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Discouraging citizenship? Young people's reactions to news media coverage of anti-Iraq war protesting in the UK

Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies, UK

Drawing on a survey completed by 699 young people in the UK at the beginning of the 2003 war in Iraq, this article explores young people's reactions to how young anti-war protestors were represented in news media. The survey taps into young people's opinions at a key democratic moment when many school children — to the surprise of many politicians and journalists — took to the streets to demonstrate their opposition to UK foreign policy making.

The findings suggest that news coverage of the anti-war protests discouraged some young people from participating in the political public sphere. Many respondents also provided suggestions as to how news media could renew a sense of political efficacy amongst young people in ways that might encourage a greater connection between their political beliefs and key democratic structures.

Key Words: young people • citizenship • news media • war coverage • politics

Young, Vol. 17, No. 2, 123-143 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/110330880901700202


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