A quantitative and qualitative study into the use of languages in TV advertisements in bilingual Malta

Abstract

This dissertation focuses on the use of languages in TV advertisements in Maltese media. The first chapter serves as an introduction to the historical, social and linguistic context of the two official languages in Malta, Maltese and English. In the second chapter, the literature review surrounding this field of study is explored and discussed. Different aspects of language in advertising are reviewed, such as the historical aspect, the use of multiple languages, including English, the phenomenon of code-switching and the effectiveness of language in relation to bilingual identity. The third chapter provides a detailed description of the data collection methodology used in this study. This is followed by a presentation of the findings of the two sets of data that reveal the increasing dominance of English in Maltese TV media. The penultimate chapter discusses the implications of the results of this research project in the context of the de facto and the jure status of Malta’s official languages and how these are reflected in this milieu, while the final chapter gives a general conclusion to this study.