Erasmus University Thesis Repository
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'Timid and Ungenerous Liberalism and Stupidly Unrelenting Toryism'
No full text'Treacy had stated to me that the only way of starting a war was to kill someone and we
wanted to start a war, so we intended to kill some of the police whom we looked upon as the
foremost and most important branch of the enemy forces which were holding our country in
subjection. ... The only regret we had, following the ambush, was that there were only two
policemen in it instead of the six we expected, because we felt that six dead policemen would
have impressed the country more than a mere two.'1
The Irish War of Independence began on 21 January 1919 with an Irish Republican
Army (IRA) ambush on a delivery of explosives escorted by two policemen. That same day,
Dáil Éireann (the Irish republican parliament) met for the first time, mobilising both the
political and military wings of the republican movement. After over two years of conflict, a
truce took effect on 11 July 1921, leading to negotiations that resulted in the Anglo-Irish
Treaty, signed on 6 December and ratified on 7 January 1922
The war saw diverse tactics from both sides. The IRA relied on guerrilla warfare,
including ambushes, attacks on rural barracks and assassinations. In response, British Crown
forces conducted reprisal attacks and implemented martial law, internment and censorship.
Martial law was declared on 10 December 1920 in four particularly affected south-western
counties Cork, Kerry, Limerick, and Tipperary before being extended to Clare, Waterford,
Kilkenny, and Wexford.
This thesis examines how the use of martial law was portrayed in The Times and The
Manchester Guardian. Employing text analysis and close reading, it explores stereotypes of
the Irish and editorialisation to understand how these newspapers portrayed the policy. By
analysing linguistic choices, recurring themes, and ideological underpinnings, this thesis
investigates how newspapers shaped discourse of the conflict. Special attention is given to
representations of Irish identity and nationalism, as well as British policy and Crown force
violence. This analysis contributes to broader discussions on media influence, colonial
discourse, and the press's role in perpetuating or challenging stereotypes
It's Nice to Have a Friend, but is Your Favourite Musician one?
No full textIn today's digital music landscape, social media platforms allow fans to feel close to their favourite artists without direct interaction, creating parasocial relationships. While previous research has focussed on mainstream celebrities, little attention has been given to how this can differ between mainstream and early-career musicians. This study examines how perceived intimacy, reciprocity, and authenticity influence the strength of parasocial relationships, and how these relationships affect fan behaviours. By comparing fans of mainstream and early-career musicians, this thesis investigates how career phase may moderate the formation and outcomes of parasocial relationships.
The research uses a quantitative approach using an online survey distributed to fans of four musicians: mainstream musicians Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, and early-career musicians Only The Poets and Alfie Jukes. The survey collected data on fans' perceptions of intimacy, authenticity, and reciprocity, as well as measures of parasocial relationship strength, purchase intentions, and personal influence. The findings indicate that perceived intimacy, reciprocity, and authenticity significantly influence the strength of parasocial relationships between fans and musicians, supporting the idea that these relational cues are key drivers of emotional connection (RQ1). These stronger parasocial relationships, in turn, positively affect fans' behavioural intentions, including purchase intentions and influence on their personality (RQ2). Importantly, the results reveal that career phase moderates the effect of authenticity and reciprocity on parasocial relationship strength, in a way that this effect is stronger for early-career musicians than for mainstream artists (RQ3).
These findings suggest that the career phase of a musician plays an important role in shaping how parasocial relationships are formed and how they translate into consumer behaviour. The study contributes to the academic understanding of parasocial relationships in the context of popular music and provides practical implications for musicians and industry professionals. In particular, it highlights the importance of intimate, authentic, and reciprocal engagement for emerging artists seeking to grow loyal and supportive fanbases in an increasingly digital market
Reaching young audiences
No full textThis study explores two public service media's TikTok profiles and video content directed at younger audiences - BBC's Newsround and DW's Stories. The contemporary media landscape has undergone numerous transitions and industrial disruptions brought by digitalization. The emergence of social media was no different, with platforms captivating audiences, which in turn have grown distant from legacy media. Facing the growing challenge of capturing and maintaining young audiences, public service media adopt various innovative practices to reinforce their legitimacy and functionality in a fragmented, digital-first environment, expanding their relevance through content distribution on third-party platforms. As external information conduits, platforms have been prioritized by young audiences, with TikTok becoming one of the most popular apps in recent times. Thus, this study explores how two European media organizations - DW and BBC balance between providing quality, informational content and adhering to TikTok logic, utilized for creative and algorithmic enhancement.
