Political Media Communication: Bilingual Strategies in the Pre-Election Campaign Speeches

Tatyana Yu. Tameryan 1, Marina R. Zheltukhina 2 * , Gennady G. Slyshkin 3, Larisa L. Zelenskaya 4, Olga P. Ryabko 5, Marina A. Bodony 6
More Detail
1 Faculty of Foreign Languages, North-Ossetian State University named after K.L. Khetagurov, Vladikavkaz, RUSSIA
2 Institute of Foreign Languages, Volgograd State Socio-Pedagogical University, Volgograd, RUSSIA
3 Centre of Linguistics and Professional Communication, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Moscow, RUSSIA
4 School of Governance and Politics, Moscow State Institute of International Relations (University) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Russian Federation (MGIMO-University), Moscow, RUSSIA
5 Institute of Philology, Journalism and Intercultural Communications, Southern Federal University, Rostov-on-Don, RUSSIA
6 Faculty of Romance and Germanic Philology, Kuban State University, Krasnodar, RUSSIA
* Corresponding Author
Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, Volume 9, Issue 4, Article No: e201921. https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/5869
OPEN ACCESS   2359 Views   1778 Downloads   Published online: 04 Aug 2019
Download Full Text (PDF)

ABSTRACT

This article concerns the research of such new aspect of political media communication as bilingualism in the young state of South Ossetia’ election campaign. The study is devoted to the description of tactical and strategic tools of candidates for the presidency of the country in 2017. The strategic use of the Ossetian and Russian language systems, determined by the intentions of presidential candidates, the target audience, and the communicative situation, characterizes the language identities of Ossetian politicians as ambilingists switching easily between the two codes. The study shows that self-presentation is one of the dominant strategies, as candidates seek to present themselves as the most worthy candidate for the presidency, using a specific set of language means and speech constructs. As the language analysis of the pre-election speeches testifies, the ethnic identity of the newly emerged South Ossetian political media communication is characterized by the development of mechanisms for dialogical interaction based on the rejection of the opposability of the leaders of the branches of government in the mass media.
The authors state that the main characteristics of electoral meetings with voters and debates represent ritual actions that are part of the traditional Ossetian communication scenario. The role-playing behavior of the participants in the presidential election also reflects the specifics of interaction between the senior and junior. Special discourse signs are the principles of openness and feedback that have been most effective as dominant strategies. The study of the texts of the candidates’ speeches by the candidates is the orientation of the presidential candidates to various segments of society, united according to the family-patronymic, territorial and socio-political principles. Thus, the tactical and strategic complex of this election campaign is based on a self-presentation strategy implemented by the tactics of identification and demonstration of ethnicity.
Keywords: South Ossetian political media discourse, politician’s communicative image, speech strategies, bilingual strategies, self-presentation techniques, ritual communication, traditional scenario

CITATION

Tameryan, T. Y., Zheltukhina, M. R., Slyshkin, G. G., Zelenskaya, L. L., Ryabko, O. P., & Bodony, M. A. (2019). Political Media Communication: Bilingual Strategies in the Pre-Election Campaign Speeches. Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, 9(4), e201921. https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/5869

