I would like to thank Dr Richard Freeman and Dr Lynn Dobson from the University of Edinburgh for their help and support conducting this research and for reading and commenting on previous drafts of the article. The newspaper articles cited in this article were accessed using LexisNexis in October 2007 and are available at: «http://www.lexisnexis.com/uk/legal/srcsel/sourceDirectory.do?rand=1249131163092&origin=SRCDIR».
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Nation, Separation and Threat: An Analysis of British Media Discourses on the European Union Treaty Reform Process†
Article first published online: 11 APR 2012
DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-5965.2012.02248.x
© 2012 The Author(s) JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
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How to Cite
HAWKINS, B. (2012), Nation, Separation and Threat: An Analysis of British Media Discourses on the European Union Treaty Reform Process. JCMS: Journal of Common Market Studies, 50: 561–577. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-5965.2012.02248.x
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Publication History
- Issue published online: 8 JUN 2012
- Article first published online: 11 APR 2012
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Abstract
This article examines the framing of the European Union in British media debates surrounding the negotiation of the Lisbon Treaty. As such, it analyzes the discursive context in which both citizens' attitudes and government policies towards the EU are formed. It identifies a predominant, Eurosceptic discourse that dictates the terrain on which wider debates about the EU are conducted. This discourse views the EU through the lens of the nation-state and frames the relationship between the United Kingdom and the EU in terms of separation and threat. The United Kingdom is excluded from the EU mainstream, which works to undermine its interests.