DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF REFUGEE REPRESENTATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA: THE CASE OF EKSI SOZLUK

Year 2025, Issue: 67, 83 - 99

Çiğdem Manap

Abstract

This study critically examines the discourses surrounding Syrian refugees expressed by users of Eksi Sozluk, a prominent social media platform in Türkiye. The research aims to understand the social representations of Syrian refugees within this online community and to explore how these representations contribute to forming refugee and immigrant identities in the host society. To accomplish this, entries categorized under "Syrian Refugees" were analyzed using critical discourse analysis. A stratified sampling method was employed, selecting every tenth entry (e.g., 1, 11, 21, 31, 41…) related to the topic. Entries that contained profanity or excessively racist language were excluded from the analysis. The research data were gathered and examined through document analysis, a qualitative research method. The analytical framework is grounded in three core discourse categories: “differentiating the other,” “differentiating the self,” and “the enemy in our minds.” These categories emerge from narratives that position Syrian refugees as the "other." The study concludes that emphasizing ethnic origins and other distinctions heightens awareness of the self and the other, thereby deepening the "us and them" dichotomy. This research underscores the influence of social media discourses on societal perceptions and prejudices, highlighting the importance of critical discourse analysis as a methodological tool in such investigations.

Keywords

refugee representation, social media, qualitative media analysis, eksi sozluk, construction of the Other

SOSYAL MEDYADA MÜLTECİ TEMSİLİNİN SÖYLEM ANALİZİ: EKŞİ SÖZLÜK ÖRNEĞİ

Abstract

Bu çalışmada, Türkiye’deki sosyal medya platformlarından biri olan Ekşi Sözlükte kullanıcıların Suriyeli mültecilere yönelik söylemleri eleştirel bir çerçevede incelenmiştir. Araştırma, sosyal medya kullanıcılarının Suriyeli mültecilere ilişkin sosyal temsillerini anlamayı ve bu temsillerin ev sahibi topluluğun mülteci/göçmen kimliğini nasıl inşa ettiğini ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu kapsamda, sözlükte "Suriyeli Mülteciler" başlığı altında yer alan girdiler eleştirel söylem analizi yöntemiyle değerlendirilmiştir. Araştırma tabakalı örnekleme yöntemiyle seçilen girdiler üzerinden gerçekleştirilmiştir. Çalışmaya konu başlığın girdileri onar atlanarak (1, 11, 21, 31, 41…) çalışmaya dahil edilmiş ve küfür ya da aşırı ırkçı ifadeler içeren paylaşımlar dışarıda bırakılmıştır. Araştırma verileri, nitel bir yöntem olan doküman analizi aracılığıyla toplanmış ve analiz edilmiştir. Çalışmanın analiz çerçevesi, “ötekini farklılaştırma,” “kendini farklılaştırma” ve “içimizdeki düşman” başlıkları altında üç temel söylem kategorisine dayanmaktadır. Bu kategoriler, Suriyeli mültecileri "öteki" olarak konumlandıran anlatılardan türetilmiştir. Çalışmada, etnik köken ve diğer farklılıklara odaklanmanın, öz ve öteki farkındalığını artırarak “biz ve onlar” ayrımını daha da derinleştirdiği sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Bu araştırma, sosyal medya söylemlerinin toplumsal algılar ve önyargılar üzerindeki etkisini ortaya koyarken, eleştirel söylem analizi yönteminin bu tür çalışmalardaki önemine dikkat çekmektedir.

Keywords

mülteci temsili, sosyal medya, nitel medya analizi, ekşi sözlük, ötekinin inşası

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