedish Armed Forces have been struggling to achieve recruitment goals and to retain military personnel. To attract more people to join the agency, and to increase the knowledge about the agency’s role and function in society, the Swedish Armed Forces continuously run campaigns. Furthermore, the Swedish Armed Forces is a government agency with a mission that is determined by the Swedish government through government decisions. It can therefore be argued that it is important that the campaigns portray the agency’s mission in a correct and truthful way. The purpose of this study has been to investigate how the Swedish Armed Forces portray their mission in their campaign films, and to what extent it corresponds with the agency’s official mission. The research questions are thereby: (1) How is the mission of the Swedish Armed Forces portrayed in two campaign films from 2018 and 2020? (2) To what extent does the Swedish Armed Forces' communication about the agency's mission correspond with their official mission presented in the government decision? (3) Based on identified semiotic resources, and with a neo-institutional perspective on strategic communication, what type of communication has been allowed to take place in the Swedish Armed Forces' campaign films? To answer the research questions, a qualitative data analysis was conducted on a government decision constituting the overall direction of the Swedish Armed Forces, and a multimodal critical discourse analysis was conducted on two campaign films produced by the agency The results were compared, and analyzed through the lens of a neo-institutional perspective on strategic communication. In summary, it can be stated that the study finds that the Swedish Armed Forces, in the two campaign films, portray their mission in a way that greatly corresponds with their official mission as presented in the government decision.

Klädföretagen Fjällräven, Haglöfs och Houdini är ledande inom den svenska friluftsbranschen och toppar Sustainable Brand Index lista över de, enligt konsumenterna, mest hållbara friluftsföretagen. Trots dessa topplaceringar går det inte att bortse från det motsägelsefulla i att företagen producerar kläder, som är skadliga för den natur de är ämnade att användas i – till en målgrupp som värnar om miljön. Med utgångspunkt i denna paradox är målet att i denna studie undersöka hur dessa företag kommunicerar hållbarhet på Instagram. För att genomföra detta har en multimodal kritisk diskursanalys använts. Med hjälp av denna har materialet (som består av Instagram-inlägg) kunnat analyseras såväl visuellt som lexikalt. Därtill undersöker den hur dessa element påverkar och påverkas av maktstrukturer, vilket i detta fall kan liknas med relationen mellan företag och konsument. Materialet som analyseras i denna studie består av sammanlagt 70 hållbarhetsrelaterade inlägg publicerade på Fjällrävens, Haglöfs och Houdinis officiella Instagram-konton under en ettårsperiod. Sammanfattningsvis visar analysen på att företagen kommunicerar hållbarhet genom de tre diskursiva temana hållbarhet genom material, hållbarhet genom kollektiva miljöåtgärder och hållbarhet genom information och utbildning. Studien kommer bland annat fram till att innebörden av begreppet hållbarhet beror på avsändarens ideologi, och därav får varierad betydelse beroende på vilken kontext det sätts in i. Utöver detta visar studien även att företagen tenderar att framställa sig själva som ett slags hållbarhetsideal. Dessutom påvisar studien även att miljöansvaret flyttas över till konsumenterna.

Denna studie är en kritisk diskursanalys av utvalda texter och förpackningar från glassföretagen Järnaglass och Gute Glass. Syftet är att synliggöra hur etiska värden kommuniceras i varumärkeskommunikation och problematisera hur språket kan reproducera social ojämlikhet och föreställningar om etisk konsumtion i en svensk kontext. Studien tar anspråk inom det socialsemiotiska fältet. Tillvägagångsättet har varit att utifrån berättelseanalys samt den multimodala analysen kvalitativt närgranska texternas och förpackningarnas semiotiska resurser. Metoderna synliggör utmärkande värden som företagen väljer att identifiera sig med och diskurser kring etisk glass. Studieresultatet visar att företagen genom varumärkeskommunikation kan skapa identifikation med värden som exempelvis ärlighet, ursprung och framgång. Dessa värden korrelerar med samtida diskurser kring mat som ska betona det personliga, småskaliga och självförverkligande. Utifrån det kritiska perspektivet synliggör studieresultatet att dessa värden och diskurser har möjlighet att reproducera föreställningar och normer om hur konsumenten förväntas agera etiskt och hur vi idag uppnår status. Dessa föreställningar och normer som cementeras genom samtidens varumärkeskommunikation och våra konsumtionsval kan därmed reproducera maktförhållanden som kan bidra till social ojämlikhet i samhället. Slutligen påvisar även studien att samspelet mellan etisk varumärkeskommunikation och människors konsumtionsval kan göra oss passiva i hur vi tar ställning i politiska och miljömässiga utmaningar.

The climate crisis and the consequences that follow have forced humanity to explore the collective actions that must be taken to curb global warming. As a way to reduce ones carbon footprint, many choose to consume with greater care for the environment, and the interest for sustainable clothing has therefore significantly increased. With a rising interest in sustainable shopping, businesses need to adapt to meet the new customer demands. A sub-genre within the apparel industry that differ from the grand average regarding their sustainability communication is the outdoor brands, where environmental awareness plays a significant role in the brand identity. The outdoor brands clear evidence of sustainable communication and their dependance on consumption creates an interesting paradox that this essay intends to investigate further. This essay intends to investigate how a Swedish outdoor brand with a strong sustainable identity, Klättermusen, exercises sustainable communication through Instagram. The purpose of this essay is more specifically to explore how Klättermusen uses Instagram to create and maintain a sustainable brand identity. To help us do so, we present the following research questions: - How does the brand Klättermusen create a sustainable identity on Instagram?- What discourses can be discerned in Klättermusens marketing via Instagram and how has sustainable communication taken shape within these over time? The theoretical framework for our essay consists out of four theories, including Bauman’s theory about the consumer society, Ulrich Beck’s theory about risk society and reflexive modernity, strategic communications theory and greenwashing. These theories enable an analysis of how and why sustainable communication is conducted in a specific way and what consequences that follow. The essay is carried out methodically through a multimodal critical discourse analysis, that enables both a deep and more comprehensive analysis of the linguistic and semiotic resources used in Klättermusens marketing through Instagram.The result of our analysis presents how Klättermusen with linguistic and semiotic resources creates the eco-friendly identity that they are known for. Through both word choices and visual framing that connotes sustainability Klättermusen places themselves in a green context that goes well along with their core values. The material contains both examples of clear and indistinct sustainable communication, along with occasional elements of strong commercial character that make it possible to question the authenticity of Klättermusen’s true devotion to sustainability. The conclusion of our analysis is that the brand Klättermusen by small semiotic and linguistic measures successfully put themselves in a green context and create a sense of corporate social responsibility with the consumer. We do not believe that Klättermusen need to take drastic measures to maintain their sustainable image in reference to their other well-known environmental efforts. The conclusion further argues that the mix of strong sales marketing and a clear sustainable communication sheds light on the difficulties combining a consumption dependent business with an advocation for minimal environmental impact. Regardless of the challenges a sustainable identity comes with, we want to establish that Klättermusens way of maintaining a sustainable image is a response to a growing interest for environmental issues that also reproduces a general perception of how a brand should communicate to gain the consumers trust and how to be perceived as a brand that values social responsibility.