The critical potential of commemorative journalism
Oren Meyers
Abstract:Previous studies of commemorative journalism have mostly stressed its integrative functionality and tendency to provide oversimplified narrations of the past. Correspondingly, this article explores the critical and at times subversive potential of commemorative journalism. It does so via the analysis of commemorative-photographic supplements, issued by Israeli dailies between 1968 and 2013. The study first identifies the storytelling building blocks used to construct the dominant commemorative narrative. Next,… Show more
“…No media memory study is complete without a reference to the narratives that remain untold. To identify and examine such silences, a point of comparison is required: first between different types of news outlets, all published in 2018 in which differing ideological inclinations or professional perceptions yielded different patterns of coverage (Klein, 2010); a second, longitudinal point of comparison was provided by previous studies that examined supplements published in commemoration of earlier Israeli independence days (Meyers, 2002(Meyers, , 2021.…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…To do so, we examined which events comprised the main memory narratives; who were the main protagonists of the narratives and what social roles were assigned to them; and which voices were heard while others were silenced, or downplayed. Following that, these findings were explored within the context of the longitudinal investigation of Israeli commemorative journalism throughout the last five decades (Meyers, 2002(Meyers, , 2021.…”
This study examined how commemorative journalism shapes collective memory by exploring 18 supplements and special projects commemorating Israel’s 70th anniversary. The research questions focused on three central narrative characteristics of journalism: protagonists, plots, and narrators. Our examination revealed the ways in which those located at the fringes of the ethnic-national community were excluded from these journalistic narratives, conveying mostly a tale of Israeli strength, narrated mostly by Jewish men. We maintain that the current dominant memory version narrated by the supplements reflects a withdrawal from and rejection of recent, more critical journalistic readings of the Israeli past. This conscious return to older, hegemonic patterns of narration of the national past could be understood within the context of two central conditions, shaping the construction of Israeli reality over the past two decades: the growing dominance of the political Right and changes in Israel’s media map.
“…No media memory study is complete without a reference to the narratives that remain untold. To identify and examine such silences, a point of comparison is required: first between different types of news outlets, all published in 2018 in which differing ideological inclinations or professional perceptions yielded different patterns of coverage (Klein, 2010); a second, longitudinal point of comparison was provided by previous studies that examined supplements published in commemoration of earlier Israeli independence days (Meyers, 2002(Meyers, , 2021.…”
Section: Methodsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…To do so, we examined which events comprised the main memory narratives; who were the main protagonists of the narratives and what social roles were assigned to them; and which voices were heard while others were silenced, or downplayed. Following that, these findings were explored within the context of the longitudinal investigation of Israeli commemorative journalism throughout the last five decades (Meyers, 2002(Meyers, , 2021.…”
This study examined how commemorative journalism shapes collective memory by exploring 18 supplements and special projects commemorating Israel’s 70th anniversary. The research questions focused on three central narrative characteristics of journalism: protagonists, plots, and narrators. Our examination revealed the ways in which those located at the fringes of the ethnic-national community were excluded from these journalistic narratives, conveying mostly a tale of Israeli strength, narrated mostly by Jewish men. We maintain that the current dominant memory version narrated by the supplements reflects a withdrawal from and rejection of recent, more critical journalistic readings of the Israeli past. This conscious return to older, hegemonic patterns of narration of the national past could be understood within the context of two central conditions, shaping the construction of Israeli reality over the past two decades: the growing dominance of the political Right and changes in Israel’s media map.
“…Extant literature on commemorative journalism highlights its incorporation of Durkheimian functionality (Britten, 2013). In line with this analysis, often the production and consumption of commemorative journalism constitute a media ritual that helps mass communities to recount consistent and reaffirming stories concerning their common past (Meyers, 2019). Kitch (2002, p. 61) captures this point succinctly thus:…”
Section: Commemoration Independence Day and Journalismmentioning
confidence: 96%
“…Extant literature on commemorative journalism highlights its incorporation of Durkheimian functionality (Britten, 2013). In line with this analysis, often the production and consumption of commemorative journalism constitute a media ritual that helps mass communities to recount consistent and reaffirming stories concerning their common past (Meyers, 2019). Kitch (2002, p. 61) captures this point succinctly thus: Though the stories told in anniversary journalism are presented as historical truth, they are actually narrative visions, pictures that are prescriptive as well as descriptive, mythology as much as reporting.…”
Section: Commemoration Independence Day and Journalismmentioning
This study examined how selected Nigerian newspaper editorials covered the commemoration of its 60th independence anniversary. Frame theory provided the theoretical lens with which to make sense of the data. Drawing from van Dijk's (1992) model of editorial analysis, which focuses on Definition, Evaluation and Recommendation, this research investigated how Nigeria's journey as an independent nation in the last 60 years was framed in the editorials. The study found that there were divergent views as to whether there was a reason to celebrate or not. Defective structure, insecurity and poor leadership emerged as major problems to Nigeria's development. Consequently, these editorials framed restructuring, provision of security and rejigging of the recruitment process for political officeholders as solutions to the identified problems. The study indicated that these papers glossed over Nigerian Civil War experience, thus denying the younger generation the lessons of this important historical event.
“…In the case of commemorative journalism, anniversary news coverage constructs coherent narratives out of the contradictory and messy facts of the past and thus provides readers with tacit knowledge and a point of reference (Meyers, 2019). Zandberg (2010) has traced how facts are selected and constructed into cultural-interpretive frames.…”
Section: Roles Of Journalism In Memory Constructionmentioning
In this study, 20 journalists who had worked on news about the anniversaries of mass protests in Hong Kong were interviewed. Given that most had been born after the historical events being commemorated, this paper aims to understand how young journalists comprehend and cover such old news. It also uncovers the journalistic processes behind the related anniversary journalism and discusses the role of journalism in constructing collective memory. The study traced how journalists normally do their research and what they consider in the production process. We found that journalists, as with other assignments, generally lack the time to conduct thorough research. Instead of venturing into hard facts or heated debates, most opted to focus on the personal and the emotional. For the personal, they relied on stories told by living witnesses and participants. For the emotional, they tapped into the cultural environment as well as their peers to determine appropriate feelings and moral tones. Professional norms compelled them to find new angles for old news and package the stories in ways that would engage and attract their audience. All of these factors shape how journalists tell the stories about the past; these stories in turn become new resources in the ‘inventory’ of collective memories.
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