Illustrative Mapping of Migration Campaigns in the Southern European Region during the COVID-19 Pandemic : A comparative approach

Abstract: Within the contemporary migration field, from a theoretic point of view, the communication aspect of it has been identified as an emerging priority, as its impact can affect both the public opinion and policymaking itself. In order to identify trends portraying migration narratives, as ways of representing the migration phenomena in a set historiographical context, a dataset comprehending migration-related campaigns has been developed during the timeframe 2009 - 2018. Throughout the EU Member States, as well as the European Southern Neighbourhood Partner Countries (SPCs), 135 campaigns were retrieved online, shedding light on which were the aspect of migration emphasised (such as integration and smuggling and trafficking prevention), as well as the main stakeholders involved in the production of such communication initiatives. Through the usage of a web-based research for the years 2019-2021, the aforementioned dataset has been updated, by collecting secondary data of qualitative and quantitate nature of publicly funded migration-related campaigns in the Southern European Region. Based on the data, an illustrative mapping of current trends have been developed. The work was done in partnership with ICMPD – International Centre for Migration Policy Development (Migration Dialogue and Cooperation Directorate), within the EU-funded EMM5 (EUROMED V) programme. This project is aimed at establishing a comprehensive framework on migration, as well as being responsible for the creation of the previous database, through the preceding phase of the EUROMED programme itself (EMM4 - EUROMED IV). Because of the nature of the project, as well as the publicness of the dataset, campaigns aimed at negatively affect migrants/refugees’ lives have not been included in the research, in order to avoid at providing a platform to such messages. The 95 newly-gathered campaigns have been cross-referenced in order to highlight differences and similarities with the previous ones in terms of the overall narrative; stakeholder involvement; and the geo-political context in which the campaigns were made. Moreover, a particular focus was on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and its influence on the stakeholders involved in the migration-related activities themselves. The analysis of the migration-related campaigns reveals that the implementation of such initiatives has grown exponentially, with a surge during the year 2021, with 61 campaigns produced. Moreover, key trends in the communication narratives have been identified within the integration thematic area (49%), followed by the hate speech and xenophobia prevention (13%) and the asylum system (13%). The support and format used were aligned with the EMM4 dataset, as webpages and social media represent the main methods used throughout the Southern European Region. Regarding the stakeholders involved in the funding of the migration-related initiatives, the private sector has become a key player in the field, either financing or co-financing campaigns throughout the three years analysed, increasing from 4 campaigns between 2009-2018, to 32 in the timeframe 2019-2021.