Press Articles Research Articles

‘Hunger happens elsewhere, here malnutrition results from lack of proper care’: Social representations of malnutrition and processes of Othering in the Nepalese press

AbstractMalnutrition gives rise to stigmatisation worldwide and is a pressing societal issue. Drawing on social representation theory and on the process of othering, a lexicometric analysis of Nepalese press articles (N = 440) was conducted to explore if, and how, Othering of the malnourished is at play and how articles (re)construct the threat of malnutrition. The results indicate that Othering takes different forms depending on the threat the malnourished represent: (a) the malnourished in foreign countries are perceived as suffering from hunger due to a lack of social development and democracy whereas (b) the malnourished in Nepal are perceived as being afflicted because they hold traditional beliefs. However, (c) when the threat can be attributed to natural disasters, no negative attributes were associated with the malnourished in Nepal. This suggests that Othering is neither systematic nor monolithic. These findings illustrate how social psychology can address urgent societal questions while equally offering an opportunity for new theoretical developments.

"El evangelio del papel moneda de Miguel Antonio Caro: Dinero y poder en la Colombia decimonónica"

ABSTRACT: Miguel Antonio Caro is known as one of the most lucid conservative thinkers of nineteenth-century Latin America. His antiliberal thinking came to define what it meant to be a Catholic man of letters in Colombia and beyond. Today, he is mostly remembered for his work on linguistics, Latin translations, and the 1886 Colombian Constitution. However, Caro was also the most recalcitrant defender of paper money of his time. In press articles, he developed what can be described as a Hispanic Catholic theory of monetary signs. While he is often portrayed as an anti-modern ideologist, the financial dimensions of his writings reveal a very different picture. Vindicating a Spanish tradition of currency debasement that went back to Alfonso the Wise, the Colombian ultramontane conciliated his traditionalism with capitalism's global accumulation drive by equating paper money with God's infinite gift: the divine grace. He hence proposed a Catholic view of capitalist modernity that rejected the "evils" of utilitarianism but embraced Colombia's agro-exporter economic model as part of God's providential design. In his political-religious project, money is thus imagined as a key tool of the Christian oikonomia , that is, God's government of earthly affairs.

The transfeminine mystique: Transsexual models and the UK press, 1960–71

The article investigates transgender embodiment, public feelings and (in)visibility in the British press in the 1960s and early 1970s by using the models and performers April Ashley (1935–2021) and Amanda Lear (1939–present) as case studies. Both Ashley and Lear worked as performers at the celebrated Parisian cabaret bar Le Carrousel in the 1950s, and later moved to London independently. Ashley – white, British, working class – enjoyed a successful but brief career as a commercial model that was cut short following her outing by a British tabloid in 1961. Lear – of French and alleged south-east Asian origins – associated herself with the fashionable Chelsea set in London in the 1960s and 1970s. Drawing on press articles, fashion editorials, documentaries and autobiographical writing, in this article, I reconstruct the two models’ career trajectories and examine how the British media constructed Ashley and Lear as both objects of disgust and exotic objects of fascination. In doing so, I critically assess their respective attempts to navigate these public feelings in relation to the politics of (in)visibility in the contemporary British media landscape.

The last jump: epidemiology of suicides at the Tour Eiffel (Paris) between 1950 and 1989.

The Eiffel Tower (Paris, France) has been attracting many candidates for suicide over the years. The aim of this study was to determine the patterns of people who committed suicide by jumping. Permission to access the unpublished records of the Paris Police Prefecture made it possible to compile press articles related to suicides from April 1950 to March 1989. 155 articles corresponding to 79 cases were kept for analysis. There were significantly more males (66%), as compared with an expected theoretical distribution of 1/2 for each sex (p = 0.002). Median age was 38.0years old. Suicide peak was reached during the months of August and October (13% for each), while February was poor in suicides (3%). Tuesdays and Saturdays were the more impacted days. Hourly suicide rates were 8% (morning), 11% (noon), 7% (afternoon), and 5% (evening-night). Moon phases did not correlate with suicide occurrence. The main context described was that of a psychiatric pathology (49%). Death occurred in 92% of the reported cases. Sex ratio, ages, decrease during the cold season, no association with moon phases, and underlying psychiatric pathologies were consistent with trends for either all-cause suicides or suicide jumps from a platform. Conversely, unusual trough in suicides on Mondays and noon peak in suicide rate have been, respectively, attributed to small sample size and closure at night. As jumping corresponds to both ease and proximity, we believe the implementation of protective measures in the early 1960s succeeded in reducing the number of suicides overall.

