Discourse as an Essentially Contested Concept in Media Studies: From the Correct Use to the Abstract Concept

The issue of concepts formation has always been at the centre of debate among scholars in media and communication studies. This paper is an attempt to introduce the general principles of Gallie's essentially contested concepts in the light of the widespread use of concept misunderstanding in this field of research where discourse is of central importance to researchers. We argue that the present essay explores primarily the option of placing more attention on theorizing rather than on theory. Accordingly, this article does seek to address the concepts of discourse in the established schools of discourse analysis within Gallie's framework aiming at settling the conflict over discourse by constructing epistemological bridge with Sartori's ladder of abstraction to overcome the problem of essential contestedness in media and communication studies.