The Ambivalent Character of Political Correctness and the Media

Authors:

Pages: 74-91

Abstract:

The wave of immigrants surging towards Europe has put the parliaments of multicultural societies to a test. The crisis has sparked again the debates about ‘political correctness’, which is a product of multiculturalism. The present paper tackles primarily the media dimensions of political correctnes and the system of rules governing a specific type of social behaviour characterised i.a. by the language used. The basic idea thereof is not to offend or disrespect people on grounds of their origin, religion, gender, etc. The overview of the socio-cultural and political circumstances in which political correctness evolves, as well as the evolution of its methods and its representation in different societies confirm the original hypothesis about its ambivalent character. The conclusion is that journalists must in principle use politically correct language without turning it into a needlessly rigorous imperative.

Keywords:

political correctness, journalist ethics, media, multiculturalism, neoliberalism, roma

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