An Exploration of Transcultural Othering in the Print Media: Asian Communities During COVID-19 in Canada and the US

Abstract

This thesis explores the transcultural othering of Asian communities in the Canadian and American print media during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using content analysis, I analyzed 226 magazine articles published by Maclean's and Newsweek between February 1st, 2020 and April 30th, 2021. My analysis found 17 othering mechanisms were used against Asian communities. China was the most frequently discussed country within the data and contributed to a negative portrayal of Asians overall. Political articles were identified as the primary source of exclusionary othering towards Asians, whereas articles on COVID-19 were mostly inclusionary. This thesis contributes to the extant literature by further theorizing how and where transcultural othering occurs. It challenges established notions of the mainstream media scapegoating illnesses on transcultural communities during pandemics as a predominant source of exclusionary othering during COVID-19 and suggests that the print media's political coverage was a greater source of exclusion. Implications and limitations are discussed.