Polish Journalism Pioneer at the Turn of 20th Century. Aleksander Świętochowski and His Relations with Press

From the age of 23 until his death at the age of 89, thus for more than half a century, Aleksander Świętochowski was associated with the Polish press. He was an author of texts, editor and publisher, owner of three magazines: „Prawda” („The Truth”), „Kultura Polska” („Polish Culture”), and „Humanista Polski” („The Polish Humanist”). Despite numerous additional activities in the public sphere - literary, social and educational, political - biographers unanimously believe that, above all, he was a journalist and in this role he had no equal. The aim of the article is to show life of „ The Apostle of Truth” through the prism of his relations with the press. The main theme has been set in the broader context of the political realities of the time. Due to the wide time span, the professional career dynamics of the protagonist and the evolution of his image were taken into account. Świętochowski’s approach to work, as well as his view on the surrounding reality, has been analyzed and an attempt has been made to assess the motives behind his decisions related to his profession.

The article presents the circumstances of creation the magazine titled “Prace Polonistyczne” which focuses on the study of literature and didactics of literature and Polish language. The history of the magazine in 1937-39 was described as well as the forms of editorial activity. The main focus is put on bringing closer profiles of editors and contributors of the magazine: Stefania Skwarczyńska, Wilhelm Falleka, Tadeusz

THE PECULIARITY OF THE LANGUAGE OF SPORTS BASED ON AN ANALYSIS OF ARTICLES FROM LA GAZETTA DELLO SPORT

this paper focuses on the language of sports in the press, and its objectives are to analyse the specific linguistic features of the language of sports, to describe their function and to assert their possible impact on sports fans. By means of content analysis, a corpus of articles from a popular Italian sports newspaper, La Gazzetta dello Sport, was investigated in order to examine the stylistic properties typical of the language of sports. Indeed, all of the features described in this article’s review of literature on the language of sports were richly present in the corpus under scrutiny. their role consists in forming opinions, creating attitudes and arousing emotional reactions among readers.

Artist No Longer. French and British press about Jan Paderewski’s come back to Poland in December 1918

This publication is devoted to the mission undertaken by Ignacy Jan Paderewski in December 1918, his arrival in Poland, through his visit to Poznań, until the successful political talks with Józef Piłsudski and the formation of a coalition government, which led to the recognition of the Warsaw authorities by the Entente countries and establishing the composition of the Polish delegation to the Paris peace conference shown the French and British press. The chronological scope of the article covers a relatively short period, which is, however, crucial for the reconstruction of independent Poland. For its needs, the outgoing press in France and Great Britain was reviewed and articles describing Paderewski’s activities at that time were analyzed. To achieve this purpose, the French and British newspaper titles were selected that represented different political circles and achieved a significant circulation. This publication is mainly based on the method of analyzing press sources, using the philological method, which in this case involves translating the texts of press articles from French and English. However, the key research method used to write this article is the comparative method, consisting in juxtaposing information relating to the same events at the turn of 1918 and 1919 in the French and British press, and pointing to similarities and differences in the terminology used and the assessment of Ignacy Paderewski and its activities.

Among the laws regulating the press activity, the main one is the obligation to register a daily newspaper or a magazine (Article 20 of the Press Law). The registration application should include the data listed in that Article. Giving the role of a registrating body to the courts and not an administrative body, due to their independent nature, fosters the implementation of the free press rule formulated in Article 14 of the Constitution and developed in Article 1 of the Press Law. The ban on preventive censorship and press licensing is included directly in Article 54 Section 2 of the Constitution (this regulation, however, allows introducing by an Act of Parliament an obligation to obtain a license to run a radio or TV station). The registration mode is a kind of broadly understood application system and it is not included in the press licensing model. Nor does it have anything to do with preventive censorship. Regulations of the Code of Civil Procedure on non-litigious proceedings apply for registration procedure, together with alterations resulting from the Press Law. Magazine registration has two main functions: 1) protecting the name of no longer existing press titles (at the same time protecting the publisher’s right for the press title); 2) protecting the interests of potential readers. The latter case concerns preventing the reader from being misled about the true identity of a given newspaper. The Constitutional Tribunal noticed that the regulation concerning the registration mode is a limitation of the freedom of speech. However, the Tribunal did not find such a limitation that would breach Article 54 Section 1 or Article 31 Section 3 of the Constitution. Publishing a newspaper or a magazine may be suspended if in a given newspaper or magazine the law has been broken at least three times in a year, which has been confirmed by a valid criminal judgment. The regulations do not stipulate the option of cancelling the registration. It is, however, possibile that its validity may expire. According to Article 45 of the Press Law, in force since 19 July 2013, a person publishing a newspaper or a magazine without a license or suspended is subject to a fine. Currently such actions consitute a misdemeanour, and not an offence.