Serendipity and surprise: A diachronic analysis of <em>International Baccalaureate</em> in the global press 1977-2019

This study examines perceptions of the International Baccalaureate (IB) over five decades to better understand its growing influence on education systems around the world. As part of the global education industry, the IB plays an important role in shaping national public education discourse. Building on previous synchronic analyses that used a corpus-assisted discourse studies (CADS) approach, the present study conducts a diachronic exploration of the same 28 million word corpus of global press articles to see how perceptions of the IB may have changed over its 55-year history. Trends over time revealed five main shifts in IB discourse: (i) from education to brand; (ii) from concrete curriculum-related lexis to recurring value-laden terms; (iii) from comparison to competition with other national curricula; (iv) from academic qualification to institutional regulation; and (v) from students to IB coordinator. Findings also showed a stable group of collocates that occurred consistently across all time periods, pointing to an “invariant core” (Morley & Partington, 2009) meaning of the IB that provides fresh insight into how the dominant view of the IB as a singular standardized brand may be entrenched and taken for granted.

Modernizing propaganda in Republican China under a foreign gaze

ABSTRACT During China’s Republican era (1912–1949), the Kuomintang (KMT) Nationalists experimented with propaganda in theory and practice as its propaganda moved from a traditionally preaching oriented mass culture to modern mass-media-based weaponry deemed as ‘paper bullets.’ Contrary to the commonly overstated role and influence of the Soviet Union and its theorists during this transition from a utilitarian to an aggressive, weaponized model of propaganda, this essay, drawing insights from articles in the foreign press of Republican China, illuminates the complexity and intricacy of this experimental phase. The period is characterized by continuity, ruptures, hybridization, and innovation, providing a nuanced, multifaceted understanding of KMT propaganda. Aligned with the existing non-Soviet perspective on KMT propaganda, emphasizing the integration of cultural, folk, or modern elements into the propaganda arsenal, this study enhances it by providing a more comprehensive outlook.

Linguistic activity of Shahtakhtli during the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic

The end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries are considered a period of revival of national awakening, self-awareness and the emergence of ideas of independence in the aesthetic and public opinion of Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic occupies a special place in the history of state independence of our people. In the Republic of Azerbaijan, special importance is attached to the literary language. Azerbaijani linguistics has an ancient history. Studying the history of this linguistics, determining the role and place of outstanding linguists, enlightened intellectuals who played an important role in its development, is of great importance in terms of writing a complete history of the linguistic thought of our scientific linguistics. The Azerbaijani people, with a rich history and enormous scientific heritage, have produced outstanding public figures. At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, one of the greatest linguists of Azerbaijan, who rose to the level of European standards, was the great public figure Muhammad Agha Shakhtakhtli. The prominent prose writer M. Shakhtakhtli tried to implement the ideas of education by publishing journalistic articles in the Russian-language press of the Caucasus, raised with government authorities the importance of educating the people through the media, and preached the need to reform the alphabet. . Studying and working in Europe, in the capital of France, Paris, M. Shakhtakhtli grew up as an outstanding linguist and published numerous articles in the European press about Eastern culture, the development of Azerbaijani education, and the reform of the Arabic alphabet.

