Framing Political Populism in Contemporary Media Ecosystem

Abstract

The development of mankind in the present is characterized by transformation trends in the technological, economic, and social spheres. These trends impact the political environment as well. The challenges of the economic crisis, the migration processes revitalize the development of populism. The present paper is focused on political populism and its dimensions in Bulgaria. The political environment in the country is characterized by almost permanent merge of political entities, which gradually escalates the use of populist approaches, styles and rhetoric. The paper is structured in three methodologically interconnected parts, which respectively present: an overview of the process of politicization of the media and the mediatization of politics; a comparative study of the dimensions of populism in Bulgaria; a discussion on the connection between populism and the media, including a content analysis study conducted during the local elections of 2015.