New approach to genre classification of mass-media discourse
Bicharova Mariya Mikhailovna,
PhD (Phylology), Astrakhan state University,
associate professor, The Faculty of Foreign Languages
E‑mail: [email protected]
New approach to genre classification of mass-media discourse
Abstract: A new complex approach to genre classification in which a number of attributes would help to identify
this or that genre as a special type is suggested in the article. Four criteria by which the genre can be attributed to a
particular species are offered. According to these four criteria genres can be grouped into five types.
Keywords: mass-media discourse, genre, classification, material, method, form, pragmatics.
The article is written with the support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, project № 14–06–31067 мол_а
“Genre constellation as a fundamental of mass-information discourse body”.
Mass-media discourse is an institutional type of
communication. It includes many styles and genres and
characterized by high dynamical development, constant
changing and composite nature. The occurrence of new
communicative situations arising from the development
of society causes the birth of new genres and death of the
old, thus updating the whole genre system.
Modern editions are characterized by use of almost
all genre systems: literature, statistics, records, genres
of foreign press [8, 91]. This, from our point of view,
also causes the complexity, multidimensionality and
continuous dynamics, and this is peculiar to all the genre
diversity of mass-media discourse.
Each genre reflects the phenomena of reality and
has certain characteristics, composed of organized parts
of an information material. It has a stable set of features
which are thematic, compositional and stylistic [1, 255],
as well as cognitive, communicative and functional [4,
134]. This makes it unique relative to other genres.
When the author does not think about what should be
the text such characteristics arise randomly. Either they
occur as a result of special creative efforts of addressee
when he or she determines in advance what should be
displayed in the text exactly, how and for what purpose.
In any case those texts which have similar characteristics
may be combined in a single genre groups [9]. The
constant connection of certain subject, functions and
methods provides the very stable form, which makes
a genre recognizable even when compared to works
written by different authors from different countries
and in different times. The similarity of the composition
or the style can be more or less expressed but a kind of
“general impression” is rather preserved [10].
Despite the fact that the system of genres constantly
updated and developed, and the boundaries between
different genres become less clear, it is essential to
consider the genre variety of print media. The existing
criteria of differentiation these are persistent signs of
genres allow considering genres rather stable formations.
Creating the text authors usually focus on certain
samples of texts that function in social and cultural
community. To be comprehensible the reporter
constructs his work in accordance with his or her own
experience and knowledge of the probable reader about
certain forms of textual communication, i. e. prototypes
or text genres. The process of producing text begins with
the selection of a genre, and then in accordance with the
selected genre the language resources are selected.
Functional stylistics distinguishes genres of print
media within the newspaper, journalistic or publicistic
styles or studying such texts as “over-style” formations
[5, 79].
There are many classifications of printing press
genres in the scientific theory of journalistic genres. Each
of these classifications is based on various typological
approaches. Thus, A. Tertychny highlights the “target
direction” as one of the most important genre-making
factors. He notes that the variety of certain publications is
predetermined by a specific variety of objectives, which
the authors set for themselves, and that becomes the basis
for the designation of a text to a particular genre group.
Based on this, he identifies three groups of periodical
genres: “informational”, “analytical” and “artistic and
publicistic” [9, 7–8]. The majority of researchers support
this point of view about print media.
S. Gurevich gives a more detailed classification of
periodical genres. He denotes the purpose of a genre
and its functions as the most important factor of genremaking. Such genres as “note (brief article)”, “report”,
and “piece of reporting” that A. Tertychny refers to the
category of informational ones, the author classifies as
genres of news. Further on S. Gurevich separates a group
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Section 11. Philology
of dialogic genres, which includes “interview”, “dialogue”
and “conversation (polylogue)” noting that unlike the
texts of news with the help of these genres journalists
report not only on the events, but also about people’s
opinions about these events. Regarding such genres as
“comment”, “correspondence”, “article” and “review” the
opinions of A. Tertychny and S. Gurevich match. The
only difference is that the latter gives them the name
of “situational and analytic”. The group of Tertychny’s
“artistic and publicistic” genres S. Gurevich splits into
three varieties: “epistolary” (all kinds of letters),
“essentially artistic and publicistic” (“drawing” and
“sketch”) and satirical (“feuilleton”, “lampoon”, “parody”,
“epigram” and “essay”) [3].
