Urpo Kovala | University of Jyväskylä (original) (raw)
Papers by Urpo Kovala
In 2016, the concept of post-truth, in the sense of spreading disinformation, caught wide public ... more In 2016, the concept of post-truth, in the sense of spreading disinformation, caught wide public attention. The concept can be applied to media studies itself, because since the 1970s it has been popular in the field to deny, even in principle, the relevance of truth as a norm. To study the issue, the paper advances four perspectives on the philosophy of science of media studies. 1) As a general background, aspects of philosophy of science in the modern era are portrayed. 2) The development of epistemological positions assumed in media studies in the 20 th century is characterised especially by the work of Walter Lippmann and Roland Barthes. 3) In the systematic part, the applicability of well-known truth-theories to media studies is assessed. 4) Different reasons supporting the conclusion that the discourse on truth remains intricate in empirical disciplines like media studies, are presented. The campaign lobbying the energy usage of peat was visibly present as a topic in different...
Finns Party have appealed to masculine values. The exceptional rise of the populist party between... more Finns Party have appealed to masculine values. The exceptional rise of the populist party between 2003 and 2015 is seen as a major indicator of the overall rise of 'masculinist' values in Finnish politics. however, the question is not only of more masculinist politics, but also of a change in styles of masculinity-a shift towards a plurality of different political styles emphasizing masculine values. This does not preclude the ideological nature of the adherence to those values but sets new challenges to scholarship addressing what has been called backlash of traditional values in recent years in Europe and from 2016 onwards in the united States as well. the authors analyze the usages of two keywords, 'jätkä' (roughly meaning 'bloke' when referring to oneself) and 'jytky' (big bang, referring to the landslide victory of the party in 2011) by former party leader timo Soini. from this analysis the authors proceed to show connections between the masculinity-related rhetorics of finns party representatives and the central identity politics of the party.
![Research paper thumbnail of Theories of Context, Theorizing Context [Abstract]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/86388855/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](of: Urpo Kovala, Theories of context. Theorizing Context. In: JLTonline (20.06.2015) Persistent I... more of: Urpo Kovala, Theories of context. Theorizing Context. In: JLTonline (20.06.2015) Persistent Identifier: urn:nbn:de:0222-002929 Link: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0222-002929
Fafnir, 2017
All material supplied via JYX is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, a... more All material supplied via JYX is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, and duplication or sale of all or part of any of the repository collections is not permitted, except that material may be duplicated by you for your research use or educational purposes in electronic or print form. You must obtain permission for any other use. Electronic or print copies may not be offered, whether for sale or otherwise to anyone who is not an authorised user. Two Paths to Fantasy Studies Hirsjärvi, Irma; Kovala, Urpo
The objective of this article is to improve our understanding of the development of populism with... more The objective of this article is to improve our understanding of the development of populism within the nordic countries as part of the European context. The point of departure is a Nordic comparative perspective combined with a retrospective analysis of the nordic populist parties of yesterday and today. The history of Nordic populism can be described as a changing process where different types of populism have been present at different periods of time. In the early 1970s the focus was on taxation issues in combination with populist appeals of political discontent. From the beginning of the 1980s up till today, populist appeals have evolved around aspects connected to concerns about immigration and nationalism. Popular dissatisfaction can also vary in content over time and space, regardless of whether it is based on ‘too high taxes and increasing bureaucracy and the public sector’ (= the tax issue) or ‘too high refugee and asylum immigration’ (= refugeeand immigration issues) based...
Sanna Nyqvist & Outi Oja: Kirjalliset vaarennokset. Huijauksia, plagiaatteja ja luovia lainauksia... more Sanna Nyqvist & Outi Oja: Kirjalliset vaarennokset. Huijauksia, plagiaatteja ja luovia lainauksia. Helsinki: Gaudeamus 2018.
