Negotiating Polishness: Self-Discourse and Media Representations of Polish Migrants in Scotland

Author : Aneta Duda

Abstract :This study examines how migrants’ self-presentation on diaspora social media relates to their portrayal in digital editions of Scottish newspapers. Drawing on transnationalism, media framing, and anchoring theory, we propose a frame-dependent mechanism of conditional inclusion that travels from news texts into online diasporic practice. We outline theory and synthesize two prior phases: (a) analysis of 2024–2025 coverage in the digital editions of the Daily Record, The Herald, and The Scotsman, and (b) analysis of 2024–2025 posts and comments in Polish Facebook groups in Scotland. Building on these findings, we trace interplay between representations of Polish migrants in editions and their social-media discussions. Methodologically, we combine qualitative close reading, dictionary-based coding, and a within–fixed-effects lagged panel linking 30 weeks of news data to Facebook activity. Results indicate policy→services packages—visa rules framed through service continuity and quality—are followed by a rise in functional and hybrid anchoring online (A5). By contrast, policy→order/statistics frames show only weak, inconsistent links to symbolic contention (A1). We theorize these interactions as modes of anchoring distinguishing fear appeals from practical coordination. We discuss implications for public institutions, for newsrooms weighing frame choices, and for diaspora-support initiatives designing interventions that leverage service-oriented frames without amplifying boundary-making or stigma

Keywords :Diaspora media, press, anchoring, framing, conditional inclusion.

Conference Name :International Conference on Immigration Studies (ICIS-25)

Conference Place Antwerp,Belgium

Conference Date 8th Dec 2025