Voices in the headlines: A critical discourse analysis of British web-news headlines

Abstract

Influential elite newspapers exercise power over ordinary people as well as other less powerful elites. However, newspapers also need elites whose valued opinions are requested and then presented in the newspaper discourse. It might therefore seem that the social power of a newspaper is decreased by the social power of the elites on whom the newspaper might be financially, politically, or otherwise dependent. Nevertheless, newspapers can also exercise power through the choice of who is given space to express ideas in the newspaper discourse, and who is in/directly silenced. Therefore, an analysis of voices given prominence in the headlines of The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph helps to uncover the ideological effects these choices in speech presentation might have. Even though both British papers refer to the immigration issue in relation to the United Kingdom in 2010, the headlines are designed to echo either liberal or conservative ideas. Since the papers report the immigration issue from their own perspectives, they function as influential participants in media communication. Moreover, they play a crucial role in providing the primary information for ordinary people, who might then form their opinions based on the reality described in the newspaper discourse and act accordingly.