Media & viestintä, 2017
Turpeen energiakäyttöä lobannut Turveinfo-kampanja näkyi laajasti eri medioissa alkuvuodesta 2017... more Turpeen energiakäyttöä lobannut Turveinfo-kampanja näkyi laajasti eri medioissa alkuvuodesta 2017. Se herätti kiivaan ja tunnepitoisen vastareaktion. Kampanjan väitteitä pidettiin yksinkertaistavina, valheellisina ja joiltain osin myös loukkaavina. Tässä artikkelissa analysoimme mainoskampanjan sisältöä ja vastaanottoa sekä sen aiheuttamia reaktioita. Tarkastelemme erityisesti affektiivisuuden ja faktuaalisuuden suhdetta kampanjassa. Miten nykykulttuurissa käyty keskustelu vaihtoehtoisista totuuksista näkyy median moninaista kenttää hyväkseen käyttävän, lobbaajien tilaaman mainoskampanjan tulkinnoissa ja ehkä laajemminkin median tulkitsemisessa? Analyysimme viitekehyksenä toimivat affektiteoriat ja käsitys mediasta hybridisinä systeemeinä. Tarkastelemme kampanjaa lopuksi myös laajemmassa energiapoliittisessa kontekstissa.
Journal of Literary Theory, 2014
This paper focuses on the search of interpretative communities across and amongst the Nordics. Fi... more This paper focuses on the search of interpretative communities across and amongst the Nordics. First the idea of shared ‘Nordic mode of reception’ between the three Nordic countries which participated to the World Hobbit Research project is presented and investigated, after which the focus is shifted towards the examination of the possibility of the ‘country-specific profiles’. Finally it is questioned if any other background variable than nationality could explain the finding which emerge when examining the data at the level of nationalities.
Theories of meaning, even outspokenly textualist ones, have always dealt with the question of rel... more Theories of meaning, even outspokenly textualist ones, have always dealt with the question of relevant context as well, to some extent at least. In many fields of research, the idea of an encompassing theory of context has surfaced now and then, and there have also been actual attempts at such a theory, some of which are discussed in this article. At the same time the very concept of context is difficult in many ways. The term has been said to be one of the most widely used and widely abused terms in the humanities and social sciences. Brenda Dervin claims that »there is no term that is more often used, less often defined, and when defined defined so variously as context« (Dervin 1997, 13–14). More specifically, its analytical force suffers from the fact that it encompasses such a vast array of different elements. The many concepts that clearly deal with the relationship between text and context, however in a more limited or specific way, are one proof of this. The focus in the arti...
The Scriblerian and the Kit-Cats, 2002
Populism on the loose, 2018
In 2016, the concept of post-truth, in the sense of spreading disinformation, caught wide public ... more In 2016, the concept of post-truth, in the sense of spreading disinformation, caught wide public attention. The concept can be applied to media studies itself, because since the 1970s it has been popular in the field to deny, even in principle, the relevance of truth as a norm. To study the issue, the paper advances four perspectives on the philosophy of science of media studies. 1) As a general background, aspects of philosophy of science in the modern era are portrayed. 2) The development of epistemological positions assumed in media studies in the 20 th century is characterised especially by the work of Walter Lippmann and Roland Barthes. 3) In the systematic part, the applicability of well-known truth-theories to media studies is assessed. 4) Different reasons supporting the conclusion that the discourse on truth remains intricate in empirical disciplines like media studies, are presented. The campaign lobbying the energy usage of peat was visibly present as a topic in different...
Finns Party have appealed to masculine values. The exceptional rise of the populist party between... more Finns Party have appealed to masculine values. The exceptional rise of the populist party between 2003 and 2015 is seen as a major indicator of the overall rise of 'masculinist' values in Finnish politics. however, the question is not only of more masculinist politics, but also of a change in styles of masculinity-a shift towards a plurality of different political styles emphasizing masculine values. This does not preclude the ideological nature of the adherence to those values but sets new challenges to scholarship addressing what has been called backlash of traditional values in recent years in Europe and from 2016 onwards in the united States as well. the authors analyze the usages of two keywords, 'jätkä' (roughly meaning 'bloke' when referring to oneself) and 'jytky' (big bang, referring to the landslide victory of the party in 2011) by former party leader timo Soini. from this analysis the authors proceed to show connections between the masculinity-related rhetorics of finns party representatives and the central identity politics of the party.
