Interdisciplinary Studies in Media and Culture

Analysing conceptual elements of “migration industry” discourse on Instagram

Document Type : .

Authors

Shima Farzadmanesh 1
Mohammadsaeed Zokaei 2

1 Ph.D student in Cultural Sociology, Social Sciences department, Allameh Tabatabae'i university.

2 Professor in Allameh Tabatabae'i University

https://doi.org/10.30465/ismc.2024.45244.2730
Abstract
Abstract
This research is based on the issue of increasing the desire to migrate in Iran, around the concept of "mediatized migration", and the main question is based on this question: How is the discourse of the migration industry conceptualized, interpreted and constructed on Instagram? The research method is internet qualitative and discourse analysis is used as the technique. The conceptual framework includes Hansen-Sorensen's immigration industry theory and critical theory, and the findings show that the actors of the immigration industry discourse in the virtual space - which include bloggers and immigration institutions - use mechanisms such as "representation of immigration as a success", " the construction of a binary of foreign and homeland" and finally "emphasis on integration solutions in the culture of migration destinations", provided the reasons for the mental migration of the survivors of physical migration in an imaginary sphere, that articulate the discourse of the migration industry and produce the desirous subject of migration. The hegemonic discourse of the immigration industry and the intensification of immigration aspiration will prevent any hope and effort to improve things in the society in the long time and will create a wave of individual and collective feeling of blockage and failure.
Keywords: Migration Industry, Instagram, Discourse Analysis, Migration Aspiration, Desirous Subject, Migration.
Introduction
The purpose of this study is analyze the fantasy of migration on the Instagram network, in the form of the migration industry discourse. As an academic concept, the "migration industry" has been academically documented for about 35 years. Apart from the economic, political and educational factors, what has been neglected in the understanding of the widespread desire of Iranians to emigrate during these years is the contribution of the change in their values and attitudes.

Materials & Methods
The research method is internet qualitative, the used technique is discourse analysis. The sampling method of the research is based on purposeful sampling and the field is the Instagram network. Also, the unit of analysis is "Post".

Discussion and Result
The findings have been analyzed and identified around the mechanisms of the immigration industry discourse. The hegemonic discourse of the immigration industry in the Iran’s public sphere is affected by the processes that have been created in the dialectic between the Iranians' mental image of the occident and internal problems. The best field for understanding these processes is the the social media that provide the possibility of interaction between millions of people.
According to Hansen and Sorensen (2013), currently, migration has turned from a social phenomenon into a commercial industry, and this commercial industry has also produced its own discourse to build its subjects. The subject of this discourse is the aspirational subject of Desirous immigration. A subject who is dissatisfied with the current situation, but has no hope or effort to change and the only possibility to satisfy him is migration. A situation that may never happen, but does not change the subject's identity.
The symptoms of the semantic system of the immigration industry discourse include migration as a success, the duality of an imaginary place called the Occident and the Homeland, mental migration in an imaginary sphere.
Also, the agents of the immigration industry discourse include insta-immigrants and immigration institutions. The actors of the immigration industry articulate the chain of meanings of this discourse at micro and macro levels. The phrase "specialized consultation and services of immigration" can be seen in the profiles of many insta-immigrants. Immigrants who have been studying and working in fields other than immigration and have no background as immigration consultants; but the possibility of influencing the audience and becoming an immigrant influencer, tempts them to earn money as an immigration consultant by producing content from their lived experience of immigration. Also, tourist institutions, which have been affected by the global epidemic of Covid-19 and travel restrictions along with domestic economic problems, have faced a significant decrease in travel and tourist demand, and have changed their main function to an immigration institution and are trying to represent unreal implications of the duality of black Iran and white immigration destinations.

Conclusion
This research has studied migration in the virtual space at the intersection of the three concepts of mediaization of migration, migration industry and the desire to migrate. While previous researches in the field of virtual diaspora have formulated the impact of the digital world on migration based on the politicization of everyday life, the findings of this research show that the impact of virtual space on the issue of migration in Iran has been in line with the depoliticization of everyday life. What is received from the findings of this research is the mental migration of the young generation in Iran, which can have destructive consequences for development and hope for the future.

Keywords

Migration Industry
Instagram
Discourse Analysis
Migration Aspiration
Desirous Subject
Migration
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Interdisciplinary Studies in Media and Culture
Volume 14, Issue 2 - Serial Number 28
Autumn and Winter 2024- 2025
July 2025
Pages 139-179

  • Receive Date 21 April 2023
  • Revise Date 22 October 2024
  • Accept Date 27 October 2024
  • Publish Date 19 February 2025

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