Does News Media Affect Firm Innovation in Emerging Markets? Evidence from China

We examine whether and how news coverage affects innovation using an extensive collection of more than 188,000 firm‐specific press articles written by journalists from the most influential Chinese newspapers. We find that news coverage has a positive impact on firm innovation outputs. This positive effect is more pronounced for firms with weak internal governance and external monitoring, opaque corporate disclosure, high R&D intensity, and limited access to financing for innovation, for news articles that are related to innovation and corporate governance, and for news articles that are issued by news media that are subject to less political intervention and by socially unconnected news media. Our analysis of firm innovation strategies shows that the increased innovation outputs are a result of an increase in in‐house R&D investment and innovation efficiency, rather than acquisition of innovation from external channels that can quickly increase quantifiable innovation outputs. We also find that news coverage reduces analyst earnings forecast dispersion and insiders’ tunnelling of corporate resources and managerial perks, while increasing firms’ investor base. Overall, our research provides new insights into the role of the news media in firm innovation in an emerging market, especially when firms have a poor information environment and corporate governance mechanisms, and when news coverage has high informativeness and independence.

Perioada nord-americană

The purpose of this article is to bring to the forefront the theatrical activity carried out for eight years by Theodor-Cristian Popescu in the North American cultural landscape. Following the path of the Romanian theatre director, the article presents the performances he directed during his master’s degree at the University of Montana and also the theatrical events he staged in Montréal and Toronto, once he moved to Canada. Drawing on a variety of sources (press articles – reviews, interviews, press releases –, as well as program booklets, grant applications or evaluations of his teaching activity), the article aims to provide the Romanian public with a detailed presentation of Theodor-Cristian Popescu’s theatrical activity abroad (theatrical animator, director, teacher).

Energy security of Israel and energy cooperation between Israel and the European Union

ObjectivesThere are two major objectives. The first objective of the paper is to critically analyse the energy security of Israel and assess the prospects for the future. The second objective is to consider the prospects for the future energy cooperation between Israel and the European Union.MethodsThe main objective of this report is to verify this thesis by either demonstrating that it is true or by rejecting it. To answer the two questions and to support the thesis, the study includes a critical analysis of a selection of relevant materials, which include other research papers from academic journals, press articles, and reliable websites that focus on the topic. The report starts with a short introduction into the lates developments that may affect the energy security of the state of Israel.ResultsIsrael and the EU, this may open new perspectives and lead to attaining energy security by the European Union. This, to some extent, confirms the thesis that has been assumed for this research: The discovery of the new gas fields has significantly enhanced Israel's energy security and may also contribute to improve the energy security of the European Union.ConclusionsIn conclusion it may be observed that the discovery of the new gas field has significantly enhanced Israel's energy security in terms of Israel's own gas consumption, especially in view of the lates political situation in Europe and the war in Ukraine.

Picasso without Guernica: Mexico, 1944

The analysis of a temporary exhibition allows us to study how a particular project is inflected by cultural ideas (in this case also aesthetic ideas) and, above all, by cultural policies, i.e. museum practices and the socio-cultural and diplomatic contexts that explain the realization and morphology of a curatorial concept. In order to bring about an individual exhibition of exclusive works by Pablo Picasso in Mexico in 1944 a Society of Modern Art was founded, a private organization that copied the U.S. model of cultural mediation. This foundation was a product of bilateral financing by two powerful institutions, the Galería de Arte Mexicano owned by Inés Amor, and the MoMA, directed by Alfred H. Barr. Because of the political situation during the Second World War, the alliances between Mexico and the U.S. played a significant role. Based on a review of archival documentation and press articles of this period I attempt a reconstruction of the historical process of managing this temporary exhibition, understood as a spatial construction of political power in the collective imagination. This Mexican exhibition of works by an outstanding global artist has not been studied in terms of the messages and intentions conveyed by an ephemeral collection of objects that was deprived of its political anti-fascist dimension due to the exclusion of Guernica, which reduced it to an exhibition of avant-garde art. Guernica was not shown in Mexico for reasons that include U.S. anti-communism, Barr's desire to attract reflection towards the plastic values of Picasso's work and neutralize its potential for political resistance, and external conditions driven by internal struggles among Spanish Republicans.

