Altogether now? Symbolic recognition, musical media events and the forging of civic bonds among minority youth in Norway

Abstract

Drawing upon interviews with a group of minority youth in Norway, this study argues that recognition theory offers a valuable yet neglected perspective through which we can identify and understand key social and civic dimensions of minority audiences’ media reception. Empirically, the study concentrates on the reception of musical media events in which hip hop artists and performances were prominent. Through empirical examples, this article illustrates how the reception of these media events for the informants entailed experiences of recognition that in turn engendered feelings of symbolic inclusion. Based on the interview data, this study argues that media events constitute ‘moments of recognition’ where dynamics of recognition are intensified. The study further argues that given the politically charged context, music may function as the expressive raw material for what is termed ‘musically imagined civic communities’.