Conclusion

In this final chapter, I consolidate the findings of my study and discuss how media and political discourse are simultaneously shaped not only by historical, political relations between Morocco and Spain, but also by national and transnational collective identities. Specifically, I argue that media discourse can be particularly revealing with regard to the political relationship between Morocco and Spain, as reflected in how these nations respectively handle migration. I also discuss the role of peripheral political disputes—namely the sovereignty of Ceuta and Melilla—in Moroccan and Spanish border control discourse, as well as how such discourse prompts a more profound examination of how borders are conceptualized and how institutional discourse may employ this conceptualization as a means of controlling borders, mobility, citizenship, and belonging.