Description
This thesis explores the unique nomenclature used by Chinese state-controlled media to refer to the ‘Islamic State,’ offering a contrast to the existing focus on Western media portrayals within current scholarship. It recognizes that naming is a social act in which news media serve both as name-givers and as the primary channels through which names and discourses reach the public. Since each designation carries specific political connotations, the terminology chosen by Chinese media sheds light on the conventions and politics of naming within a state-controlled media context. The politics of naming involves contestation over how names are created, assigned, and challenged, shaped by broader global dynamics. This study addresses a critical gap by examining how the ‘Islamic State’ is named in the Chinese media landscape, providing a foundation for analyzing the politics of naming.
Using an instrumental approach to discourse analysis, this study investigates the naming practices for the ‘Islamic State’ in key state media outlets, specifically the Xinhua News Agency. Combining corpus linguistics with critical discourse analysis, the research seeks to uncover the social ideologies underlying these naming practices. The analysis covers the period from the declaration of the Caliphate in 2014 to the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019.
This study is guided by two primary research questions: the shifts and changes in naming conventions and the politics of naming. The findings indicate that ‘Islamic State’ gradually replaced ‘ISIL’ as the primary term following its self-rebranding, while ‘Daesh’ emerged as a disruptive term in late 2015. Additionally, Xinhua constructs distinct identities for ‘Islamic State’ under various designations, linking ‘Islamic State’ to militancy, ‘ISIL’ to terrorism, and ‘Daesh’ to terrorism. Xinhua’s approach remains detached, strategically aligning with global counter-terrorism discourse when referencing ‘ISIL’ and intentionally avoiding the ideological implications associated with ‘Daesh.’