Ephoron virgo (Olivier, 1791) anticipates emergence in a warming world: some evidence from non-specialist observations and a case study from Northwest Italy

Climate change, with the disruption of hydrological and thermal regimes, is threatening freshwater entomological biodiversity in different ways. While extinction or distribution range change of some species can be noted relatively easily, the effects on life cycle usually require considerable data. In this short communication, we show that Ephoron virgo (Olivier, 1791), a univoltine mayfly, anticipated the date of emergence in the Tanaro River (Northwest Italy) over the last 17 years and how this is closely related to the increase in local temperatures. Since this species is known for its impressive and synchronised hatchings, we relied on official reports from the municipality of Alba, which allowed us to analyse a greater dataset, demonstrating how unconventional documents combined with direct observation or press articles can also be useful in scientific studies.

The Hero, the White Savior, and the Smuggler: Criminalized Figures in the Landscape of Solidarity Toward Migrants

One recent shift in the ever-expanding crackdown on migration and implementation of a hostile environment for migrants in the EU has been the criminalization of migrant solidarity. Using various legal tools, EU governments have been trying to hinder solidarity actions from civil society. In particular, a narrative depicting civilians helping migrants as criminals has been elaborated by European organizations and strengthened by far-right groups and dominant press outlets. In reaction, a counter-narrative has been constructed and spread by pro-migrant groups and liberal media, which presents criminalized activists as criminalized heroes and their actions as humanitarian. Based on a critical discourse analysis of academic texts, press articles, and empirical research with pro-migrant activists, this article examines two criminal figures from the civilian search and rescue field: the “activist associated with smugglers” and its counterpart, the “criminalized hero.” Through the lens of figuration of crime and social justice, the article brings a new understanding of the de- and repoliticization processes that occur in the field of humanitarian help and migration. By analyzing these two figures, the paper also contributes to a better understanding of the competing moral orders underpinning criminal and social justice claims in the field of solidarity toward migrants. On the one hand, the figure of the activist associated with smuggler is part of a criminal justice narrative depicting migration as a threat to political, social, and economic stability. On the other hand, the criminalized hero figure includes a counter-narrative to this moral order based on the defense of a social justice frame of solidarity and the protection of human rights. Within the pro-migrant activist’s scene, the criminalized hero and its social justice frame are criticized for reproducing racist and post-colonial practices of humanitarianism.

How Do Bigger and Smaller Cities Manage Migration? Ukrainian War Refugees in Polish Cities

How Do Bigger and Smaller Cities Manage Migration? Ukrainian War Refugees in Polish Cities

THE RIGHT TO ONE'S IMAGE, AS A RIGHT OF THE HUMAN PERSONALITY JURISPRUDENCE

Through a theoretical and practical approach, the study presents the main regulations of the right to image, as a personal non-patrimonial right: the Romanian Civil Code, the Romanian Constitution, and the new legislation in the field of personal data. The study presents practical issues such as jurisprudential solutions in Romania regarding the violation of the right to image in the online environment (Facebook, Instagram), television shows, and press articles. Also, the study deals with the much-disputed issues of using the person's image in the procedures for sanctioning the employees, analyzing how the National Authority for Supervision of Personal Data Processing (N.A.S.P.D.P.) from Romania sanctioned the abuses of the employers. The case studies and the analysis of European and Romanian legislation are also useful to students, theoreticians, and legal practitioners.

Hungarian coaches in Cold War Cuba

ABSTRACT This essay will examine Cold War sport links between two relatively small-sized, satellite countries: Hungary and Cuba, via the activities of Hungarian coaches on the island. These started in the 1960s after the establishment of diplomatic relations and show a concentration in the first half of and the middle of the 1970s. The investigation aims to find out the main reasons and objectives for the presence of Hungarian sport professionals on the island as well as to evaluate the impact of their work. The study begins with providing a brief overview of the evolution of the foreign relations of the Socialist bloc in the 1950s and 1960s and within this context, of Hungarian-Cuban bilateral links, finally narrowing down the analysis on sport relations. In this context, two case studies are presented: one on football and the other on water polo, traditional fields of success for Hungarians, but little known / not popular on the island. The investigation – based on documents of the Hungarian National Archive and contemporary press articles – aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of international (sport) relations in the 1960s and 1970s, adding both to Sport History and New Cold War Studies.

