ABSTRACT

The relation of language to the media has sometimes been understood as a question of situational varieties of language. From this perspective language varies according to its situation of use; and in the same way as we might describe a language of law, of commerce, and of religion, we might also describe a language or languages of the media, including sub-varieties such as the language of advertising, for instance, or of newspapers, or of sports commentary. From this perspective, the task of the analyst becomes one of specifying the particular kinds of phonological, lexical, and grammatical choices that make up any one of these varieties. Alternatively, the study of language in the media can be understood not so much as the study of a situational variety but as a way of studying the output of major media institutions (broadcasting, for instance, or the press) considered as influential shapers of public opinion. From this perspective language is subjected to critical analysis for its ideological emphases and for its ability to perpetuate and reinforce relations of power and domination (see also Krzyżanowski and Machin, this volume, Chapter 4).