HEDGING IN CNN NEWS: JANUARY 6 CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC AND OMICRON VARIANT NEWS

Abstract

Abstract. This study aims to analyze the pragmatics-linguistic of hedges and to describe the type of hedges used in CNN News: January 6 Corona Virus Pandemic and Omicron Variant News. The data focuses on the types of hedges used in CNN News. This study adopts Salager-Mayer’s (1994) theory as a framework and employs a qualitative descriptive method. The data were collected by downloading the article in the internet purposively. In this study, it was showed that several types of hedges were used in the article. They are modal auxiliary verb; modal lexical; adjectival, adverbial, and nominal phrases; approximators of degree, quantity, frequency, and time; introductory phrases; if clause, e.g., if true, if anything; and compound hedges. Modal auxiliary is used to express modality in English academic writing. Modal lexical verb is used to perform the act such as doubting and evaluating. Adjectival, adverbial, and nominal phrases are used to reduce the strength of the claims since they represent possibility, probability, and uncertainty. Approximators of degree, quantity, frequency, and time is not all served to make things vague, some are used when exact figure are irrelevant. Introductory phrases are used to express the writers’ personal doubt and direct involvement. “If clauses” show uncertainty or doubt concerning a proposition. Compound hedges are hedges that made up from several hedges. Furthermore, the result also showed that the most dominant types of hedges used is modal auxiliary verb. It is indicated that the writer want to express modality in their writing.

Keywords: CNN News, Hedges, pragmatics