The “Parallel State” Metaphor in the Discourse of Romanian Online News and Political Analysis Platforms Cover Image

The “Parallel State” Metaphor in the Discourse of Romanian Online News and Political Analysis Platforms
The “Parallel State” Metaphor in the Discourse of Romanian Online News and Political Analysis Platforms

Author(s): Alexandra Codău
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Philology
Published by: Ovidius University Press
Keywords: parallel state; press; discourse; political power; Romanian media.

Summary/Abstract: The present paper aims to study and understand how the “parallel state”metaphor has shaped the Romanian press speech in recent years, depending on the way in which certain on-line news and political analysis platforms have positioned themselves in relation to those in power at the time. The study approaches the concept of “parallel state”primarily from a historical point of view, referring to the appearance and, later on, its evolution in several political regimes from other countries than Romania, but also refers to editorial appearances that have this concept at their core. For example, the “parallel state”inspired even photographs in their creation, with British photographer Guy Martin spending five years to take pictures of the street protests and the Turkish coup in the summer of 2016,the result of this monitoring materializing in the volume The Parallel State, published by Gost Books. In Romania, the concept of “parallel state” has become the subject of a volume published by Humanitas Publishing House. This is the book of journalist Ramona Ursu,titled The Parallel State and published in 2019. Our study starts from the fact that the“parallel state” metaphor is actually not an original one in the Romanian press discourse,as during the last decade it had made a career in the society and the press in Turkey during the presidency of Recep Erdogan. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate that in Romanian press, the “parallel state” metaphor is used in opposite ways depending on how the on-line news and political analysis platforms relate to political power (the governing coalition),resulting in two systems of thought: on the one hand the concept is taken seriously by the media favouring the power while, on the other hand, the metaphor is ironized by other platforms.

  • Issue Year: XXX/2019
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 345-360
  • Page Count: 16
  • Language: English