In What Way Do ‘They’ Threaten ‘Us’? : A Rhetorical Analysis of the Sweden Democrats’ Discourse Around Immigration Between 2010 and 2014

Abstract: This thesis explores discourse of the Sweden Democrats around the issue of immigration and provides an overview of changes that occurred in Sweden Democrats’ rhetoric and argumentation from National election in 2010 until the election in 2014. The study offers an analytical contribution to the field of media and communication and provides readers with the insight of right wing online activism. Qualitative in its core, and based on the theory of framing, the study analyzed video material uploaded by the Sweden Democrats on their official Youtube channel. Results are organized thematically in the way in which party framed the issue of immigration (threat to a national identity, the cause of criminal actions, unemployment and welfare abuse). The Sweden Democrats use their YouTube page as a tool for alternative political communication. The findings indicate a major shift in their rhetoric about the issue of immigration from sharp criticism of mass immigration on religious and cultural grounds toward criticism based on economical and financial grounds. On their journey towards more democratic norms, the Sweden Democrats sought to give an impression of new, changed party, distant from racial roots by employing ‘softened’ rhetoric and blowing a ‘dog whistle’.