Pilk ajalehemeediumi elukäigule esikülgede kaudu

History of Estonian Newspapers as Seen on the Front PagesThis article is based on the materials of the exhibition „Life on the Front Page”, shown at the UT Library from 12 October 2021 to 13 February 2022. The exhibition was put together of 231 front pages of newspapers published in Estonia, Russia, the USA, Sweden and Australia in 1821–2020. The article examineshow the front page changed through time and analyses the emergence and development of newspapers as a media in Estonia. Changes in the front page are observed chronologically, starting from the page design and noting its components – texts, different types of advertisements and images. Ultimately, we can see a spiral revealing in the changes in the front page (and in the newspaper as a whole). Duringthe two centuries, the front page of Estonian newspapers has evolved in a winding circle. At the beginning, its design looked like a page of a book, showing only text; it evolved into a newspaper-specific arena for news, displaying both texts and images; it regressed for a while during the Soviet occupation; it continued its arrested development in the 1990s and it is by now incorporating the visual features of a magazine, an advertisement and a poster

Eesti päevalehtede muutumine Esimese maailmasõja ajal 1914–1917 [Changes in Estonian newspapers during World War I, 1914–1917]

This paper explores how did the World War I influence the content and the visual form of the Estonian core dailies Postimees, Päewaleht and Tallinna Teataja in 1914–1917. The beginning of the war brought about several rapid changes in Estonian newspapers. The vast majority of editorial content was made up of war information. War was brought close to the reader as the fate and activities of common Estonian soldiers were constantly discussed. At the same time, newspaper readers were united with the allied war forces by the use of the inclusive ‘we’ in offi cial war reports. War was seen through the eyes of the Russian Empire and their allies. War was presented using more varied newspaper genres. However, newspapers did not modernise their news genres, e.g. use more modern, hierarchical news structures, such as the inverted pyramid. Instead, the use of combined genres, which included elements of short news, commentary and reportage, increased. This was the result of an over-abundance of information. Journalists became more active in acquiring information and explaining offi cial news to their readers (e.g. explaining in detail the locations of war events). In newspaper design, the techniques which were previously used only for extraordinary events were now introduced on a daily basis. This increased the quality of information presentation. In order to emphasize essential information, each issue of a newspaper started with the listing of important war events, war news was transferred 115 to the front page, there were many more headlined news stories, and a few single war stories were wholly or partially set in bigger and/or bolder typefaces. The domination of war information, the introduction of war topics and news as the focus of the newspaper were directly connected to the war. News value became the main factor in news selection and in how news items were presented. The growth of general variability was directly related to the fact that the variability of information sources grew considerably. Information was obtained from official news bulletins as well as from private letters of civilians and soldiers. Two innovations introduced during World War I were maintained in newspapers after the war. Firstly, news remained at the front page of the newspaper, starting the era of news journalism in Estonia (replacing the previous enlightening-instructive journalism). Secondly, headlined news stories did not disappear from newspapers; rather, headlines grew bigger and became more precise. Lasting changes were related to the visual form of newspapers, whereas contextual and topical changes were temporary, related to the progress of World War I. Keywordswar, Estonian journalism, news genres, journalistic photos, visual form of newspapers, Estonian languag

Kakskümmend viis aastat hiljem. Ajakirjanike meenutused nõukogude tsensuurist / Twenty-five Years Later: Estonian journalists recall Soviet censorship