Adopting a qualitative comparative research approach, this study relies on content analysis and critical discourse analysis, respectively, applied to BBC and DW's TikToks and interpreting their public mission rhetorics. The findings from short-form video analysis revealed that DW Stories heavily prioritizes hard news reporting, providing extensive storytelling that is dominantly enhanced through various entertainment strategies. Moreover, DW's content is underscored by increased TikTok adoption, utilizing both creative and technological affordances to shape the organization's final product. Comparably, BBC Newsround prioritized soft news coverage, still sticking to extensive information provision. Differently from DW, when reporting on hard news, BBC avoided employing entertainment strategies as opposed to its soft news reports. Contrastingly to DW, Newsround represented limited platform logic, employing only a few content strategies.
Collectively, the two organizations situated impartiality at the basis of their public mission, with the BBC foregrounding its legacy expertise and competitive advantage in the media landscape to legitimize its function. Diversely, DW's unbiased reporting goal is discursively framed through cooperation, justifying its digital practices as a result of audience demands. BBC's acknowledgement of the growth and relevance of social media platforms for digital news reporting was complemented by repeated discursive resistance to platform dominance, revealing the confounding implications from the advent of digitalization and subsequent rise of technological platforms in the media market
The Value of Authenticity in Contemporary Music Industry
No full textThis thesis explores how the concept of authenticity is crafted, performed, and interpreted within the contemporary music industry, considering the Instagram platform as the primary channel of interaction between emergent artists and active listeners. Drawing on affordances' theories and employing a qualitative methodology based on semi-structured interviews with both artists and listeners, the research investigates how Instagram's affordances, including its features, formats and types of content, facilitate or constrain authentic interactions within the digital music environment. The findings reveal that authenticity is not a fixed or inherent quality of an artwork, but rather a relational and co-constructed process, shaped by both artists and listeners and ultimately determined by characteristics of the platform. For artists, expressions of authenticity require a careful balance between personal expression and strategic practices, as they must continually craft and adapt their identity according to their own values, audience expectations, and Instagram's evolving affordances. Listeners, on the other hand, interpret authenticity through signs of spontaneity, perceived vulnerability, and the coherence of artists' identities over time. The research demonstrates that, rather than being passive observers, listeners are regularly and mindfully engaged with artists' online actions. Even though they are capable of understanding the challenges artists face, their expectations for authentic content remain unchanged. Both groups are highly aware of Instagram platform's dual nature: while it offers democratized access to visibility and connection with others, it also imposes market-oriented strategies, performative expectations, and algorithmic pressures. Through the lens of existing affordances' theories, the study reveals that artists navigate a delicate digital ground where Instagram serves both as a portfolio of their work and a marketplace. In this context, they must strategically integrate their creative voice within the platform's logics and affordances. Listeners' interactions, even when indirect, play a pivotal role in constructing and validating both perceived authenticity and artists' career, providing emotional support as well as measurable engagement. Therefore, the research frames authenticity as deeply intertwined with economic and relational values. Within the context of today's digital music industry, authenticity becomes a commodified quality that, although perceived as genuine, must be carefully curated to be rewarded by the platform and accepted by the audience. Overall, this thesis argues that authenticity on Instagram emerges from ever-evolving negotiations between realness and representation, spontaneity and visibility, and creativity and strategy. It contributes to broader discussions on authenticity in digital environments by showing how artists' practices and listeners' expectations intersect through platforms' affordances, shaping new forms of realness within the music industry
Creative Communities as Bridges
No full textIn an increasingly globalized world, migration continues to shape the cultural and social dynamics of host societies. This raises important questions about how migrants engage with their new environments, not merely through everyday, informal practices. Cultural participation plays a vital role in fostering a sense of belonging and promoting social integration. This study explores how cultural participation spaces such as dance collectives, theatre groups, pottery workshops, or creative writing circle, support the social integration of expatriates in the Netherlands. These creative communities function not only as outlets for artistic expression but also as vital platforms for building social networks, fostering a sense of belonging, and navigating identity in a new cultural context.
