Unshared memory: an analysis of Israeli discourse on Polish nationalization of history 2018-2023

Abstract

The Polish-Israeli Crisis of 2018, stemming from amendments to Poland's 'Act on the Institute of National Remembrance,' became a focal point for historical memory and Holocaust-related discourse, resulting in a diplomatic rift with Israel. This dissertation addresses two notable gaps in existing research by comprehensively analyzing how four major Israeli Hebrew-language newspapers—Yisrael HaYom, Yedioth Ahronoth, Ha'aretz, and Ma'ariv—portrayed the Crisis from 2018 to 2023. Existing research has predominantly focused on analyzing official communications, deals, memorandums, speeches, and statements by political authorities involved in the crisis and has conducted limited analysis of communications for the public. The limited prior studies have explored how right-wing newspapers in Israel and Poland reported on the Crisis, leaving a gap in the literature concerning newspapers with different political leanings. Representing a diverse political spectrum and catering to varying public audiences, these newspapers offer a nuanced understanding of how media coverage portrays and communicates events to the Israeli public. The theoretical relevance of this study lies in its twofold approach. Firstly, it provides insights into the synchronic communications accessible to the public as events unfolded. Secondly, it explores how newspapers, as agents in shaping and reflecting public discourse, frame events and influence public perceptions. The research employs Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) through the Discourse-Historical Approach (DHA) to analyze newspaper coverage, considering the sociopolitical and historical context of the Crisis. The study addresses the primary research question: How do major Israeli newspapers portray the Polish-Israeli Crisis? It addresses the research subquestions: What frames are used to present the Crisis? What is open or closed to dialogue concerning shared histories? How are remembrance, Crisis, and international relations presented in relation to each other?