Den kriminella ungdomen, ansvaret och åtgärderna - En kritisk diskursanalys av några mediers syn på ungdomskriminalitet

Abstract: In 2022, juvenile delinquency has been extensively debated in Sweden. Young people as a group are the most criminally active and it is natural to focus on this group in the discussion of crime. The media has the power in spreading knowledge and influencing the public's view and perception of social problems. This study aims to examine, through critical discourse analysis, the discourses some media use in the construction of criminal youth, who is responsible for the crime, and which measures are appropriate. This is to better understand how the criminal youth is constructed in today's society. This essay rests on the constructivist perspective, which assumes that we shape our reality with the help of language. Using Fairclough's critical discourse analysis, we examine 69 articles published in Aftonbladet, Expressen, and SVT Nyheter during the time period from the first of January to the end of September 2022. The essay is based on a qualitative method with discourse theory as a starting point. In the presentation of our results, we use the theoretical concepts of victimization, labeling theory, and voluntaristic and deterministic causal explanations. The study shows that the youth is incapable of active action and the responsibility is placed on society. Despite this, we see how in the reporting on measures, the focus is mostly on harsher punishments.