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Travel Journalism
and Travel Media
Identities, Places and Imaginings
Ben Cocking
Travel Journalism and Travel Media
Ben Cocking
Travel Journalism and

Travel Media
Identities, Places and Imaginings
Ben Cocking
Centre for Journalism
University of Kent
Kent, UK
ISBN 978-1-137-59907-0 ISBN 978-1-137-59908-7 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59908-7
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Contents
1 Introduction: Travel Journalism—Forms and Origins 1
2 Making Tabloid Travel Journalism: Values and Visuality 27
3 “Itravel: Competing Forms of Travel Writing in Print

Based and User Generated Journalism” 53
4 Visions of Past and Present? Travel Journalism Features

and TripAdvisor Reviews of Tourist Destinations in the
Middle East 77
5 Looking West: Representations of Cultural Difference and

Patterns of Consumption in ‘Eastern’ Travel Journalism105
6 Selling it ‘Green’: Travel Journalism, Trump and the US

National Monuments129
7 Conclusions153
Index 161
v
List of Figures
Fig. 4.1 Thomas Cook & Sons 1870s. https://www.shapell.org/

manuscript/travel-poster-egypt-and-palestine-tours-
thomas-cook/83
Fig. 4.2 Thomas Cook & Sons 1930s. http://www.advertisingarchives.
co.uk/detail/24741/1/Magazine-Advert/Thomas-
Cook/1930s84
Fig. 4.3 Egyptian State Tourist Department 1950s. https://www.
antikbar.co.uk/original_vintage_posters/travel_posters/
romance_in_egypt_midcentury_modern/PT1751/84
Fig. 6.1 By month coverage of the national monuments story across all
US newspapers listed on Nexis 138
Fig. 6.2 By month travel journalism coverage of the national
monuments story 139
vii
List of Tables
Table 3.1 Travel journalism in online newspapers 62

Table 3.2 Number and ranking of ‘Digital Nomad’ and ‘Travel
Hacking’ blogs in top 50 blogs worldwide 66
Table 6.1 Top 20 (of 81) newspapers by coverage of the national
monuments story 136
Table 6.2 Content on national monuments in travel pages 137
ix
CHAPTER 1
Introduction: Travel Journalism—Forms

and Origins
Introduction
Travel journalism—like all areas of journalism—is experiencing a contin-
ued period of great change and transition. The economic model of print
journalism is increasingly unsustainable in the context of freely accessible,
and often user generated, online content. Advertising revenue, that for so
long brought financial security to print journalism, is now being reas-
signed to a rapidly changing online media environment. Similarly, tourism
companies are seeing the potential in advertising and sponsoring online
spaces like travel blogs and vlogs to generate custom more quickly and
often for significantly less outlay than their more traditional means of
engaging public relations companies to produce marketing content and
inviting journalists on free trips. Allied to this social media platforms
enable the production of user generated content. As a result travel journal-
ism is in a state transition. Social media platforms provide seemingly limit-
less possibilities in terms of how content can be packaged. The
presentational environment of, for example, blogging platforms opens up
huge possibilities—particularly visually—for what has traditionally been a
primarily textual form of journalism. The possibilities afforded by the
technology of social media platforms has seen the emergence of hybrid-
ized forms of travel journalism. The aim of this book is to seek to explore
how this context of transition is changing the representational characteris-
tics and practices of the genre. That is, how travel journalism represents
the world and how technological development and the emergence of new
© The Author(s) 2020 1

B. Cocking, Travel Journalism and Travel Media,
https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59908-7_1
2 B. COCKING
ways of monetizing content are shaping the representational practices and