Drawing on the theoretical frameworks of cultural capital, social capital, sense of community, and social identity theory, this research employs a qualitative methodology that includes preliminary site visits and in-depth semi-structured interviews with recent expatriates engaged in three distinct cultural spaces. Using thematic analysis, six overarching themes emerged: (1) Negotiating Belonging and Community, (2) Cultural Capital and Creative Expression as Tools of Integration, (3) Building Social Capital through Participation, (4) Identity Transformation and Self-Exploration, (5) The Role of Language: Bridge or Barrier?, and (6) Inclusion and Accessibility: Structural and Perceived Barriers. Findings show that these cultural spaces act as dynamic sites for connection, emotional resilience, and identity negotiation. However, despite their informal and inclusive nature, participants still faced barriers related to cost, language dominance, and limited interaction with local Dutch residents. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the social dimensions of expatriate life and underscores the importance of creative, community-based cultural practices in fostering inclusive and socially cohesive urban environments
Belonging in the Museum: How Dutch Art Museums Can Brand Themselves for Young Adults
No full textABSTRACT
Young adults are the demographic least likely to visit art museums in the Netherlands, despite the
sector's overall recovery since the COVID-19 pandemic (Berg et al., 2024, p. 30; Binnen Bij Musea,
2024). This trend is also observed internationally and is often attributed to perceptions that museums
are elitist, irrelevant, or unengaging (Mason & McCarthy, 2006, pp. 21-23; Batat, 2020, p. 109).
While earlier research has examined programmatic and educational outreach, the role of museum
branding and institutional identity in shaping young adults' perceptions remains underexplored. This
study addresses this gap by asking: How can Dutch art museums brand and position themselves to be
perceived as relevant and attractive by young adults, fostering a sense of belonging?
A qualitative research design was used, based on thirteen semi-structured interviews with young
adults aged 19 to 28 living in the Netherlands. Participants were selected through purposive sampling
to reflect a diversity of museum experiences, interests, and cultural backgrounds. Thematic analysis
followed Braun and Clarke's (2006, pp. 77-101) six-phase approach, with codes and themes
developed inductively from the data and interpreted through a constructionist lens.
The study is informed by a multidisciplinary theoretical framework combining Customer-Based
Brand Equity (Keller, 1993, pp. 1-22; 2003, pp. 7-20), social infrastructure and belonging (Fortune,
2020, pp. 181-191), Uses and Gratifications Theory (Katz et al., 1973, pp. 509-523), cultural capital
(Fyfe, 2004, pp. 47-67), self-congruity theory (Sirgy, 1985, pp. 195-206), brand positioning (Saqib,
2019, pp. 2616-2631), and audience development (Ayala et al., 2020, pp. 306-327).
Findings reveal that while many young adults perceive museums as exclusive, institutional, or
difficult to relate to, they nonetheless express a strong interest in cultural engagement. A sense of
belonging was fostered when museums communicated in accessible, inclusive, and emotionally
resonant ways, offered diverse representation, and created space for peer-based connection and
validation.
The study concludes that Dutch art museums can enhance their relevance to young adults by
rethinking branding strategies to center identity recognition, cultural accessibility, and emotional
connection. These insights offer practical guidance for museums seeking to become more relational,
socially embedded, and meaningful across generations
News Influencers: The Role of Professional Expertise and Emotional Tone on Gen Z's News Consumption Intention
No full textThe purpose of this thesis was to conduct research on whether the presence or absence of the professional expertise of the news influencer, in the form possessing or not possessing a professional journalistic background, and the positive, negative or neutral emotional tone of the online news content, play a significant role in determining the news consumption intention for Gen Z. To measure this connection, a 2x3 between-subjects quasi factorial experimental research design was composed. By conducting this research, the potential effects of professional expertise and emotional tone on Gen Z's news consumption intention were unraveled. The aim was to use these results in order to gain a deeper understanding of Gen Z's digital news consumption and which factors would play an essential role in determining their intent to consume news. This thesis constructed the following research question to reveal the findings of the research: How does the professional expertise of the news influencer (professional vs. non-professional) and the emotional tone of the online news content (positive, neutral, or, negative) impact the news consumption intention of Gen Z? To answer the research question of this thesis, three main hypotheses were constructed. H1 (News influencers with a professional journalistic background will generate higher levels of news consumption intention compared to news influencers without a professional journalistic background), H2a (Emotional tone in news content will influence the level of news consumption intention), H2b (A negative emotional tone of news content created by news influencers will generate higher levels of news consumption intention compared to positive - and neutral news content), H2c (A positive emotional tone of news content created by news influencers will generate higher levels of news consumption intention compared to neutral news content), and H3 (The influence of a negative emotional tone of news content created by news influencers will generate higher levels of news consumption intention compared to positive - and neutral news content and this effect is greater when it concerns influencers with a professional background compared to a non-professional background). The hypotheses were tested by using a two-way ANOVA in SPSS. The results from the analysis indicated that H2a and H2c were accepted, and H1, H2b, and H3 were rejected. Thus, the findings of the research revealed that Gen Z's intention to consume news was not influenced by the professional expertise of the news influencer, but on the other hand, their news consumption intention was affected by the emotional tone of the news content. This was specifically the case when the headline of the news content was positively framed. This suggested that Gen Z had an overall preference for more positive content in order to positively influence their news consumption intention
CANCEL CULTURE AT THE BALLET BOX: FRAMING STRATEGIESIN THE 2024 U.S. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
No full textAbstract
Cancel culture is one of the most polarizing phenomena in contemporary society. It originally
emerged as a digital grassroots tool to hold individuals accountable for their harmful actions.
