The framing of information warfare: a comparative analysis of Estonian and Irish online news media in 2014-2017
Date
2018
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Tartu Ülikool
Abstract
In recent years, information warfare has become one of the top priorities on the
international security agenda. The significant rise of the respective threats originates
from 2014, when Russia’s invasion and annexation of Crimea as well as Daesh’s
extensive engagement in conventional and unconventional warfare caused the escalation
of information war to an unprecedented scale. The severe threats of information warfare
were recognised by the EU, NATO, and the Member States who have been developing
defence mechanisms while emphasising the importance of social freedoms. Therefore,
debates on the threats of information warfare in media, with a particular focus on digital
media, have gained momentum. In turn, information warfare has also become a highly
topical matter in media. Therefore, the thesis studies the framing of information warfare
in Estonian and Irish online news media in 2014-2017 and interprets the differences and
similarities in the media frames. The thesis employs articles on information warfare
published in the three most visited Estonian and Irish online news media and applies the
method of qualitative framing analysis. Three frames are identified in the media
coverage of both countries: Russia-West confrontation frame, national security frame,
and truth frame for Estonia, and national security frame, Russia-West confrontation
frame, and technology and extremism frame for Ireland. The comparative analysis finds
that the media frames reflect the different historical backgrounds of the countries, as the
Estonian media frames tend to be politically more motivated to reinforce the hostility of
Russia and call the Western democracies for unity. The second main difference in the
frames is the coverage on extremism, principally on the example of Daesh, which was
largely neglected in Estonian media for the perceived distance, but more covered in
Irish media for relative closeness through the impact on the UK. Nevertheless, above
all, the frames emphasised the common values and principles of the two countries.