WAR, INVASION OR (MILITARY) INTERVENTION? – SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE REALITY OF THE RUSSIAN ATTACK ON UKRAINE IN THE MACEDONIAN LANGUAGE MEDIA

Abstract

Social construction refers to the meaning, concept or connotation given to an object or
event by society and adopted by members of society in relation to how they view or deal with
a particular phenomenon or event. The media are one of the main social actors – participants
in that process of social construction of reality, and language and culture are the frameworks
through which people experience, communicate and understand reality.On February 24,
2022, Russia launched a military invasion of Ukraine, and the media everywhere, even in
Macedonia, was flooded with information about the events. The media are almost the only
sources of information about this event, so it is very important to analyze how the media
reported, especially in the early days, when people were trying to understand what was
happening in Ukraine, what kind of event it was and what consequences they should prepare
for in the future.This research will analyze the texts in the Macedonian language media in
the first days, found in the Internet space with search keywords: Russia, Ukraine, invasion,
war, intervention, Putin, Zelenski. The main research question is: “How the media (in the
Macedonian language) in Macedonia constructed the social reality for the events in Ukraine”,
so the focus of the analysis will be the main topics related to this event, the parties and
actorsinvolved in the event, the type and credibility of the sources used. An attempt will
be made to predict what reactions the information they read and hear on a daily basis will
provoke in people.