A critical discourse analysis of the newspaper reports on China’s zero-COVID policy in China Daily and the Guardian

Abstract

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, China has followed a zero-COVID policy that promotes a range of stringent virus-eliminating measures, and controversy has arisen surrounding its efficacy and legitimacy. To explore this controversial issue, newspaper editorials may serve as an ideal inquiry platform, where editors express evaluations to engage with putative readers and convey dominant ideologies (van Dijk, 1996a). Previous research on media discourse mainly focused on the broad topic concerning the COVID-19 pandemic, with little attention paid to the more specific pandemic-related areas, such as China’s zero-COVID policy. Using Fairclough’s (1992) three-tier CDA model and ATTITUDE and ENGAGEMENT dimensions under Martin and White’s (2005) APPRAISAL framework, this thesis aims to investigate the linguistic features and discursive strategies employed by China Daily (CD) and the Guardian (TG) and unveil their respective ideologies engendered by this controversial topic. The methodological triangulation that combines both quantitative and qualitative approaches was adopted to ensure validity. Findings reveal that both newspapers were equally evaluative and dialogic, with TG generally more judgmental and dialogistically expansive than CD. CD typically employed three discursive strategies: glorification, heroization, and condemnation, whereas TG was revealed to use demonization, unification, and victimization. Ideologically, CD expressed pragmatic nationalism without mobilizing public sentiments, which contrasts sharply with the variant of liberalism discovered in TG, where public sentiments were used to promote a “dash” of humanitarianism. This study suggests that media discourse tends to function ideologically and is deeply rooted in social practices ingrained in society.