A Pragma-Dialectical Approach to Critical Media Discourse Analysis: A Case Study of an Editorial in The Washington Post

Abstract

本文以语用论辩学这一成熟的论辩理论为 理论基础，以《华盛顿邮报》一篇有关阿里巴巴 首次公开募股的社论为案例，探究批判性媒体 话语分析的语用论辩研究路径。以期透过表层 的语言使用，揭示其背后隐藏的意识形态、探 究作者的真实意图。该路径主要包含四个部分： 话语的论辩性重构、策略操控分析、合理性评 价以及结合具体社会背景的社会批判。研究结 果表明，《华盛顿邮报》在论辩过程中通过使用 多种策略操控来实现其对受众的说服，主要体 现在潜在话题、受众需求和表达手段三个方面 的运筹帷幄。在案例中具体表现为开始阶段的 出发点选取和论辩阶段的论证设计。然而，由 于编委会自身政治立场和倾向的影响，它在使 用策略操控时并未实现合理性和有效性的平 衡。在论辩过程中，为了阻止美国投资者对阿 里巴巴首次公开募股的投资，《华盛顿邮报》在 使用策略操控时违反了自由规则、立场规则和 论证图示规则特别是类比型和因果型论证图示 的运用存在一定不足。 Based on the research framework of Pragma-Dialectics, the study analyses and evaluates an editorial about Alibaba’s Initial Public Offering (IPO) in The Washington Post to develop a pragma-dialectical approach to critical media discourse analysis. The approach consists of four interrelated parts: reconstruction of argumentation, analysis of strategic maneuvering, evaluation of reasonableness and social criticism on the basis of specific social reality. The research results show that The Washington Post exerts different strategic maneuvering in the whole argumentation process to convince its audience, which mainly reflected in the manipulation of potential topic, audience demand and presentation means. In the case study, strategic maneuvering is specifically supported by the choice of starting points in the opening stage and the design of argumentation structure in the argumentation stage. Owing to the influence from the editorial board’s political stand and self-interest, it doesn’t balance the reasonableness and effectiveness and therefore some manipulations contain fallacious moves. In order to prevent American investors to invest Alibaba’s IPO, when using strategic maneuvering The Washington Post violates freedom rule, standpoint rule and argument scheme rule, especially the application of argumentation scheme for the relation of analogy and argumentation scheme for a causal relation.