On Migrant Workers’ Social Status in Taiwan: A Critical Analysis of Mainstream News Discourse

Authors

  • Hsin-I Cheng Santa Clara University

Keywords:

Asia, discourse analysis, migration, newspapers, social positions

Abstract

It is estimated that around 20 million Southeast Asians work outside of their home country. In 1991, Taiwan first introduced about 3,000 migrant workers from Thailand. In mid-2015, there were approximately 579,000 migrant workers who came under the category of foreign laborers mainly from Southeast Asia. However, there is scarce research on representations of the south–south international migration. This study critically analyzes mainstream news discourse on migrant workers in Taiwan to discern their relations to their residing society. Four themes emerged: objectification of foreign laborers; differentiated and gendered marginalization; multilevel triangulations over migrant bodies; and imperialistic cultural attitudes toward migrant workers. Through omissions, inferences, and emphases on particular events in news reports, the migrant workers are in an impossible position to exist politically, economically, and culturally in Taiwanese society.

Author Biography

Hsin-I Cheng, Santa Clara University

Hsin-I Cheng (Ph.D. Bowling Green State University, 2006) is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at Santa Clara University. She explores how multiple identities are intersected and negotiated in relation to border-crossing and multicultural practices. She is the author of Culturing Interface: Identity, Communication, and Chinese Transnationalism. Her research has appeared in Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, Journal of Intercultural Communication, and Women & Language. Her book Culturing Interface investigates the experiences of a Chinese and Taiwanese community on the U.S.-Mexico border from a critical communication perspective. Some of her work appears in Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, Language and Intercultural Communication, and Women & Language. Her current research continues to bridge boundaries of communication, immigration, and globalization. - See more at: http://www.scu.edu/profiles/?p=5529#sthash.kpcKRmUM.dpuf

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Published

2016-05-25

Issue

Vol. 10 (2016)

Section

Articles

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