The Gaza War: Text Analysis

Authors

  • Namkil Kang

    College of Liberal Arts, Far East University, Chungbuk, Republic of Korea

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v6i6.7638
Received: 29 October 2024 | Revised: 11 November 2024 | Accepted: 11 November 2024 | Published Online: 9 December 2024

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to conduct a text analysis of 40 BBC News broadcasts from the year 2024. Notably, the term "Gaza" appears with the highest frequency, totaling 335 tokens, and occupies a significant proportion of the coverage. This prominence is further illustrated by its substantial representation in a word cloud, suggesting its status as a pivotal topic. Additionally, the term "Israel" ranks second in prominence, indicating its relevance, though slightly less so than Gaza. Other noteworthy keywords include "homes," "base," "campaign," "attack," "conditions," "group," "leader," and "ceasefire," all of which contribute to the narrative surrounding the conflict. The data reveals that "Gaza" has a 10.5% likelihood of being identified as a main topic, while "Israel" has an 8.4% likelihood. Moreover, the similarity index indicates that the terms "Gaza" and "BBC" share the highest degree of similarity, followed closely by "Hamas" and "Gaza." These findings underscore the importance of language in shaping public perception and discourse surrounding complex geopolitical issues. In conclusion, BBC News does not take a stance in favor of either Israel or Hamas; rather, it maintains a neutral position. This impartiality is effectively illustrated through various analytical methods, including term frequency analysis, word cloud analysis, network analysis, topic analysis, and similarity analysis.

Keywords:

Big Data; Topic; Similarity; Term Frequency; Network; Word Cloud; Cluster

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How to Cite

Kang, N. (2024). The Gaza War: Text Analysis. Forum for Linguistic Studies, 6(6), 589–604. https://doi.org/10.30564/fls.v6i6.7638

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