Artiklis analüüsitakse nõukogudeaegsete ajakirjanike tsensuurimeenutusi. Analüüsi aluseks on 57 eluloolist intervjuud aastatest 2015–2016. Põhiküsimus on, kuidas tõlgendavad ajakirjanikud nõukogude tsensuuri veerand sajandit pärast selle lõppemist. Uurimismeetodina on kasutatud raamistamise analüüsi (frame/framing analysis). Ajakirjanikud raamistasid tsensuuritemaatikat eelkõige neljal moel: ajakirjanik kui tsensuuriteadlik tegutseja; salastatud tsensuur; vähetähtis tsensuur; totter tsenseerimine. Intervjueeritud rõhutasid enese teadlikkust süsteemist ning leidsid, et kogenud ja tark ajakirjanik leppis tsensuuriga kui paratamatusega ja oskas keelde ennetavalt arvestada. Nad ei tõlgendanud seda aga mitte tsensuurile allumisena, vaid tsensuurist eemalseismisena.   This article studies Soviet era journalists’ recollections of censorship. The analysis is based on 57 face-to-face biographical interviews with press, radio and television journalists which were conducted in 2015–2016 (the total length of interviews is 99 hours, 5% deal with the topic of censorship). The main question of the article is how do journalists interpret Soviet censorship twenty-five years after its end. Firstly, what do they remember or recall. Secondly, to which extent can these recollections be considered a source of truth, and how do they deviate from the truth. Thirdly, how do journalists interpret censorship and their relations with censorship, in particular, their relations with resistance to censorship. The method of frame analysis is used. Soviet censorship was designed to regulate all spheres of life but, at the same time, to be invisible (according to the Constitution, freedom of speech and of the press was guaranteed to Soviet citizens). The complex and intertwined censorship system can be divided into two parts: ideological control and concealment of state secrets. The ideological control, or party censorship was based on ideological correctness, defined and controlled by the Communist Party and the KGB (Committee for State Security). Guidance on what is ideologically dangerous and forbidden was given by the Central Committee of the Estonian Communist Party through its propaganda and agitation department. The rules were not always precise and specific, many guidelines were oral and not documented. Party censorship was executed on the individual publication level by editors-in-chief, whose task was to ensure that the correct ideological line was followed. State secrets were the responsibility of Glavlit, whose task was to check that the press did not disclose military, state or economic secrets. Their work was based on regularly updated lists of data which were forbidden to be published. For example, in 1976, the list of banned data consisted of 176 pages. The existence and contents of the list of banned data was a secret, only a limited circle of accountable persons (including editorial leaders, but not lower ranking journalists) were allowed to know its content. Four main conclusions can be drawn based on the analysed interviews. The journalists’ recollections of censorship cannot be regarded as objective truth. Recollections are contradictory both in minor details and in fundamental issues. Based on the recollections, no definite conclusions can be drawn about the entire censorship system, but they can be used to understand how specific bans functioned and specific censors acted. Journalists preferred to interpret censorship narrowly, as a ban on publishing state secrets. Ideological party control, exercised by editors-in-chief and party functionaries, was interpreted not as a censorship, but as a routine part of the Soviet editing process. In doing so, the journalists distanced themselves from censorship and the censorship process. Journalists placed themselves and the editors outside of the censorship system. Censorship was performed by “others”, in particular, by Glavlit officials and the persons who had to communicate with these officials. Journalists framed censorship in four ways: a journalist as a wise, censorship-conscious agent; secretive censorship; unimportant censorship; ridiculous bans. Journalists focused on self-agency, they did not interpret themselves as the victims of circumstance, but as skilfully coping professionals who knew the system and chose ‘doublethink’ to deal with it. Thus the self-superiority dominated – journalists set themselves above censorship. In addition, a number of journalists described the Soviet censorship in a neutral way, without expressing a clear negative or positive attitude towards it and without taking a side. They described, explained and exemplified the bygone phenomenon and the remote past. The interviewed journalists framed the experience of the Soviet-era censorship differently from how the editors of cultural magazines have done in their memoires. Among the editors of cultural magazines, the pathos of resistance dominated, while the so-called regular journalists among the studied sample represented the pathos of adaptation. The interviewed journalists emphasized their awareness of the system, its way of functioning and its boundaries. They found that an experienced and wise journalist accepted censorship as an inevitability of Soviet life and was able proactively to take bans into account. They did not, however, interpret it as being subjected to censorship, but as avoiding censorship. Thus, journalists distanced themselves from the scale of adaptation/resistance to censorship and described themselves as bystanders

