On the Dichotomy of Corporate vs. Alternative Journalism: Occupy Wall Street as Constructed by Echo of Moscow

Abstract

This article argues that we need to be more cautious with the dichotomy between “corporate” and “alternative” media widely accepted within critical media studies. This division can be misleading, especially if applied to non-Western societies. I explicate my argument using the case study of the Russian alternative radio station, Echo of Moscow, and analyzing its coverage of the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protests. My research is based on a qualitative content analysis of 73 hard news pieces on OWS that Echo of Moscow released from September 17 to November 18, 2011. The results of my analysis show that Echo’s framing of the OWS was typical “protest paradigm” framing, which corporate media usually employ when covering social protests.