Representation of the nation brand of Iran in the photos of the Associated Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Mehdi Mohsenian rad
Hamid Abedi
Emam Sadegh University
10.22034/jcsc.2020.136092.2221
Abstract
National branding, has become one of the necessities facing countries in the age of globalization. Meanwhile, the international media, relying on their high influence, have a key role in constructing positive or negative meanings in the minds of their audiences and therefore Any representation provided by them will have a direct impact on strengthening or weakening the national brand of countries at the international level. The present research aims to determine the representation of the national brand of Iran in the Associated Press photos, which was done by deep content analysis of 16,994 photos by purposive sampling method and the data were categorized by reverse coding technique by software MRP. The results of the study show a very political and completely negative brand of the "government" dimension of Iran, as warmonger religious fundamentalists, sponsors of terrorism and inefficient, who violate the civil rights of citizens through censorship and banning the media, arresting and imprisoning political and civil activists and impose strict religious frameworks. However, in the period before the victory of the Islamic Revolution of Iran, a completely different representation of a modern aristocratic dictatorship with constructive and effective international interactions to strengthen world peace and security has been presented.

Keywords

 
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Cultural Studies & Communication
Volume 16, Issue 59
Summer 2020
Pages 311-351