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Disparaging ‘the Assisted’: Shaming and Blaming Social Welfare Recipients in Romania and Hungary

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Mediated Shame of Class and Poverty Across Europe

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Abstract

This chapter analyses social media discourses disparaging the poor in Romania and Hungary, where groups receiving benefits, labelled ‘the assisted’ are regularly shamed for their ‘ways’. The chapter combines quantitative analysis of discursive patterns in comments to social media posts of news organisations with the qualitative analysis of visual content posted. Apart from being disparaged and shamed, ‘the assisted’ are also blamed for various other phenomena, from economic hardships to political processes. Thus, social media discourses use references to ‘the assisted’ as an empty signifier providing a language for expressing a wide range of experiences, grievances and public anxieties.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    EUROSTAT 2018. Severe material deprivation rate. Dataset. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/products-datasets/product?code=tespm030 (accessed 20 July 2020).

  2. 2.

    11,000 reactions; 21,000 comments; 31,000 comments; 2,400,000 views (accessed 26 October 2019).

  3. 3.

    Recorder: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1652838694832000 (accessed 11 June 2018).

  4. 4.

    Recorder: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1652838694832000 (accessed 11 June 2018).

  5. 5.

    EchoTV: https://www.facebook.com/echotelevizio/videos/1657431707634949/ (accessed 30 August 2017); engagement on 26 October 2019: 243 reactions, 142 comments, 258 shares, 97,000 views.

  6. 6.

    EchoTV: https://www.facebook.com/echotelevizio/videos/1657431707634949/ (accessed 30 August 2017).

  7. 7.

    Aplicatia Biziday: https://www.facebook.com/BizidayApp/posts/1639035456141689 (accessed 30 September 2017).

  8. 8.

    StirileProTv: https://www.facebook.com/StirileProTV/videos/10154280717652266/, post on election results (accessed 12 November 2016).

  9. 9.

    Recorder: https://www.facebook.com/1270127716436435_1466683220114216 (accessed 12 December 2017).

  10. 10.

    Magyar Fórum: https://www.facebook.com/magyarforumonline/videos/1551076134922890/ (accessed 6 June 2017).

  11. 11.

    888.hu: https://www.facebook.com/748348838626461_1012397028888306 (accessed 13 November 2016).

  12. 12.

    Tények.hu: https://www.facebook.com/tenyek/videos/10156950990052289/ (accessed 1 August 2016).

  13. 13.

    Blikk.hu: https://www.facebook.com/136848826340367_1997723993586165 (accessed 15 December 2017).

  14. 14.

    Hvg.hu: https://www.facebook.com/131283758531_10157497037163532 (accessed 16 June 2018).

  15. 15.

    Aplicația Biziday: https://www.facebook.com/183610068350909_1912076772170888 (accessed 19 June 2018).

  16. 16.

    Tetelejurnal: https://www.facebook.com/1086457121414489_1588948951165301 (accessed 26 October 2017).

  17. 17.

    In the semiotic theory of Charles Peirce, logic, linguistics and philosophy terms/concepts have two correlative aspects—the intension indicates the content of the term or concept, the features that constitute its definition, whereas the extension indicates its applicability through the set of all particular objects that the term or concept denotes.

  18. 18.

    ȘtirileProTV: https://www.facebook.com/StirileProTV/videos/10155821729857266/ (accessed 23 June 2018).

  19. 19.

    Mérce: https://www.facebook.com/magyarinfo/videos/10155128999908467/ (accessed 24 April 2017).

  20. 20.

    EchoTV: https://www.facebook.com/264517713636590_1659607524127595 (accessed 25 March 2018).

  21. 21.

    444.hu: https://www.facebook.com/490030231058740_2216931061701973 (accessed 23 December 2018).

  22. 22.

    Recorder: https://www.facebook.com/1270127716436435_1737893716326497 (accessed 1 August 2018).

  23. 23.

    Blikk: https://www.facebook.com/136848826340367_1266637530028152 (accessed 8 June 2016).

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Acknowledgement

This work was supported by a grant from the Ministry of Research and Innovation, CNCS-UEFISCDI, project number PN-III-P1-1.1-TE-2016-0892, within PNCDI III.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Communications, Babeș–Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Hanna Orsolya Vincze

  2. Department of Journalism and Digital Media, Babeș–Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania

    Andreea Alina Mogoș & Radu Mihai Meza

Authors
  1. Hanna Orsolya Vincze
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  2. Andreea Alina Mogoș
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  3. Radu Mihai Meza
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hanna Orsolya Vincze .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Social Sciences Department of Media Studies, Institute of Communication Studies and Journalism Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

    Irena Reifová

  2. Faculty of Social Sciences Department of Sociology, Institute of Sociological Studies Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

    Martin Hájek

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Vincze, H.O., Mogoș, A.A., Meza, R.M. (2021). Disparaging ‘the Assisted’: Shaming and Blaming Social Welfare Recipients in Romania and Hungary. In: Reifová, I., Hájek, M. (eds) Mediated Shame of Class and Poverty Across Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73543-2_8

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