Whose Satan? U.S. mainstream media depictions of The Satanic Temple

Abstract

Based on a corpus of 40 U.S. news articles and transcribed news videos, I bring together techniques from Critical Discourse Analysis with concepts from cognitive linguistics in analyzing mainstream portrayals of The Satanic Temple (TST), a newer, non-supernaturalist religion. I probe quotation, lexis, and metaphor, and interrogate patterns through the lenses of framing, radial category structure, and Lakoff’s Idealized Cognitive Models. I draw form-based parallels between mainstream U.S media portrayals of TST and accounts from the CDA literature of othering portrayals of other marginalized groups, in the U.S. and elsewhere. I submit that many accounts of TST are sensationalist, and propose reclamation as a useful lens for understanding the contemporary Satanist identity. I suggest that research on news values, particularly Bednarek and Caple’s concept of Negativity, is a useful avenue for further research.