ASSIGNMENT#6: MASS MEDIA ANALYSIS
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A Class Paper Presented to
Dr. Donald K. Smith
Western Seminary
Portland, Oregon
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In Partial Fulfillment of
the Course Requirements of
DIS501E
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By
Dana Stucky
December 10, 2006
INTRODUCTION
Articles on world news from Dita, a daily newspaper of Albania, were recommended for inspection of a sample of mass media that the Egyptian Albanian population of Korça, Albania reads. One of the key leaders, Pastor Ali, specifically suggested reading the Dita paper from Thursday, July 29, 2004. The paper has a relevant article, “Albanians and Disdain in the Balkans” by Ismail Kadare, a popular Albanian author living in Paris since early Communism in Albania. The following paper examines 1) the issues addressed, 2) the values communicated, and 3) the response of the Egyptian Albanian community in particular to Kadare’s article as cited above. [Good intro! Who , what, when, where, why and how.]
Issues Addressed
The world news section of Dita newspaper on July 29, 2004 covered illegal emigration sponsored by the mafia, a constitution proposal for Kosovo, and an extensive article by author Ismail Kadare on ignominy and racism in the Balkans. Due to limited time and the Egyptian Albanian’s great sense of being discriminated against in Albania, only the last article by Kadare will be evaluated in this brief media analysis.
What Is The Truth About Disdain In The Balkans:
Specifically In Albania?[Line wrap long sub-section
Titles]
In the two-page layout, Kadare describes the evil effects of discrimination that brings “catastrophe on the victims and causes them to do atrocious acts by changing their character” (Dita, 12). He provides three different examples where [~of ]Albanians as a people were [~being]suppressed. He explains that when they gained freedom, they, themselves, became discriminating.
Were The Albanians Only Victims Of Disdain Or
Were They Also Perpetrators?
The editorial presented various episodes of Anti-Albanianism in the Balkan Peninsula. The Albanians were insulted, their flag degraded, and antagonistic slogans flung against them as a people. However, he stated,that there are several evidences as well of racism among the Albanian people.
Albanians: Are They Racist Too?
The author claims that Albanians are proud that they were not anti-Semitic during World War II. Then he declares, that they are not tolerant of their own ethnic diversity in their own country. He feels that they also express an attitude of superiority and racism against their neighbors and previous captors such as the Turks and Italians. Some of their ballads express disdain for these populations. At the close, Kadare laments that the Albanians have not accepted how low their culture fell during the pyramid scheme and anarchy of 1997.
values communicated
Two fundamental values can be discerned…. [A section must contain at least two sub-sections, if any.]
Racial discrimination and reverse discrimination
The editorial by Ismail Kadare accepts the discrimination that the Albanian people have experienced at various times throughout the centuries, particularly under Serbian, Turkish, and Italian occupation. He also strongly accuses the Albanians of also being racist and notintolerant within their own borders and beyond. The Egyptian Albanians read Kadare’s article with interest, but were disappointed when he, himself, expressed discrimination and made derogatory remarks against their origin,and struggles with poverty, and lack of education within Albania.
Comparison of Egyptian Albanian Values with
the Newspaper Articleregarding racism
In theory the Egyptian Albanian would wholeheartedly agree with the idea that there is much racism practiced in Albania. They feel that they have been misrepresented and overlooked in Albania. They believe that, as a result of racism, they have been underprivileged with lack of opportunities for higher education and work. Though they are hard workers, they suffer from over sixty percent unemployment and poverty. Many identify them with the Roma people that came from India over five hundred years ago. These are also a very poor and neglected people. However, the Egyptian Albanian has a sense that their culture is more developed[than…?].
Response of Egyptian Albanians
Instead of finding support or comfort by Ismail Kadare’s writings, the Egyptian Albanian felt greatly insulted. A book, Egjiptianët e Shqipërisë (English translation: Egyptian Albanians) by Luan Dino was written partially in response to the misrepresentation by Kadare of the Egyptian Albanian minority. Kadare lumped this people group with another minority, the Roma from India. He was misinformed and missed this sub-group audience. Hence he reinforced the very thing that he was writing against. That is, he wrote in a derogatory manner of this sub-group. They were enraged and have spoken out loudly against Ismail Kadare.
The Egyptian Albanian Society has gone to length to express their indignation against Ismail Kadare. While Kadare was sympathetic to minority groups that live in Albania, he was misinformed and thus inflamed a sub-group audience. He suffered a great public backlash, instead of gaining greater approval by minority groups in his motherland. He demonstrated a lack of historical understanding of the minority groups in Albania. Had he been better informed, he perhaps would have had greater influence on the society as a whole to consider the great needs of the poor and oppressed in this small country. Because of his status in Europe, he also missed an opportunity to increase awareness of some fractured human rights in Albania.[I moved this paragraph out of the conclusion, because it seemed to further develop the last section.]
Conclusion
In a mass media presentation, it is difficult to properly address or adjust its message to all of the sub-groups that will watch or listen to a transmission or read a written article. This is one of the disadvantages of such a publication as Dita, a daily newspaper in Albania.[Thus, the very devices that national entities hope will unit their populations tend to further divide sub-groups, demonstrating a constant fracturing of social systems through communication. What philosophers decry as discrimination and racism remain natural processes of differentiation, which prove harmful when not guided by values of tolerance and reconciliation.]