Agency within Neighborhoods: Multi-Scalar Relations between Urban Form and Social Actors

This research provides an abstract representation of neighborhoods, accounting for the actors involved in the process of their formation and transformation as local entities embedded in a complex yet specific configuration of historical, social, structural, and political contexts. The analysis uses a conceptual framework combining Assemblage Theory and Actor–Network Theory to examine how both human and non-human actors or agents interact and consequently exert an impact on three different neighborhoods in Limassol, Cyprus. The methodology combines both qualitative as well as quantitative approaches. The tools used include space syntax, land use, and building typology, descriptive statistics of social factors, a photographic survey, observation of the built environment’s expressive features, and archival research of press articles. The findings reveal the extent to which global factors, such as colonialism and the mobility of wealthy populations from former Soviet countries, have an impact on the social makeup and expressive features of the environment, while local factors, such as block size and housing typology, have a strong impact on the use of public space. Furthermore, more complex networks may exhibit structural resilience or adaptability but may be, at the same time, more sensitive to varying and conflicting interests.

The lightning sheet: control and public shaming in the Albanian communist regime

The article addresses the phenomenon of fletërrufe, literally lightning sheet, which became epidemic in Albania since 1967. Animated by denunciation, mainly concerning work and socialist morality, the lightning sheet cultivated public humili- ation. Exploring mostly unpublished records and press articles, the research seeks to answer the following questions: What are the origins, the functions, the contents, and the consequences of fletërrufe? How does it turns into a device of public shaming, control, and conformism?

Социальная проблематика очерков М. Горького о кинематографе в историческом контексте

The research aims to determine the peculiarities of the notion of cinema at the initial stage of its existence. The essays and short stories by M. Gorky published in the newspapers ‘Nizhegorodskii listok’ and ‘Odesskie novosti’ during the All-Russia Industrial and Art Exhibition 1896 and articles of this period published in the Nizhny Novgorod press served as the research material. Classical and new works on Gorky studies and film studies are involved. The research is novel in that it is the first to address the short story ‘Revenge’ and to restore the journalistic context associated with it. Through a comprehensive analysis of Gorky’s essays on cinema and the short story ‘Revenge’, the mechanism of transformation of journalistic texts into a literary one through the problem-thematic and figurative-motivic complexes is traced. The involvement of a wide range of articles in the synchronous press makes it possible to detect the deep involvement of the writer’s works in the contemporary social and everyday context. As a result of the research, the range of Gorky’s texts related to cinema expands, the social origins of Gorky’s attitude to cinema and his notion of screen art as an illusory ideal world opposed to the harsh reality of life are revealed.

“We will fight for peace all over the world until the last grenade”. Initial Military Training in Schools of the Lithuanian SSR in the Late Soviet Era

In the late Soviet period (1960s-1980s), the public policy of the Soviet Union was mainly based on two ideologemes - internationalism and military patriotism. They were also applied in the education system in the formation of the citizen, the so-called New Soviet Man. It was declared that one of the duties of this New Soviet Man was to ensure world peace, which required not only an internationalist mindset but also good military preparation. In 1968 the Council of Ministers of the USSR adopted a resolution on the introduction of compulsory initial military training in all schools in the USSR. Based on published historical sources (official resolutions, methodological guidelines, articles in the pedagogical press) and 34 qualitative interviews with former Soviet school pupils, the present article not only analyses the aims and principles, content, and methods of patriotic military upbringing and initial military training (IMT), but also presents the authentic experiences of how IMT was implemented in schools of the Lithuanian SSR. As our research shows, IMT in Soviet Lithuania did not run very efficiently. The biggest problem was the lack of qualified military instructors capable of working with children.