| Popis: |
The arena of new media is replete with conflicts over history related issues. This presentation is based on the results of the analysis of 195 online news articles that covered one public appearance of Croatian coat of arms with first field white, a symbol that exists as a divisive and contested symbol due to the fact that it was besides multiple other historical contexts used by the Nazi collaborators regime during Second World War. The analysis aimed at examining what dominant meaning were ascribed to the symbol, how these meanings were framed and distributed in online news indicate two important patterns. First, although internet is often understood as inherently transnational space the ways in which symbol’s meaning is presented reveal differences in news sites that are written in different languages that primarily address different (sub)national and other audiences. Croatian media interpret and present symbol predominantly as complex for its multiple historical uses while on the other hand some of the Croatian bordering, other world states and media that primarily cover global and regional events frame the symbol almost fully as tied to the Nazi regime or as a symbol that connotes affiliation with Nazi past. Besides the differences in dominant meanings the contents of the Croatian news sites covering the event appear to be more diversified and authors more often offer critical reflections to the symbols semantic field. Contrary to that the rest of the media very often present literally replicated or texts with minor adjustments and therefore transmit not only the same meaning ascribed to the symbol but also the same representational practices embraced in constructing its meaning. The latter pattern indicates that, unlike prior research that saw the internet as a space that is not directly affected by the centralised state censorship and therefore potentially enables pluralising approaches to the past related subjects, that internet communication can also partially have homogenizing role regarding the discourse on such controversies. |
