Swedish TV's World Cup Coverage Reinforced Western Superiority Narrative
A new study of Qatar World Cup broadcasts reveals how Swedish media portrayed the Middle East as culturally backward and threatening to Western values—a pattern that shapes public perception and policy debates. The findings expose how sports coverage actively constructs geopolitical divisions, with implications for how media outlets frame international stories and influence audience attitudes toward non-Western nations.
Originaltitel: The Middle East through a Western lens: the (re)production of imaginaries in the Qatar World Cup media coverage
This study aims to illustrate how the Swedish TV broadcasts (re)produce postcolonial imaginaries of Qatar and the Middle East and of Sweden and the West, during the Qatar World Cup. Using a visual discourse analysis, the article analyses how such imaginaries of Qatar and the Middle East are presented as a cultural and political contrast to Sweden and the West. This contrast is portrayed as a threat to 'Western' values, while Sweden and the West are depicted as an exceptional society. Finally, we discuss the consequences of these postcolonial imaginaries and problematise the role of sports media.