Ideological Framing Through Inspirational Translation in Telegram and its Impact on Users with Different Educational Levels

The phenomenon of ideological framing through inspirational translation in modern media, particularly in online social networks like Telegram, has garnered significant attention. This study seeks to elucidate the intricate relationship between this form of framing and users' educational backgrounds.

Drawing on the definition of ideological framing by Rojecki and Entman (1993), the study meticulously scrutinizes the behaviors of Telegram channels supportive of or opposed to the Islamic Republic of Iran to discern their use of inspirational translation as a tool for ideological framing.

The methodology involved the random selection of six Telegram channels, three supportive of and three opposed to the Islamic Republic of Iran, based on the number of their members at the time of research. Posts within these channels that pertained to one of the three topics of the United States dollar, sanctions against Iran, and the JCPOA, were scrutinized, and 60 relevant posts, 30 from supportive and 30 from opposed channels, were chosen for analysis. These posts, each featuring an image or a video accompanied by inspirational translation, were considered as data for examining ideological framing.

Inspirational translation in the posts of supportive and opposed channels were examined and their commonalities and differences were identified. The results indicated that supportive and opposed channels employed distinct framing strategies to shape users’ perceptions in alignment with their own ideological stance.

The examined posts were considered in sets of 30, each containing the same video or image accompanied by two inspirational translations from supportive and opposed channels. Comparing the similarities and differences in translations in each set revealed that in 29 pairs (97%), the supportive and opposed channels framed their users in a different or opposing manner. Only in one pair (3%), the framing through translation was similar and harmonious in supportive and opposed channels. These results clearly demonstrate the potential of online media and social networks, notably Telegram, in utilizing inspirational translation as a tool to frame the users’ interpretation of content.

The second objective of the study was to investigate the impact of this framing on users with varying educational backgrounds. To this end, 20 participants with diverse educational backgrounds were selected. Among these participants, four were doctoral students, four were master's students, four were bachelor's students, four had diplomas, and four had sub-diploma qualifications. The participants' ages ranged from 18 to 36 years, all residing in Tehran, and all having Telegram accounts. These participants were randomly selected. They were asked to express their perception of videos once without translation and once after reading the inspirational translation from a supportive or opposed channel. The results indicated that among the 20 participating individuals, 45% (9 individuals) were framed through inspirational translation and presented different interpretations of the video after reading the translation. This significant percentage points to the considerable potential of inspirational translation as a tool for ideological framing of the users.

The nature of inspirational translation plays a significant role in having such a powerful framing potential in modern media such as Telegram; the character limit for captions in Telegram prompts translators to use words more judiciously. The possibility of using emojis also contributes to the increased effectiveness of captions, as emojis help convey views and emotions quickly and succinctly. The results of this phase of analysis also indicated that framing the users’ interpretation through inspirational translation correlates with their educational level. There is an inverse relationship between the educational level and susceptibility to ideological framing. This means that the higher the educational level of the user, the less susceptible they are to being framed through inspirational translation. Among the 20 participants in this study, 4 individuals were doctoral students who were not framed through inspiration. With a decrease in educational level, susceptibility increased, such that at the diploma level, 75%, and at the sub-diploma level, 100% of participants were framed through the inspirational translation provided in Telegram channels, leading to different interpretations of the original text.

What is of prime importance here is the potential of inspirational translation to frame the understanding and perception of the users. However, it should be noted that this framing power is not absolute, and inspirational translation does not necessarily have a uniform effect on all users in terms of degree and extent. The educational level of the audience is one of the factors that controls the degree of framing. Other factors such as media literacy, the ability to verify and validate news sources, the political and general knowledge of the users, and their field of study can also play a role in the extent of framing.