Protest Against the Deportation of Rejected Asylum Seekers in the Local and National Press in Switzerland

Objective: Examine whether a focus on national newspapers biases the coverage of protest against the deportation of rejected asylum seekers. Methods: Articles on the deportation of rejected asylum seekers in the local press were analysed in the same manner as articles in the national press. Descriptive statistics are used to compare the coverage of protest. Results: There is a clear tendency for the local press to report more protest from the geographical area they are based in. The characteristics of these protests, however, are comparable to those reported in the national press. Conclusions: A focus on national newspapers seems to undercount the volume of protest taking place, but not introduce large biases in the kind of protest covered.

SSRN Working Paper