ABSTRACT
This chapter debates on immigration were reported in the news, analysing electoral campaigning based on actor's positions emerging from media reports. It examines the way in which the agenda is constructed, by evaluating the attention given to the immigration issue dimensions by political actors in their electoral manifestos and in their public statements during electoral campaigns. By looking at actor preferences for salience, dimensions and positions as reported in electoral platforms and in the media, the chapter focuses on the degree to which the original preferences in electoral manifestos correspond to the contents of electoral debates in the news. The chapter devotes to understanding the extent to which actors strategies and characteristics explain the difference between the issues that are emphasized in their manifestos and those they discuss during the campaign. The analysis offered in the chapter provides additional insights on electoral agenda building dynamics, further illustrating the way in which certain actors come to dominate local migration debates.
