CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS IN THE STUDY OF MEDIA TRANSLATIONS

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of media text translation within the paradigm of critical discourse analysis, with the aim of identifying the mechanisms through which ideological, communicative, and cultural meanings are represented in the process of interlingual information transfer. The methodological framework of the study is based on an interdisciplinary approach that integrates the analytical tools of critical discourse analysis, translation studies, and media linguistics, enabling translation to be viewed as a form of discursive interpretation embedded in a specific social and political context. The article substantiates the thesis that translation decisions in media discourse are value-laden and actively participate in the construction of ideological frameworks of meaning. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of transformations of agency, modality, evaluative and legitimising lexis, as well as the nomination of social actors in translation. Drawing on English, French, German, and Portuguese versions of media texts, including Euronews publications and translations of direct statements by political actors, the study demonstrates that even minor lexico-syntactic shifts can alter the interpretation of events, redistribute responsibility among discourse participants, and influence the degree of legitimation of governmental decisions. The article further shows that translation may serve both to reproduce dominant ideological narratives and to critically reframe them through shifts in evaluative emphasis, euphemisation, or, conversely, the explicit articulation of the conflict potential of the message. The role of translation in shaping crisis, mobilisation, and legitimation discourses is examined in the context of EU economic policy, the war in Ukraine, and international sanctions. It is concluded that the application of critical discourse analysis to the translation of media texts is methodologically productive and promising, as it makes it possible to reveal translation as an instrument of discursive power that influences the formation of public opinion and the interpretation of socially significant events within the national information space.