ABSTRACT
In 2015–16, more than one million refugees, migrants, and asylum seekers entered Greece, and tens of thousands were likely to remain there for the foreseeable future. Greek public opinion, which showed great solidarity, was bombarded by thousands of news articles about them. This chapter reveals several illuminating paradoxes concerning Greek public opinion about the “refugee crisis” and Greek attitudes toward, and consumption of, news about the same by examining audience choices for refugee stories published online on both quality and populist national news sites. News media in Greece devoted resources to cover the crisis, but the audience appeared too indifferent to click on refugee stories. A few stories of the thousands uploaded were in the top 100 monthly list, despite the importance of the issue and the consequences for every citizen. Further, the chapter confirms the existence of a huge gap between gatekeepers’ choices and audience preferences. And it shows that the fear generated by nationalistic rhetoric, Europe's indecision, and threats regarding Greece's suspension from the Schengen area were factors in an anti-immigrant climate, as Greek citizens feared their country would become Europe's Nauru island and started to show a marked preference for more negatively headlined stories.