The Visual Form of Estonian Newspapers from 1806 to 2005

Väitekiri uurib eesti ajalehtede välimuse muutumist kahe aastasaja jooksul, ilmumise algusest (1806) kuni 2005. aastani. Välimuse alla kuuluvad lehenumbri struktureerimisvõtted, kujundus- ja küljendusvõtted, illustreerimistavad ja kirjakasutus. Eesmärgiks on anda ülevaade eesti ajalehtede välimusest, leida ajalehtede välimuse perioodid ja välimuse muutumise põhjused. Selleks on eelkõige sisuanalüüsi abil uuritud kolme keskse eestikeelse ajalehe välimust viieaastase intervalliga. Statistilised tulemused on esitatud jooniste ja tabelitena, ülevaadet illustreerib arvukalt näiteid ajalehtedest. Eesti ajalehtede välimus liigendub viide suurde perioodi: raamatulik ajaleht (1806–1870. aastad), lineaarne ajaleht (1870.–1910. aastad), hierarhiline ajaleht (1920.–1930. aastad), ideologiseeritud ajaleht (1940.–1980. aastad) ja disainitud ajaleht (1990.–2000. aastad). Neid perioode eristab üksteisest eelkõige ajalehenumbri ja lehekülje ülesehitus, materjali liigendatuse määr ja lehekülgede suurus. Uus välimusperiood algab eesti ajalehtedes alati nelja teguri koosmõjus. Välimuse muutustele eelnevad järsud ühiskondlikud muutused, mis suurendavad või vähendavad ajalehtede mahtu vähemalt 1,5 korda viie aasta jooksul. Muutus majanduslikus konkurentsis ja uudiste kui ajalehe ühe keskse tekstirühma rollis sunnib ajalehti välimust muutma. Ajakirjanike professionaalse rolli muutumine võimaldab välimusmuutused ellu viia. Ühiskondlikest muutustest ja ajalehe mahust suhteliselt sõltumatult muutub ajalehe esteetika: pildilisuse määr, kirjakasutuse stiil ning välimuse lihtsus/kirevus. Seega ei kujune ega muutu ajalehe välimus juhuslikult ega üksnes graafilise disaini ideede mõjul, vaid on mõjutatud erinevatest sotsiaalsetest, majanduslikest, kultuurilistest, ajakirjanduslikest ja tehnoloogilistest muutustest ühiskonnas.This dissertation examines the transformations of the visual form of Estonian newspapers during a 200 year period, 1806–2005. The visual form includes the persisting visible structure of the newspaper, design and layout devices, the typography and ways of illustration. The aim of the thesis is to describe, analyze and periodize the transformations of the visual form of Estonian newspapers, and to disclose the reasons for the changes. The data were collected primarily by content analysis of three main newspapers at five year intervals. The statistical results are presented in Figures and Tables. Numerous examples of newspaper pages appear in the thesis’ overview. The visual form of Estonian newspapers comprises five main periods: the Bookish Newspaper (1806–1870s), the Linear Newspaper (1870s¬–1910s), the Hierarchical Newspaper (1920s–1930s), the Ideologized Newspaper (1940–1980s) and the Designed Newspaper (1990s–2005). The newspapers of each period employ different ways for structuring information and vary the extent of segmentation and the size of the page. The onset of a visual period is always preceded by the interaction of four factors. Rapid social changes cause either an increase or decrease of the average volume of a newspaper issue by at least a factor of 1.5 within five years. Changes in economic competition and changes in the role of the news as a core text-type urge newspapers to transform their visual form. Changes in the professional role of journalists enable them to carry out the visual changes. Changes in the aesthetics of newspapers ¬– degree of visuality, typographic style and either the simplicity or diversity of visual form – occur fairly independently of social changes and the volume of newspapers. The thesis concludes, the visual form of newspapers does not develop or transform solely due to either randomness or the influence of ideas of graphic design but is influenced by social, economic, cultural, journalistic and technological changes in society

The Visual Form of Estonian Newspapers from 1806 to 1940 and the Appearance Spiral Model.

Changes in the visual form of newspapers are considered to be connected to changes in society, technologies, and aesthetic ideals. The present chapter explores the changes in the visual form of Estonia’s major newspapers between 1806 and 1940, and whether Mervola’s model of visual changes, in Finnish newspapers, is applicable to Estonia’s newspapers. Content analysis is used to analyse the data. The analysis shows that Estonian newspapers considerably changed their visual form twice during this period. These changes in visual form were linked to social and economic factors, and three specific influencers were present prior to both instances of change. At first, rapid social changes caused a volume-jump in the newspaper issue (1.5 times in five years), and then competition and journalistic professionalization were needed to trigger the changes in the visual form. Technical evolution did not force newspapers to change, but was instrumental only when social factors demanded changes