On 26 April 1994, the Lithuanian and Polish presidents signed in Vilnius the Treaty between the Republic of Lithuania and the Republic of Poland on friendly relations and good neighbourly cooperation. The Lithuanian press devoted much attention to the progress of negotiations in drafting this document and to its ratification by the Lithuanian Seimas in October 1994. During 1993–1994, the Lithuanian newspapers Lietuvos rytas, Respublika, Lietuvos aidas, Tiesa, Kurier Wileński, also several smaller newspapers, such as Voruta, Gimtasis kraštas, Atgimimas, SSI, Amžius, published the articles devoted to a discussion of the Lithuanian-Polish relations. This publication aims at conducting an analysis of the Lithuanian press and reviewing the articles devoted to the drafting, signature and ratification of the Treaty between the Republic of Lithuania and the Republic of Poland on friendly relations and good neighbourly cooperation, as well as to the political situation in Lithuania at the time of the drafting and signature of the mentioned agreement.

Censorship is a special case of media control. In the authoritarian system it is preventive censorship as well as press licensing that constitute a characteristic symptom of this control. In law, the notion of censorship has not been defined: therefore one has to refer to doctrines and jurisdiction. In the Polish law, a clear ban on preventive censorship, understood as making publishing or broadcasting a certain message dependent on the prior consent of a public authority, was included in Article 54 Section 2 of the Constitution. This regulation constitutes, in the area that it regulates, a development and confirmation of the freedom of the press and other media rule expressed in Article 14 of the Constitution. Additional provisions of the press’s freedom of speech in the context discussed here are formulated in Article 3 of the Press Law. Although it does not refer directly to preventive censorship, the ban it expresses is supposed to prevent the actual infringement on the freedom of the press by preventing its print and distribution. As for the issues discussed here, what may be controversial is the approach limiting the introduction of preventive censorship only to public administration institutions. The Constitutional Tribunal in its verdict from 20 July 2011, referring to the use of publication ban within proceedings to secure claims in claims against mass media concerning the protection of personal rights (Article 755 Paragraph 2 of the Code of Civil Procedure) stated that the judicial power is not the administrative power. Therefore, the courts’ activity cannot be considered as using censorship, but rather as monitoring the law being obeyed in the preventive meaning. And as for the regulations included in the European Convention on Human Rights, its Article 10 (as well as its other regulations) does not directly refer to the issue of controlling or obstructing publications, especially press releases. This question, however, has been the subject of many rulings of the European Court of Human Rights.

My case study examines an issue of Slovak occupation of the northern parts of Spisz and Orava regions in years 1939–1945 in the narration of the „Nový svet” – weekly newspaper. Slovak Army`s participation in invasion of Poland in September 1939 was an important topic for press all over that new country. Media platforms were informing their readers about military successes and diplomatic arrangements. In the article I analyse the process of creating propaganda narrative about attack, annexation and then administration over the conquered lands. The weekly was richly illustrated, so I write about role of the text as well as the picture. It should be remembered that many Slovaks were still illiterate at that time. The article considers if the narration has changed over the years.

“We enjoy frequenting seasonal resorts” – Polish travels to Prussian and German resorts (1850–1914)

This study examines written sources documenting Polish travels to German resorts from the the mid-19th century until the outbreak of World War I. The topic at hand encompasses multiple disciplines, including literary history and cultural anthropology. Among the resorts popular among Poles in the 19th century, Baden-Baden emerges as the most prominent German spa town which attracted the then elite of Europe. It gained its reputation due to the beneficial climate and hot springs as well as a diverse array of recreational activities. As the political situation deteriorated (the Kulturkampf, Prussian restrictions), Polish trips to German resorts came to be viewed in a political context. As a result, a campaign for boycotting „the baths” was launched in the Polish press. Written sources documenting Polish travels to German and Prussian resorts from the 19th and early 20th centuries provide insight into the historical context of the period, and offer a unique perspective on various political, economic, and social issues.