Discursive Construction Of Government Image: A Critical Discourse Analysis Of H1N1News Reports Discourse

Drawing on the theories of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA for short), andapplying van Dijk’s sociocognitive approach, the present thesis analyzes the InfluenzaA H1N1top news report on China Daily.Firstly, the present study focuses on “context model”, analyzing addresser andaddresses, genre, communication act, etc. China Daily constructs a context modelfrom which we conclude the purpose of China Daily, that is, to construct a capable,confident and people-centered government image.Secondly, the present study analyzes the headlines employing transitivityanalysis to know the way in which China Daily represent the events. We find that thelinguistic expression chosen by China Daily contributes to construct Chinesegovernment image, and report the event at the same time.Thirdly, micro analyses on lexical choice, conceptual metaphor, andintertextuality was employed. Utilization of “masks”,“hospital”,“top and high level”construct a environment where people is under strict quarantine measures and beingsafety, so that people have faith in Chinese government. Besides, plenty of warmetaphors are employed in news reports, which construct a polarization betweenhuman being and the health crisis. Chinese government, as a leader, is respected andtrusted by the people. In addition, quotations from people in different social groupcontribute to show the implicit ideology of China Daily，which is a way to showcompliment to the Chinese government.