Patterns and Contrasts: Comparing the Evolution of Minority Representation in Broadsheets Over Two Decades

Minoritized groups’ portrayal in mass media is a reflection of pluralism in societies. It highlights and creates the narratives of similarities and differences that shape how ethnic, religious, gender, and sexual minorities are perceived, both by majority groups and among minority communities themselves. Political trends challenging diversity in mainstream society clash with those who defend it, and this struggle trickles down into people’s daily lives regardless of their awareness of the topic or their interest in it. This dynamic is visible in media narratives, where the shifts in representation of minoritized groups reveal societal and ideological tensions surrounding diversity. This paper contributes to filling a research gap regarding the comparative differences in the portrayal of minoritized groups across national contexts and time, this paper asks: How do the representation of minoritized groups differ across Germany, Poland, the UK, and the US in broadsheet newspapers between 2002 and 2021?. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, we combine salience analysis, sentiment analysis, and Structural Topic Modelling (STM) to explore how minoritized groups are represented in terms of prominence, tone, and overarching themes in media narratives. Narrative analysis is performed to better understand the contrasts in the media portrayal surrounding the groups with the most negative and most positive outlook in each country. Results reveal notable geographic and temporal differences in the visibility and depiction of minoritized groups. Between 2002 and 2016, media coverage showed a gradual increase in salience alongside a stable set of associated topics. 2016 marked a significant change, particularly in the US and the UK. News coverage surged in volume, but the increase was accompanied by a negative shift in sentiment, particularly in news articles referring to Muslims, and migrants. Media attention to these groups remained high until 2020, where salience stagnated and coverage of ethnic minorities increased, accompanied by a shift in negative tone and stigmatization, understood as unfair public disapproval. Findings demonstrate underrepresentation of minoritized groups in topics other than policy, economy, and security. Additionally, the lack of intersectional coverage of minoritized groups emphasizes one-dimensional narratives. Across all categories, there is a focus on men as a dominant group, limiting the visibility of women and nonbinary individuals. Results highlight the need for continuous transformation of media perspectives, as a match for the external changes present in globalized societies. Characteristics of the portrayal of minoritized groups contribute to a better understanding of societal dynamics and the strengthening (or weakening) of democratic values, describing them is a first step towards their explanation and potential improvement.