In the coverage of forced migration by European mainstream media, the voice of migrants is often absent. However, a new counter-movement of independent crónica is emerging, seeking to redefine and reimagine dominant narratives of migration. In the new crónica of migration, migrants are no longer relegated to the role of mere ‘informants’ but as ‘owners’ and authors of their own stories.
Unravelling success in alternative migration narratives
Alternative narratives can seem difficult to hear amid the overwhelmingly negative discourse surrounding migration. However, this is a problem inasmuch as less dominant and less foregrounded narratives are crucial to an inclusive democracy. An important part in this is the work NGOs are doing in developing and fostering alternative migration narratives as well as actively countering xenophobic narratives.
Dwindling narratives
Will the Italian right continue a pragmatic mitigation of its initially uncompromising anti-migrationist and sovereignist narrative? Or will it persist in an ambiguous mix of threat frames and utilitarian arguments speaking to the wallet of the electorate? This op-ed by Ferruccio Pastore reflects on the structural constraints faced by Giorgia Meloni’s sovereignist migration narrative after she took power in October 2022.
Why information campaigns struggle to dissuade migrants from coming to Europe
This op-ed summarises the research carried out in The Gambia as part of BRIDGES Work Package 6 on the role of narratives in migratory decision-making, thus reflecting on how young Gambians perceive and react to the messages put forward in EU-funded information campaigns.
Melilla, One More Step
The deaths at the Melilla border fence on 24 June 2022 are one more step, now because of the brutality of the images and the terms of justification afterwards. Building on previous narratives, they claim that traffickers are the real culprits, and migration is a threat to national security. Beyond all the words, what the facts reveal is that, to ensure fewer arrivals, Europe is willing to pay any price.
Convinced to Stay? The Impact of EU-Funded Information Campaigns in West Africa
The EU is trying to discourage Africans from travelling irregularly to Europe, but can they be persuaded to stay in African countries? This op-ed shows how an EU-funded narrative is perceived by West African youth in The Gambia.
Conceptualising migration narratives
BRIDGES defines narratives as those attempts by actors to develop and convey plausible accounts and interpretations of a phenomenon, event or series of events, person or a group of persons. Narratives are not only simple descriptions. By definition, narratives are characterised by a certain degree of stability and consistency over time and/or across space.
