Culture of a Nation - Research Paper Example

?Irshad Ahmad Academia-Research.Com Newspaper-Culture November 27, Introduction Newspapers reflect the culture of a nation. The stories inside a newspaper tell the social approach of a nation. The current affairs of a state conveyed by its newspapers show the overall contemporary nature of the people. The people can be violent in the times of troubles and disasters. The newspapers guide other nations of the world how to make a deal with that particular nation. In a broader sense, the newspapers reveal what is hidden. It makes easy for the countrymen to predict the future of a particular society. For example the rapidly increasing ratio of suicides in American Society tells the countrymen to go for the healing of wounds otherwise get ready for the immediate collapse. The Editorials of newspapers expose the grave political situation which necessitates measures of remedial. The Sports’ page mirrors the fitness level of the state and the level with which the country can prepare its inhabitants for a challenge. The Showbiz page shows up to what extents the society is fond of entertainment which in turn reflects the mood of that society. For the purpose to link the culture of a society to its newspapers, I have selected three newspapers i.e. The Guardian UK, Toronto Star of Canada and Le Figaro of France. The papers are analyzed with respect to its features, stories and advertisements. Besides the values reflected by these newspapers are compared in contrast with the American values. The Guardian The Guardian, a British daily newspaper was founded in 1821 by John Edward Taylor in Manchester. It is the propagator of contemporary liberalism in UK. In the general election of 2010, the paper supported the liberal Democrats. In the field of “design”, The Guardian has distinction with worldwide fame earning many awards to its name. It has come out experimental by changing design and format during the recent past; it has moved to Berliner from Broadsheet. Since the time of its changing into the Berliner format, each daily paper has a Sports Section (Hamilton, pp32-41). The Guardian has become a part of the international network which includes the papers from other countries with similar objectives. The Guardian Weekly has worldwide circulation fetches articles from The Guardian, The Observer and The Washington Post. Guardian Film is yet another project in the series. Different articles, columns, players’ activities and stuff for television fans shape structure of The Guardian on each week day(Hamilton, pp55-71). The Guardian breeds from middle class as it was founded by traders. A poll in 2000 showed that it was read by the Labor Party workers at 80 percent. It has the reputation of being read by the liberals to the extent that liberals are often nicknamed as “the Guardians”. The Guardian supported the Liberal Democrats in the 2010 run-up to the elections because its stance on “electoral reforms” matched with that of the democrats. What is more important is the paper’s stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict. Unlike the past, The Guardian has come up bitter against the policies of the Israel and because of this opposition, it was viewed an anti-Israel paper. When criticized for anti-Semitism, the paper argued that it reserved the right to be impartial and cover all the aspects of the conflict between Israel and Palestine (Hamilton, pp123-145). Toronto Star Toronto Star is the newspaper of Canada held in high esteem. It has the honor of highest circulation among the Canadian dailies. It was founded by Horatio Clarence Hocken. The paper however got popular in the editorship of Atkinson. Atkinson was a champion of social conscience and Toronto Star under him had a great influence on the building up of Canadian Social Policy. He propagated the ‘old age pensions’, ‘unemployment stipend’ and ‘healthcare’. The paper advocated the sufferings and interests of the common man in Canada which earned it a countrywide fame (Robinson, pp37-49). Atkinson died in 1948 however he had transferred the ownership of the paper to a charitable organization on the terms that it would continue its history long liberal traditions. The Canadian government had passed a new law which allowed no charitable organization to own a large share of a healthy business. Though the paper had to be sold, Atkinson had put forth principles for the paper to follow (Robinson, pp66-78). The paper following the principles of Atkinson aimed at a strong, united and independent Canada. Social justice was another postulate of the principles. The paper believed in the individual and civil liberties of the inhabitants of Canada. For a prosperous Canada, it necessitated the community and civic engagements. The paper seems revolutionary when one of the working principles comes out to be the ‘rights of working people’. Government has been viewed with the authoritative role and the principle says the government has to play a necessary role in the building up of a calm and serene society. Atkinson principles are still followed in the working system of the Toronto Star. The team of the paper has always their firm determination of keeping their promise. The paper is aiming at building up a better Canada. The principles guide the paper to work for an ever prosperous Canada (Robinson, pp117-143). Le Figaro Le Figaro is the French daily founded in 1826 which works on Conservative lines. The motto of the paper is: “without freedom to criticize, there is no true praise”. It gained popularity due to its open stances on many issues. The paper reacted boldly towards many problems reflecting the views of the common man. It conveyed its messages boldly among severe hazards (Horn, pp25-45). Due to its courageous show, the history of the paper is marked with controversies. In 1833, Gallois felt insulted by an article in the paper and fought a duel with its then editor namely Nestor. Nestor was wounded. Though he recovered but the duel marked an unpleasant event in the history of print media of France. Calmette, another editor in 1914 published a letter which questioned the integrity of the Minister for Finance Joseph Caillaux. The editor was assassinated by the wife of the Finance Minister. The tragedies paved the way for press freedom in France and Le Figaro has the most important share in the course (Horn, pp63-81). Le Figaro has become the voice of the French Middle Class and it works on Conservative foundations. After 2004, the paper is influenced mainly by the control of the Conservative politician Serge Dassault. The owner of the paper is a major military supplier and his name thus adds to the controversies of the paper. He is from the ruling party and his influence reflects threats for other dailies. He speaks bitter of the left wing ideas and feels pride in his rightist beliefs. The aggression of the paper has compelled others to term it as the representative of the governing elite always speaking in favor of the government. They opine that the paper must show honesty instead of ever one-sided reporting of the politics. The authorities of the paper however say that it is natural for the left wing papers to feel bad of them. They say that they are right wing journalists and they know their readers like them (Horn, pp98-143). Conclusion Newspapers reflect the true image of a particular society. It tells about the norms, attitudes and behaviors of the people of a particular society. The conflicting ideas inside a nation are revealed to the whole world. In fact, newspapers are the true measuring scales of a society. The Guardian is the reflecting image of the British society. It has been working for the liberal point of view. Its advertisements and stories show of the British as a patient society however there is a continuous struggle between the classes. The paper shows the core values of the British society. The editorials show that the British society is comparatively less aggressive than the American society. The Sports page shows the British play a serious game and they always play for a win rather than caring for the rules. The Showbiz page shows the Americans are importantly more emotional than the British. Toronto Star is the mirror of the Canadian society. The society has been struggling for liberty and the paper had its important part during the struggle. The paper is ambitious in preserving the rights of civil society as well as the state. American social pillars seem unaware of their importance and the Canadian society is much alive in the sense. Individual struggle is held more important in the Canadian society while the American core values are more of a disciplined nature. Le Figaro is the French daily which shows the society is still conscious of the working importance of institutions. The editorials of the paper show that there is constant struggle for identity between the right and left wing. French society is a straightforward one which is divided in due proportion. There is but no aggressive approach towards each other and the conflicts are argued. As against the American core values, the French deal in harmony. Works Cited Hamilton, John. Newspapers. Edina, Minn: Abdo Pub, 2005. Print. Robinson, Daniel J, and Gene Allen. Communicating in Canada's Past: Essays in Media History. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2009. Print. Horn, Pierre L. Handbook of French Popular Culture. New York: Greenwood Press, 1991. Print. Read More