Identity formation in the Lithuanian diaspora press

• Lituanus. 2018, vol. 64, no. 1, p. 9-31, 100
• Lituanus. 2018, vol. 64, no. 2, p. 24-43, 87-88

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Tautinis identitetas; Nacionalinis tapatumas; Užsienio lietuviai; Lietuvybė; Išeivija; Spauda; Laikraščiai; "Čikagos Aidas"; "Draugas"; Sociologiniai tyrimai; Socialinė integracija; Globalizacija; Lietuvių bendruomenės; Tradicijos; Tautinė padėtis; Socialinė padėtis; Ekonominė padėtis; Didžioji Britanija (Great Britain); Jungtinės Amerikos Valstijos (United States of America; JAV; USA); National identity; Lithuanians living abroad; Lithuanianness; Exile; Press; Newspapers; "Čikagos Aidas"; "Draugas"; Sociological research; Social integration; Globalization; Lithuanian communities; Traditions; National situation; Social status; Economic status; Great Britain; United States.

ENThis article (made of two parts) aims to examine the ways in which Lithuanian emigrants who live in the United Kingdom and the United States construct their ideinities in highly internationalized and globalized environments. In this piece of comparative research, cultural identity established in diaspora setting was expressed through the lens of media, namely newspapers that have emigrants as their primary audience and serve as tool of disseminating the ideology of Lithuanianness. The firsts part of the article is focused on the anlysis of the UK periodicals for Lithuanians. [From the publication]In this study, four Lithuanian emigrant newspapers from the USA were examined in order to discover the ways in which this particular form of news media shape the diasporic identities of the Lithuanian emigrants who live in the USA. 302 news articles from emigrant newspapers "Čikagos Aidas" and "Draugas" that were released in 2014, 2015, and 2016 were analyzed by employing the method of thematic analysis in order to draw conclusions about the identities of Lithuanian-Americans who are the intended audience of the aforementioned newspapers. The findings reveal that the Lithuanian-Americans tend to maintain their sense of Lithnanianess by focusing on Lithuanian history and traditions as well as discussing Russia's threat to post-Soviet nations, such as Ukraine, rather than feeling kinship with the present-day Lithuania, which is viewed in a rather negative light due to the general political corruption and low level of economic stability that permeates the country. The emigrants' tendency to integrate symbolic elements of perceived Lithuanianess, such as admiration of Lithuanian folklore as well as resistance to Soviet influence, now represented by Russia's aggressive foreign policies, into their identities while maintaining a distance from the actual Lithuania signifies that this diasporic community has a unique hybrid identity that sets its members apart from both other North Americans, and Lithuanians who are currently living in Lithuania. These findings are significant because they provide new insights into the way Lithuanian diasporic communities deal with Lithuania's past trauma and present social maladies as well as construct their national identities in a multicultural environment. [From the publication]