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Il Ruolo Dei Mass Media Occidentali Nella Rivoluzione Romena Del 1989

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Il Ruolo Dei Mass Media Occidentali Nella Rivoluzione Romena Del 1989 Corso di Laurea magistrale (ordinamento ex D.M. 270/2004) in Relazioni Internazionali Comparate – International Relations (LM-6) Tesi di Laurea Il ruolo dei mass media occidentali nella Rivoluzione Romena del 1989 Relatore Ch. Prof. Duccio Basosi Correlatore Ch. Prof. Antonio Trampus Laureando Giandomenico Desideri Matricola 987636 Anno Accademico 2013 / 2014 1 Abstract The Romanian revolution is the only transition process in the “Autumn of Nations” that is represented as a “true” revolution thanks to its affinity to the ideal type of such events. Despite the general acceptance of this definition, the debate around the true nature of the events of December 1989 in Romania is still in course and will not be over until the unsolved question left open by the revolution finds an answer. Another distinctive trait of this event is how deeply it was influenced by the mass media in its process of self-knowledge: almost a revelation process, which could be interpreted through Joyce‟s Epiphany unrevealing experience. Western mass media involvement in the Revolution goes further than merely representing it, it becomes an important part of it. Of course, the combination of internal and external contingencies which favored the creation of the Revolution‟s developing environment is not questioned. Nevertheless, it is essential to understand the degree of the western mass media‟s involvement in the revolutionary event and their overall contribution in such process. Going further into detail, what is important to consider is its contribution to the process of destruction and reconstruction of the Romanian nation‟s self-representation. Assuming that one of the effects of the Revolution, or its heritage if we wish to see it from this perspective, was the creation of a new self-representative image of the Romanian people with a mythology that influenced the political transformation, the western mass media are deeply involved in the formation of a legitimation source for the new regime. Furthermore, the Revolution could be considered an act of exorcism against Ceausescu‟s “golden era” and a necessary passage for the transformation of the nation. A passage in which the western mass media provided all of the elements necessary to render it effectively credible both internally and externally. In addition, the western mass media became the source of information when other means were not available, creating a flux of information travelling from (and to) inside and outside the country, creating a “Rashomon effect” which could be considered one of the most important contributions to the creation of an aura of mysticism which surrounds the Revolution. One of the strongest imputations to the western media is the 2 claim that they created the Revolution with their representation of the events of December in such way. The importance of defining the role of western mass media in the Romanian Revolution, without excluding the Romanian mass media from the analysis, is related to the vulnerability they demonstrated during the event. In a contextual panoramic of the historical period, the Revolution is the last passage of the greater process of collapse of Communist regimes in the other countries of the Socialist Block. Nevertheless, it takes place contextually close to different events of extreme importance which received a great coverage from western mass media, such as the invasion of Panama, the First Gulf War, the fall of the Berlin Wall. The quality of the coverage, or even the pressure and limitation applied to the western mass media for what concerns the events in Romania are qualitatively different from other events broadcasted in the same period. Furthermore, in this occasion the western mass media became the medium through the which information and disinformation alike spread in and out the nation. In addition, the Romanian Revolution is, potentially, the first revolution to be broadcasted live all over the world, without restrictions applied to how it was represented. This is one of the first examples of how the influential power of the mass media was evolving in close relation to the technological improvement. Simultaneously, the Romanian Revolution is considered to mark the end of the “Age of Innocence” of television, owing to the diffusion and perpetuation of the historical fake of Timisoara‟s mass grave: an event that reinforced the international feeling of disapproval of Ceausescu‟s regime and caused the international community to support the Revolution. The following paper's structure follows the process of deconstruction of Ceausescu‟s Romania, of his Golden age, in order to understand the background of the Revolution and what is the responsibility of the mass media in this event with particularly care in the analysis of the transcription of the mass media records. The first chapter is an analysis of Ceausescu‟s regime and the structural elements which could allow a contextualization of the Revolution‟s internal and external conjectural 3 cause. In addition, the first chapter explains the international position of Ceausescu‟s Romania, its historical relations with the two blocks and the socio-economical environment before the Revolution. It will be followed by an analysis of Ceausescu‟s regime, and the connotations of which defining it as a Sultanistic post-totalitarian regime. The second part is focused on the main actors of the Revolution, their position inside the regime, stressing the importance of all the elements inside the country and the relations between each other. Following this focus is a description of the revolutionary events, carefully defining the line of action of the “actors” of the Revolution itself and an introduction to the contribution of the mass media. The third chapter is a panoramic description of what mass media reported about the revolution, with a division between typologies of mass media and their position occupied inside the Romanian society, including the Romanian national Television, which became an important source for the western mass media. The position and the role of the Cold War international broadcasting system has particular importance when considering Radio Free Europe's position inside the Romanian society and its role in the initial phase of the Revolution. The fourth chapter focuses around the contribution given by the mass media, distinguishing between the western and the Romanian media, carefully analyzing the contribution under several theoretical points of view. The literature on the topic will be explored in detail, with attention for the theoretical framework related to the mass media contribution to the social construction of reality, and following the theory of mass communication. The fifth chapter focuses on the definition of disinformation and its role inside the Romanian Revolution, with particular emphasis on defining the contribution given in mobilizing the western mass media, and consequently activating the chain of consequences caused by their involvement. Furthermore, the chapter will offer a comparison with other similar events, such as the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 where Radio Free Europe played an important role. 4 The western mass media played a crucial role in the Romanian Revolution, getting involved in the event under several different aspects. However, the causes that explain why so much room for action was given to the western mass media are deeply rooted into the nature of Ceausescu‟s regime and its long leadership. A nature that justifies the uniqueness of the Romanian environment, and consequently allowed a better understanding of the Revolution. About the characteristics of Ceausescu‟s leadership, the most relevant and fitting definition comes from the analysis provided by Stepan and Linz, which classified the regime as Totalitarian-Sultanistic. The characteristics of this particular typology of regimes are delineated by Linz and Stepan as: “the loyalty to the ruler based not on tradition, or on him embodying an ideology, or an unique personal mission, or on charismatic qualities, but on a mixture of fear and rewards to his collaborators. The ruler exercises his power without restraint at his own discretion and above all unencumbered by rules or by any commitment to an ideology or value system”. By applying this definition on Ceausescu‟s regime, we can point out three main distinctive elements which distinguish his leadership form other governments inside the Socialist Block, and even from the main category of totalitarian-post totalitarian regimes: the Party, the Ideology and the relation between state and population. The Communist Party remained a central element for the entire leadership, but with two main fundamental traits which deeply influenced its organization, shaping it around Ceausescu and his family. The first was the management and formation policy of the party‟s bureaucracy apparatus with a clear aim of avoiding the possibility for any member to emerge and become a direct threat to the ruler's leadership. The second element was the policy of appointing family member in key positions inside every national organization, creating a sort of “Dynastic Communism” similar to Sung‟s North Korean regime. The ideology, in this case the Communist ideology, was completely subordinate to Ceausescu‟s everyday needs. The regime based its ideological perspective on the National Communism, using the Ideology as a strong source of legitimation, but at the same time stripping it of every meaning. Furthermore, Ceausescu‟s policy of making an 5 arbitrary usage of the
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