Constructing the European Migrant: European Press Portrayals of Labor Migration

One of the most common depictions of migrants is that of being economic agents. Unlike certain narratives regarding migration that take on a primarily negative aspect, when situating migrants within the context of the labor market, press coverage can at times be negative when it is linked to issues such as welfare tourism or job competition, but it is also frequently touted as a solution for labor and skills shortages and a driver of economic growth. Have the rising number of refugee arrivals in 2015 and 2016 and the negative portrayal of migration during the run-up to Brexit had any impact on the balance of these narratives? This paper presents results from a 10-year examination of newspaper coverage of immigration in France, Germany, Spain, and the UK, tabulating the frequency with which these articles deal with labor market issues. Beyond offering a comparison of the relative frequencies of the most common meta-narratives developed in each country’s press (security, integration, or the labor market), this paper delves into which aspects of labor migration (i.e., skills shortage, job competition) are highlighted most commonly within each country. This comparison allows us to draw conclusions about whether this represents a common European-wide discourse, or to what degree such narratives retain national contours. The final point of examination involves a temporal comparison of the nature of the labor migration narrative in these countries in the years leading up to 201516 as compared to patterns in the wake of developments since that time.