REFERENCES

  • Aleshchanova, I. V., Frolova, N. A., & Zheltukhina, M. R. (2018). Evolution of Motives in Professional Personality Formation: Foreign Language Learning Context. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on the Theory and Practice of Personality Formation in Modern Society (Ictppfms 2018), 198, 35-40.
  • Ayoun, D. (1999). Bilingualism and the “Mixed Language” Phenomenon. Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01.12.1999, pp. 187-189. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728999210310
  • Baranov, A. N., & Kazakevich, E. G. (1991). Parliamentary Debates: Traditions and Innovations. Moscow: Knowledge. 64 p.
  • Bitarov, V. (2017). How South Ossetia is reborn. Retrieved from http://new.xurzarin.ru/bitarty-vyacheslav-xussar-iryston-kuyd-aendidzy-uymaen-aenaefeng
  • Chilton, P. (1994). Politics and Language. In R. E. Asher (ed.), The Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics (6th ed.) (pp. 3215-3221). Oxford: Pergamon Press.
  • Chilton, P. (2004). Analysing Political Discourse: Theory and Practice. NewYork: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203561218
  • Chilton, P., & Ilyin, M. (1993). Metaphor in Political Discourse: The Case of the `Common European House. In Discourse & Society (pp. 7-32). https://doi.org/10.1177/0957926593004001002
  • Dijk van, T. A. (1988). News as Discourse. New Jersey: Lawrence Elbbaum Assoc. Publ.
  • Dijk van, T. A. (1995). Ideological Discourse Analysis. In New Courant (pp.135-161). Helsinki: English Dept. University of Helsinki.
  • Dijk, van T. (1997). Discourse as Structure and Process: Discourse Studies a Multidisciplinary Introduction. SAGE Publication Ltd.
  • Echo of the Caucasus. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ekhokavkaza.mobi
  • EurAsia Daily. (March 15, 2017). Elections in South Ossetia: Tibilov goes under the slogan “Alania forward.” Retrieved from https://eadaily.com/ru/news/2017/03/15/vybory-v-yuzhnoy-osetii-tibilov-idet-pod-lozungom-alaniya-vpered
  • Franssila, S. (2013). Sell Metaphor in American Political News Discourse. Social and Behavioral Sciences, 95, 418-424. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.10.664
  • Graber, D. A. (1981). Political languages. In D. D. Nimmo, & K. R. Sanders (eds). Handbook of Political Communication (pp. 195-223).
  • Ikizer, E. G., & Ramirez-Esparza, N. (2017). Bilinguals’ Social Flexibility. Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25.09.2017, pp. 957-969. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728917000414
  • Jamieson, K. H., & Campbell, K. K. (1997). The Interplay of Influence: News, Advertising, Politics and Mass Media. Belmont, Ca: Wadsworth Publishing Company.
  • Lassan, E. (1995). Discourse of Power in the USSR: Cognitive-Discursive Analysis. Vilnus, 232 p.
  • Luk, G. (2014). Who are the Bilinguals (and Monolinguals)? Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14.10.2014, pp. 35-36. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728914000625
  • Meadow, R. G. (1980). Politics as Communication. Ablex Publishing Corporation. 269 p.
  • Oxford English Dictionary. OED. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.oed.com/
  • Parliament of the Republic of South Ossetia. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.parliamentrso/org
  • Pfau, M., Kenski, G., & Nitz, M. (1990). Efficacy of Inoculation Strategies In Promoting Resistance To Political Attack Messages: Application to Direct Mail. Communication Monographs, 57(1), 25-43. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637759009376183
  • President of the Republic of South Ossetia. (March 22, 2017). Interview to the TV channel “Russia 24”. Retrieved from http://presidentruo.org/intervyu-telekanalu-rossiya-24-5/
  • Sheigal, E. I. (2000). Semiotics of political discourse. Volgograd: Peremena. 386 p.
  • Stuckey, M., & Antczak, F. (1995). Issues and Images: the problem of Identification. Strategic Communication problems in presidential Campaigns. Communication Quarterly, 42(2), 120-133. https://doi.org/10.1080/01463379409369921
  • Tameryan, T. Yu., Zheltukhina, M. R., Sidorova, I. G., & Shishkina, E. V. (2019). Stereotype Component in the Structure of Ethnocultural Archetype (On Internet-Blogs). The European Proceedings of Social & Behavioural Sciences, 200, 1716-1722. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2019.03.02.200
  • Tameryan, T. Yu., Zheltukhina, M. R., Slyshkin, G. G., Abakumova, O. B., Volskaya, N. N., & Nikolaeva, A. V. (2018a). Metaphor in Political Media Discourse: Mental Political Leader Portrait. Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, 8(4), 377-384. https://doi.org/10.12973/ojcmt/3958
  • Tameryan, T. Yu., Zheltukhina, M. R., Slyshkin, G. G., Shevchenko, A. V., Katermina, V. V., & Sausheva, Ye. V. (2018b). New Country’s Political Discourse: Formation of Speech Technologies. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Methods, 8(7), 151-160.
  • The pre-election video of Alan Gagloeva from 04.02.17. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY6OlHYqwU0
  • Thomson, О. (1977). Mass Persuasion in History: An Historical Analysis of the Development of Propaganda Techniques. Edinburgh: Paul Harris Publishing.
  • Tibilov, L. (2017). Pre-election program. Retrieved from http://www.nykhas.ru/293382/leonid-tibilov-predvybornaya-program/
  • Tibilov, L. (March 26, 2017). Leonid Tibilov met with citizens of the RSO living in North Ossetia. Retrieved from http://osinform.org/60587-leonid-tibilov-vstretilsya-s-grazhdanami-ryuo-prozhivayuschimi-v-severnoy-osetii.html
  • Toribio, A. J. (2001). On the Emergence of Bilingual Code-Switching Competence. Published online by Cambridge University Press: 17.12.2001, pp. 203-231. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728901000414
  • Vallan, V. (2014). Bilingualism and cognition. Published online by Cambridge University Press, 27.11.2014, pp. 3-24. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1366728914000522
  • Volskaya, N. N., Tameryan, T. Yu., Zheltukhina, M. R., Boeva-Omelechko, N. B., Komleva, L. A., & Knyazeva, Ye. G. (2018). Literary Translation as Сognitive Overlap between Foreign and Native Languages. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Methods, 8(7), 161-172.
  • Wilson, G. D. (1990). Ideology and Humor Preferences. International Political Science Review, 11(4), 461-472. https://doi.org/10.1177/019251219001100404
  • Wodak, R. (1994). Critical linguistics and Critical Discourse Analisys. In Handbook of Pragmatics (pp. 1-24). https://doi.org/10.1075/hop.10.cri1
  • Zheltukhina, M. R., Bondareva, N. V., Zelenskaya, L. L., Anikeeva, I. G., Malygina, L. E. & Chistyakov, A. V. (2019). Media Promotion Role of Economic Vocabulary: Specific Features and Functions in Presentation and Advertisement. Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies, 9(2), e201907. https://doi.org/10.29333/ojcmt/5733