However, the term has since evolved into a hot topic of debate across the political digital spectrum as
some view it as a form of social justice, whilst others see it as a threat to individual rights
This research investigated how cancel culture and related issues were framed by the different
political parties on X during the 2024 presidential election in the United States. Moreover, this thesis
examined the changing role of cancel culture in political communication and its usage by various
political parties to shape public perceptions. To achieve this, it analysed 500 purposively sampled
tweets from Democratic, Republican, and Independent-affiliated political figures and commentators
using a two-stage qualitative method that combined inductive thematic coding with framing analysis.
The study identified five dominant frames and found that the concept "cancel culture" itself
was often deliberately avoided. This was most seen among Democratic-affiliated actors, who focused
more on themes such as accountability and civic responsibility. Furthermore, Independent voices often
challenged the dominant narratives presented by both major parties and offered alternative
perspectives. Nevertheless, Republican actors reframed cancel culture as a threat to free speech and
blamed this threat on the Democrats. These findings suggest that cancel culture has shifted from being
a standalone cultural controversy to functioning as a flexible rhetorical tool embedded in broader
ideological battles. The study also highlights how political actors change their messaging strategies in
response to a quickly evolving discursive environment. Additionally, it illustrates how social media
platforms like X enable real-time discursive shifts and allow actors to adapt strategic language to align
with current political agendas. In doing so, cancel culture becomes a mirror of and a mechanism for
broader partisan conflicts in the digital age
From Euromaidan to war: A decade of European and American policies towards Ukraine
No full textSince 2013 Ukraine has been at the centre of the main European historical events, and even as of today, with the ongoing war of aggression launched by Russia, it is still the main focus of Western foreign policy. As such, this thesis asks "How did the political, economic, and military policies of the EU and the USA vis-à-vis Ukraine evolve, 2013-2024?". Using interpretive research, it analyses European and American documents and declarations assessing Ukraine's path towards EU and NATO memberships during the Euromaidan Revolution (2013-2014), the War in Donbas (2014-2022), and the full-scale Russian invasion (2022-2024).
The findings show that both the EU and US underwent similar policies, but with different goals. Brussels, on the one hand, aimed at completing its eastwards expansion by drawing Ukraine away from the Russian sphere of influence, considering it a moral obligation to include a culturally European nation within the Union. It was, therefore, a matter of actorness. Washington, on the other hand, wanted a sovereign Ukraine to counter Russia's imperialism, so as to maintain its influence over Eastern Europe. For the United States, then, Ukraine was primarily a matter of hegemony
Digital Labour and Platform Capitalism: A Discourse Analysis of OnlyFans Creators Interviews
No full textSince the COVID-19 pandemic spread in 2020, platforms like OnlyFans have experienced a
significant surge in popularity, also due to the fact that many people could not perform their
in-person labour. OnlyFans revolutionised digital sex work by offering creators new modes of
income generation through paywalled content. Many creators have begun to define this
platform as a tool that empowers them and helps them achieve success and financial stability.
However, there is academic evidence that, by operating in the realm of platform capitalism,
digital workers on these platforms are often exploited in various ways. In addition, the
exploitation of digital labour on OnlyFans is also a feminist issue, as the vast majority of
workers identify as women, and the buyers are mostly heterosexual men. Therefore, there is a
need to study the discourse around female labour on OnlyFans through the lens of three main
theories: Platform capitalism, Digital Labour Theory and Feminist Theory. Throughout the
research, it becomes clear that the findings reveal a discursive tension. On the one hand,
creators often describe their work with words such as "empowering" and "freeing," and they
feel like they can "be their own bosses." On the other hand, many also speak about the
extreme competition on the platform, the lack of labour protections (e.g., sick leave and
retirement) and the social and economic stigma they face because of their job. The
methodology applied is Critical Discourse Analysis: by analysing the discursive choices of
the creators themselves when discussing their labour, the aim is to investigate how OnlyFans
workers create discourses around gendered experiences of precarity, empowerment, and
oppression. This research aims to analyse how OnlyFans creators discuss their work and how
they perceive labour precarity. This thesis contributes to the ongoing conversations about
digital labour, focusing specifically on digital sex work