Date of Graduation
12-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Journalism (MA)
Degree Level
Graduate
Department
Journalism
Advisor/Mentor
Foster, Bobbie
Committee Member
Elkhalid, Amnee
Second Committee Member
Hu, Sisi
Keywords
Marginalized Immigrants, Marshallese Community, Pacific Transnationalism
Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine local newspaper coverage of the Marshallese community in Northwest Arkansas from 1998 to 2017 and analyze discourses that could be attributed to linguistic bias, stereotypes, and Pacific transnationalism. This analysis examines how marginalized immigrants are portrayed in local news coverage using a critical discourse analysis (CDA). The study analyzes the labels and metaphors used in the coverage of Marshallese immigration, adapts the Stereotype Content Model for a discourse analysis, and compares the experiences of Marshallese in the area with larger scholarly work on Pacific transnationalism. The researcher analyzed 11 published pieces from the Northwest edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The study’s findings reveal subtle linguistic biases, stereotypes, and transnational narratives embedded in news coverage following the migration of people from the Marshall Islands to Northwest Arkansas.
Citation
Vazquez, J. (2025). “No Man is an Island:” A Critical Discourses Analysis of Newspaper Reporting on the Marshallese Community in Northwest Arkansas. Graduate Theses and Dissertations Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/6092
