Information favored mode in journalistic publications on economic subjects: administrative paradigm scenarios

Abstract

The article discusses the main features of the formation in modern Russian periodicals of an information policy to mitigate negative economic events, implemented by replacing the original terms denoting economic problems with tonally neutral euphemisms. The purpose of the work is set to demonstrate how the distortion of individual lexical elements in the text leads not only to a change in the tone of journalistic publications, but also changes the logic of perception of the problems considered in the media. By the methods of content analysis and statistical analysis, the author evaluates the role of such euphemisms in the information discourse on a wide sample array (34 periodicals, represented by 37298 articles) and point to the dynamics of the use of these constructions for the time range from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2022. The study identifies 25 contextual markers that are widely used in modern Russian periodicals. The author proposes a classification of these markers according to the specifics of their semantic component, as a result of which the latter are divided into four groups: terms that mask deteriorating economic conditions with the help of neutral formulations (group 1); terms expressing a drop in demand and a deterioration in the assortment in the consumer market (group 2); terms aimed at a general change in the tone of texts in the segment of problematic subjects (group 3); terms that depersonalize those responsible for the ongoing negative economic trends (group 4). The author comes to the conclusion that the formation of an information-favored mode in modern Russian periodicals not only changes the semantic emphasis in journalistic materials, but also distorts the perception of economic problems by the audience.