New Zealanders on the Net Discourses of National Identities in Cyberspace Philippa Karen Smith A thesis submitted to Auckland University of Technology in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) 2012 Institute of Culture, Discourse & Communication School of Language and Culture ii Table of Contents List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. v List of Tables ............................................................................................................................... v List of Acronyms ........................................................................................................................ vi Attestation of Authorship ......................................................................................................... vii Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. viii Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... ix Chapter One : Identifying the problem: a ‘new’ identity for New Zealanders? ................... 1 1.1 Setting the context ............................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 New Zealand in a globalised world ..................................................................................................... 5 1.3 Seeking a solution – methodological considerations ........................................................................... 9 1.4 A personal journey ............................................................................................................................. 12 1.5 Thesis structure .................................................................................................................................. 18 1.6 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 21 Chapter Two : A question of identity – surveying the literature, setting the goals ............ 22 2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 22 2.2 A complex national identity ............................................................................................................... 22 2.3 Race relations/racism ......................................................................................................................... 24 2.4 Diversity ............................................................................................................................................ 28 2.5 New Zealand diversity on the Internet ............................................................................................... 32 2.6 Surveying the research landscape ...................................................................................................... 33 2.7 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 34 Chapter Three : Theoretically situating the thesis– Anderson, discourse and the Internet .................................................................................................................................................... 37 3.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 37 3.2 Framing Anderson ............................................................................................................................. 38 3.2.1 Moving to a post-classical approach....................................................................................... 41 3.3 Discursively analysing national identity ............................................................................................ 42 3.4 New imaginations on the Internet ...................................................................................................... 45 3.5 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 50 Chapter Four : In search of a New Zealand identity ............................................................. 52 4.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 52 4.2 A national narrative ........................................................................................................................... 53 4.2.1 A national identity crisis ......................................................................................................... 56 4.3 Reframing national identity ............................................................................................................... 63 4.3.1 Politicising national identity through biculturalism ................................................................ 66 4.3.2 Building an inclusive society .................................................................................................. 68 iii 4.3.3 Ambiguities and contradictions .............................................................................................. 69 4.4 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 71 Chapter Five : Design and method – Following the discursive path for analysis ............... 73 5.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 73 5.2 Selecting a methodology .................................................................................................................... 74 5.2.1 The ‘discourse-historical’ approach ....................................................................................... 74 5.2.2 DHA characteristics................................................................................................................ 75 5.2.3 The principle of triangulation ................................................................................................. 76 5.3 Collection of data ............................................................................................................................... 78 5.3.1 Official texts ........................................................................................................................... 78 5.3.2 The discourses of people – the online discussions ................................................................. 80 5.3.3 The systematic collection of online data ................................................................................ 82 5.4 Discursive tools for analysis .............................................................................................................. 87 5.4.1 Identification of discourse topics and themes – preparation of data ....................................... 88 5.4.2 Discursive strategies and linguistic devices ........................................................................... 91 5.4.3 Critiquing the results – a reflexive stance............................................................................... 95 5.5 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 97 Chapter Six : Public discourse – the official texts .................................................................. 99 6.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 99 6.2 Addressing the nation ...................................................................................................................... 101 6.3 Addressing the nation as a diverse entity ......................................................................................... 107 6.3.1 The speeches......................................................................................................................... 108 6.3.2 Race Relations Day posters and the diversity fern logo ....................................................... 112 6.3.3 The Office of Ethnic Affairs homepage ............................................................................... 117 6.4 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 120 Chapter Seven : The discourses of people – Part I: the Yellow Peril and “the identity game” blog posting .................................................................................................................. 124 7.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 124 7.2 Yellow Peril blogger Tze Ming Mok ............................................................................................... 125 7.3 The Yellow Peril blog site ................................................................................................................ 127 7.3.1 The banner ...........................................................................................................................