Truth is the first casualty of war : A media study of the Syrian Civil War. During the years 2011 - 2013

In the spring of 2011, major protests broke out against the Syrian leader Bashar Al-Assad. As a result of this, the Syrian Civil War, one that has cost hundreds of thousands of people their lives as well as forced millions from their homes into refuge, was initiated. The war is still today an ongoing conflict. The following study is a narrative analysis of how the Swedish press reported on the war. The main focus of the study will be placed on the actors, actions and motives from the articles. The source material consists of articles from three major Swedish newspapers that were published during three different time periods, ranging from the year of 2011 to the year of 2013. One general conclusion is that there are several similarities to be found between Swedish reports on the Syrian Civil war and the Gulf War, as well as the results from other studies on Swedish crisis communications. The results show that the three newspapers mediate a similar narrative with the same specific actors involved. The narratives are easy to understand, and the various roles assigned to the different actors are definite. Together, the articles tell a story of good versus evil. Few of the active domestic Syrian groups during the war are named in the articles. The foreign actors from the articles consist primarily of the Western superpowers, Arabic neighbors, the United Nations and the European Union. There is a great difference in relation to the expectations placed upon, as well as authority given to the Western countries and the Arabic ones. This is discussed in relation to the term Orientalism coined by Edward Said. The motives behind the actors actions are rarely named in the article, neither are their rights to make said actions specified. This could be explained through the narratives and the inherent need to press’ to simplify things. It could also be explained with what Kenneth Burke refers to as a transformation, in this case implying that motives can be found in the actors. A didactic discussion is also included