Kenzhegulova N., the author of the e‑learning course
on journalistic “Mass communication”, accepts on the
whole the classification of A. Tertychny. However she
proposes to divide the “artistic and publicistic” genres in
two varieties: the “artistic and publicistic” (“sketch”,
“drawing”, “essay”, “political portrait”) and satirical
(“feuilleton”, “lampoon”, “parody”, “epigram”, “fable”,
“caricature”, “anecdote”) [6].
The author of the textbook “The system of
journalistic genres” L. Kroychik gives another interesting
classification of print media. He identifies five groups:
— “operative news” — article in all its varieties,
— “operational research” — “interview”, “report”,
“piece of reporting”,
— 
“research and news” — “correspondence”,
“comment” (column), “review”,
— “research” — “article”, “letter”, “review”,
— 
“research and figurative” (artistic and
publicistic) — “sketch”, “essay”, “feuilleton”, “pamphlet”
[7, 139].
There were also attempts to make the already existing
classification more detailed, using a variety of aspects as
criteria for dividing into groups [2, 398].
Thus we see that each author for his or her
classification distinguishes one dominant criterion
according to which this or that genre can be referred to a
certain type. As a result, we may find, for instance, genres
with different structure and form in one group. This
causes certain confusion about how they occurred in
one genre group in spite of the similarity of some other
features.
In our opinion, it is difficult to develop a complete
classification of genres and media discourse, using only
one crucial criterion for classification. We suggest a
complex approach to genre classification in which a
number of attributes would help to identify this or that
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genre as a special type. We looked through the variety of
classifications of different scientists and made an attempt
to join their strongest aspects.
So we offer four criteria by which the genre can be
attributed to a particular species. These are material,
method, form and pragmatics. When we speak about
the material we mean the initial stuff which the author
uses as the main subject. It may be event, phenomenon,
fact, background, forecast, goods, service, etc. To bring to
the reader the necessary information different methods
may be used. They are description, analysis, research,
comparison and so on. The structure of the text may
also be different and the material may be represented in
different forms such as statement, article, motto,
comment, interview, question and answer. Pragmatic
means the communication intention of the author, the
planning result which the author wants to get when the
reader would learn the material.
The thorough analysis of all the existing genres in
mass-media discourse on the example of American
printed press showed that they all can be grouped
according to these four criteria into five types. They are:
— “descriptive” — those which depict events,
give information from neutral point of view;
— “interpretative” — those which give analysis of
events and phenomena, research in detail the question
and give the author’s opinion and evaluation,
— “inductive” — those which are aimed to arise the
reader’s interest to a certain product or service,
— “interactive” — those which are based on
the interaction of author and audience or author and
subject,
— “recreational” — those which main function is
leisure and entertainment.
So, the main material for the group of “descriptive”
genres is fact which the author represents in the form
of statements. The method used in creation of texts is
description and the pragmatics of such genres is in giving
the reader the impartial information without the author’s
evaluation.
“Interpretative” genres use as material not only
the fact itself, but also the background, cause-effect
connections, reasons and consequences. The material
which is worked up and analyzed is represented in the
form of article of review with the help of such methods
as research, comparison and confrontation. From
the pragmatic point of view the author is aimed not
only to give the information, but also to analyze, find
circumstances, reasons and consequences of the event,
to share his personal point of view on the problem or
New approach to genre classification of mass-media discourse
question.
“Inductive” genres try to raise the interest of the
reader to a certain product or service which is used as
material for the author. Persuasion and suggestion are
the main methods used. The forms of representing the
material may vary from simple review to appeal and casestory.
The group of “interactive” genres works out
the problem, question or task which has social or
cultural importance. The authors of the texts are often
experts, consultants in some special field. They give
competent analysis, evaluation and examination of a
problem trying to find the way out from some difficult
situation. The material may be represented in the form of
question and answer, letter and comment or interview.
This kind of genres is aimed to stimulate the reader
to interaction, to raise some reaction and feedback.
At last, the kind of “recreational” is based on humor,
satire and different images which are aimed to attract the
reader to the edition, to give some fun and entertainment.
It may be done in the form of funny story, competition,
joke, crossword or commix.
To make a conclusion, it’s important to say that a
new complex approach is used in making our typology
of mass-media genres. Our classification differs from
existing ones not only nominally but also conceptually.
We suggest four criteria of classification and each type of
genres combine the number of such peculiarities. It helps
to attribute each genre to a special type without trouble
and to understand the characteristics of separate “clear”
genres and complex genre formations.
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