of: Urpo Kovala, Theories of context. Theorizing Context. In: JLTonline (20.06.2015) Persistent I... more of: Urpo Kovala, Theories of context. Theorizing Context. In: JLTonline (20.06.2015) Persistent Identifier: urn:nbn:de:0222-002929 Link: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0222-002929
Fafnir, 2017
All material supplied via JYX is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, a... more All material supplied via JYX is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, and duplication or sale of all or part of any of the repository collections is not permitted, except that material may be duplicated by you for your research use or educational purposes in electronic or print form. You must obtain permission for any other use. Electronic or print copies may not be offered, whether for sale or otherwise to anyone who is not an authorised user. Two Paths to Fantasy Studies Hirsjärvi, Irma; Kovala, Urpo
The objective of this article is to improve our understanding of the development of populism with... more The objective of this article is to improve our understanding of the development of populism within the nordic countries as part of the European context. The point of departure is a Nordic comparative perspective combined with a retrospective analysis of the nordic populist parties of yesterday and today. The history of Nordic populism can be described as a changing process where different types of populism have been present at different periods of time. In the early 1970s the focus was on taxation issues in combination with populist appeals of political discontent. From the beginning of the 1980s up till today, populist appeals have evolved around aspects connected to concerns about immigration and nationalism. Popular dissatisfaction can also vary in content over time and space, regardless of whether it is based on ‘too high taxes and increasing bureaucracy and the public sector’ (= the tax issue) or ‘too high refugee and asylum immigration’ (= refugeeand immigration issues) based...
Sanna Nyqvist & Outi Oja: Kirjalliset vaarennokset. Huijauksia, plagiaatteja ja luovia lainauksia... more Sanna Nyqvist & Outi Oja: Kirjalliset vaarennokset. Huijauksia, plagiaatteja ja luovia lainauksia. Helsinki: Gaudeamus 2018.
Media & viestintä, 2017
Turpeen energiakäyttöä lobannut Turveinfo-kampanja näkyi laajasti eri medioissa alkuvuodesta 2017... more Turpeen energiakäyttöä lobannut Turveinfo-kampanja näkyi laajasti eri medioissa alkuvuodesta 2017. Se herätti kiivaan ja tunnepitoisen vastareaktion. Kampanjan väitteitä pidettiin yksinkertaistavina, valheellisina ja joiltain osin myös loukkaavina. Tässä artikkelissa analysoimme mainoskampanjan sisältöä ja vastaanottoa sekä sen aiheuttamia reaktioita. Tarkastelemme erityisesti affektiivisuuden ja faktuaalisuuden suhdetta kampanjassa. Miten nykykulttuurissa käyty keskustelu vaihtoehtoisista totuuksista näkyy median moninaista kenttää hyväkseen käyttävän, lobbaajien tilaaman mainoskampanjan tulkinnoissa ja ehkä laajemminkin median tulkitsemisessa? Analyysimme viitekehyksenä toimivat affektiteoriat ja käsitys mediasta hybridisinä systeemeinä. Tarkastelemme kampanjaa lopuksi myös laajemmassa energiapoliittisessa kontekstissa.
Journal of Literary Theory, 2014
This paper focuses on the search of interpretative communities across and amongst the Nordics. Fi... more This paper focuses on the search of interpretative communities across and amongst the Nordics. First the idea of shared ‘Nordic mode of reception’ between the three Nordic countries which participated to the World Hobbit Research project is presented and investigated, after which the focus is shifted towards the examination of the possibility of the ‘country-specific profiles’. Finally it is questioned if any other background variable than nationality could explain the finding which emerge when examining the data at the level of nationalities.
Theories of meaning, even outspokenly textualist ones, have always dealt with the question of rel... more Theories of meaning, even outspokenly textualist ones, have always dealt with the question of relevant context as well, to some extent at least. In many fields of research, the idea of an encompassing theory of context has surfaced now and then, and there have also been actual attempts at such a theory, some of which are discussed in this article. At the same time the very concept of context is difficult in many ways. The term has been said to be one of the most widely used and widely abused terms in the humanities and social sciences. Brenda Dervin claims that »there is no term that is more often used, less often defined, and when defined defined so variously as context« (Dervin 1997, 13–14). More specifically, its analytical force suffers from the fact that it encompasses such a vast array of different elements. The many concepts that clearly deal with the relationship between text and context, however in a more limited or specific way, are one proof of this. The focus in the arti...
The Scriblerian and the Kit-Cats, 2002
Populism on the loose, 2018