Abstract

The paper examines how media discourse contributes to the construction of legitimacy during institutional reform, focusing on the transformation of the Academy of Sciences in Kazakhstan. Situating the analysis within broader debates on power, knowledge production and post-Soviet institutional change, the study explores how competing representations of the 'old' and 'new' Academy are mobilised in public discourse. The paper draws on a dataset of 30 media publications covering the 2022-2025 reform of the Academy and applies critical discourse analysis (CDA) informed by Teun A. Van Dijk's ideological square. The analysis shows that the pre-reform Academy is frequently portrayed as elitist, opaque, and disconnected from scientific merit, while the reformed institution is constructed as transparent, merit-based, and aligned with national development priorities. The findings suggest that media discourse plays a major role in facilitating a shift from a public-academic model of science toward a state-corporate model, in which scientific institutions are increasingly embedded within governmental and strategic policy frameworks. This transformation reflects broader dynamics in Central Eurasia, where institutional reforms are closely intertwined with questions of political authority, modernisation and control over knowledge production. By linking discourse analysis with institutional change, the paper contributes to (re)thinking Central Eurasia as a space where power is exercised not only through formal policy instruments but also through narrative construction and symbolic reordering. It further highlights the importance of digital and traditional media as arenas in which legitimacy is negotiated and contested during periods of structural transformation. The reform is further interpreted as part of broader transformations in the governance of knowledge production and academic institutions in Kazakhstan, with implications for the autonomy and organisation of the higher education and research system.