Polish Opinion Weeklies About Brexit In 2015 And 2016

The aim of the article is to define the way in which Brexit referendum is presented by six Polish opinion weeklies (in 2015 and 2016) with the highest level of sales in 2015 and 2016 (Do Rzeczy, Gazeta Polska, Gość Niedzielny, Newsweek, Polityka, W Sieci). The study was prepared using qualitative content analysis. In the course of the analysis, answers were searched for questions concerning the following issues: the causes of Brexit indicated in articles, its consequences for the international arena, Poland and the European Union itself, and its assessment in the analysed weeklies. The research proved the connection between the assessment of this event in the weeklies and their political affiliations. This correlation can be seen, for example, in the editorial boards' stance towards Brexit, which was positive in right-wing titles (Do Rzeczy, Gazeta Polska, Gość Niedzielny, W Sieci) and negative in the magazines supporting Civic Platform (Polityka, Newsweek). However, no significant differences were found as regards the causes and effects of Brexit identified by the editorial boards. Regardless of political affiliations, journalistic materials indicated the same main reasons and the most important consequences of Britain's leaving the European Union. However, they were hierarchised differently and assigned a different rank.