(De)humanization and (Dis)trust: representations of Muslims in the UK newspapers following the 7/7 London bombings

Journal article

Dehumanization and distrust can have devastating consequences for intergroup relations. Until now, few studies have examined the ways in which both (de)humanizing and (dis)trustful discourse are presented in popular media. Recognizing the detrimental effects of terrorism on intergroup attitudes and the power of media in influencing social and political attitudes, the present research examined the frequency of (de)humanizing and (dis)trustful statements in newspaper coverage of the July 7, 2005, London bombings in the aftermath and at the 10-year anniversary of the attack. Drawing from theoretical work on dehumanization, it was expected that (de)humanizing content in media coverage about a stereotyped outgroup would be linked to (dis)trust of that group, and would also be linked to political orientation of the media source. Primary analyses were conducted using an existing manual coding framework for frequency of (de)humanizing and (dis)trustful statements. Results from the coding show that dehumanizing and distrusting discourse was more frequent than humanizing and trusting discourse. Whereas dehumanization was significantly correlated with distrust only in the right-wing source, humanization was significantly correlated with trust only in the left-wing source. The findings advance theoretical understandings of (de)humanization and humanization as they manifest in media discourse following a terrorist event, and how these relate to outgroup (dis)trust. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved) Public Significance Statement: An analysis of UK newspaper coverage of the 7/7 bombings in London revealed a high frequency of dehumanizing discourse about Muslims, particularly in the aftermath (compared to the 10-year anniversary). Further, results varied based on political orientation of the source, such that dehumanization of Muslims was associated with distrust in the right-wing news source, whereas humanization was associated with trust in the left-wing news source.

Authors: Haji, R; McKeown, S; Matthews, A; Platten, S

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: American Psychological Association
• Journal: Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology
• Volume: 27
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 256-267
• Publication date: 2021-05-01
• Acceptance date: 2021-05-01
• DOI: 10.1037/pac0000501
• EISSN: 1532-7949
• ISSN: 1078-1919
• Language: English
• Keywords: terrorism; FFR; intergroup trust; political orientation; dehumanization; Islamophobia