How does one get re-elected in times of crisis? According to research on nationalism, praising the nation doesn’t hurt – in fact, nationalistic discourse can contribute to creating a “rally-round-the-flag” effect that benefits the ruling party. This study examines how the Swedish Social Democratic Party uses nationalistic framing in two election campaigns: in 2018, and – after a period of historic economic, health- and security-related crisis – in 2022. Has the party’s framing of policy become more nationalistic, after a period of substantial hardship and growing threat from a nationalistic party attracting working-class voters? Using a combination of inductive and deductive framing analysis approaches, the study finds that a significant nationalistic reframing has indeed taken place, primarily taking focus from a humanistic narrative that was prominent in 2018. The results shed light on what researcher Michael Billig calls the “banal nationalism” of contemporary society, and on how political communication can be – purposefully or unknowingly – changed depending on the context. Finally, the results raise questions about (1) to what degree the Swedish Social Democratic Party strategically changed their communication, and (2) what the consequences may be. These questions may serve as inspiration for future research.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-494984 |
| Date | January 2023 |
| Creators | Hedenius, Lova |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Statsvetenskapliga institutionen |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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