Anti-Catalanism, moral panics and the Catalan language: the case of Ciudadanos de segunda

Crameri, K. (2015) Anti-Catalanism, moral panics and the Catalan language: the case of Ciudadanos de segunda. Journal of Iberian and Latin American Research, 21(2), pp. 184-198. (doi: 10.1080/13260219.2015.1092491)

Abstract

ncreasingly fervent expressions of anti-Catalanism by Spanish institutions and individuals are one of the reasons behind the Catalans’ increasing support for independence. Negative categorisations of the Catalans partly revolve around the use of Catalan as the main medium of instruction in education, portrayed as an aggressive attempt to rid the region of the Spanish language. This specific form of anti-Catalanism is examined through the television documentary Ciudadanos de segunda, which constructs an unambiguous condemnation of Catalan language policies out of seemingly balanced interview material. The film is analysed in the light of theories of moral panic as applied to language issues by Sally Johnson (1999) and others. The analysis reveals that the documentary bears the hallmarks of an attempt to create a moral panic, which, although not fully successful, did contribute to an on-going campaign of sensitization waged by the right-wing Spanish media to promote negative images of Catalonia to other Spaniards.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Crameri, Professor Kathryn
• Authors: Crameri, K.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Modern Languages and Cultures > Hispanic Studies
• Journal Name: Journal of Iberian and Latin American Research
• Publisher: Routledge
• ISSN: 1326-0219
• ISSN (Online): 2151-9668
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2015 Association of Iberian and Latin American Studies of Australasia (AILASA)
• First Published: First published in Journal of Iberian and Latin American Research 21(2):184-198
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher