The Indignados in the Spanish and Greek press: constructing narratives of civic resistance

Although it is more than two years now that the Indignados took over the streets and central squares in Spain and Greece, the movement remains the most emblematic expression of civic resistance to imposed austerity and the economic forces at the root of the Eurocrisis. A comparative exploration of the press coverage in Spain and Greece of the respective expressions of the movement, the Spanish Indignados and the Greek Aganaktismenoi, reveals one significant commonality in how the movement was represented, namely an overall favourable treatment by the mainstream press. Despite the positive coverage, however, or perhaps because of it, the press did little to connect the movement to actual policy-making and political institutions. This press emphasis on the protest side of the movement may have detracted public attention from the attempts of the Indignados to provide constructive policy input in Spain and Greece and in the long run undermined its potential overall impact.