potential of this form of journalism. The following chapters address these
issues in several different, though often interconnected ways. In Chap. 2,
the constitutive, representational elements of travel journalism are exam-
ined. Specifically, this chapter draws on the concept of ‘news values’
(Galtung and Ruge, 1965) in order to assess the ‘values’ of travel journal-
ism. That is, the ideologically driven representational values that shape and
constitute travel content. It focuses on British tabloid travel journalism,
drawing comparison with more traditional, broadsheet based forms of
travel journalism. In so doing, it considers the ways in which readers are,
to borrow Althusser’s term, ‘interpellated’ ideologically by content; how
readerships are encouraged to participate in different forms of consump-
tion. Chapter 3 focuses on travel journalism’s transition from print to
online. It examines compares the representational practices of travel blogs
with that of traditional broadsheet newspapers and in so doing explores
the different business models of each format. In particular Chap. 3 exam-
ines the representational drivers of narrative in print and blog settings
along with the different ways in which such narratives engage readers.
Chapters 4 and 5 examine the ways in which particular destinations are
represented in travel journalism from different regions of the world.
Chapter 4 looks ‘West’, focusing on how Malaysian travel journalism rep-
resents holiday experiences in both Malaysian tourist destinations along
with famous and well established ‘Western’ destinations. In so doing it
considers the points of similarity and divergence between these modes of
representation and those well established in Western travel journalism.
This perspective is balanced by Chap. 5 and its focus on representations of
the Middle East in British and American newspaper travel journalism and
on the online review site, TripAdvisor. This chapter seeks to trace circuits
of representation from their origins in nineteenth century British travel
journalism, through travel journalism to user generated content on
TripAdvisor. Chapter 6 examines the political possibilities of travel jour-
nalism and its potential to respond to the mainstream news agenda. By
way of an example this chapter focuses the coverage of US President
Trump’s initiative to resize and repurpose ‘national monuments’ in
American newspapers. It compares the coverage given to the story in all
sections of each paper with that given in the travel sections. In so doing, it
examines the ways in which travel journalism conveys political critique and
environment concern, finding that it tends to do so through the interplay
1 INTRODUCTION: TRAVEL JOURNALISM—FORMS AND ORIGINS 3
of established travel journalism representational practices with those asso-

ciated with other forms of journalism, such as political reporting.
Some of aspects of the changes travel journalism is undergoing have
been addressed in other studies. For example, Hanusch and Fürsich’s
edited collection Travel Journalism: Exploring, Production, Impact and
Culture (Hanusch, 2014) examines some of the representational aspects
of travel journalism in studies of specific regions. For example, it includes
a chapter by me on representations of Africa in British broadsheet travel
journalism. It also includes a chapter on travel blogging and aspects of the
changing dimensions of the financial logic of travel journalism are also
addressed in several different chapters. More recently, Bryan Pirolli pro-
duced a single authored monograph Travel Journalism: Informing Tourists
in the Digital Age (2018). Taking a part academic, part practitioner based
approach, it also addresses aspects of travel journalism’s transition from
print to online environments. In so doing, it explores aspects of the chang-
ing representational practices of travel journalism—particularly in respect
of how the production of content online calls upon journalists to utilize
different skills and techniques, both in terms of the presentation and mon-
etization of content. In this sense, the intention here is to focus on the
changing nature of travel journalism’s representational output. That is, in
contrast to Pirolli, to study the end product rather than the changing
demands on the craft of journalism as it transitions online. Likewise,
where—perhaps inevitably as the first book on travel journalism—Hanusch
and Fürsich’s primary focus on taking stock of the state of play in an
emerging academic field, this book seeks to examine specific representa-
tional attributes of travel journalism. These books are discussed in more
detail later in this chapter as part of a review of existing literature on travel
journalism.
Intervention in these lines of enquiry is significant and timely for sev-
eral reasons. It has, for example, been widely acknowledged that the study
of the media as a whole is very Western centric—this is particularly the case
in the study of travel journalism. The focus in Chap. 5 on Malaysian travel
journalism furthers knowledge and understanding in this area, particularly
in terms of how established representational tropes are refigured in non-
Western travel journalism. Similarly, Chap. 6 aims to further extend exist-
ing research in the ways in which modes of representation ‘flow’ between
older, often colonial, travel writing and contemporary travel journalism by
seeking to explore the extent to which such modes resurface in user gener-
ated content on review sites like TripAdvisor. The use of theories of ‘news
4 B. COCKING
values’ is very well established as a means of critiquing how and why sto-
ries are selected for the news. However, little consideration has been given
to the application of this paradigm to other forms of journalism. Chapter
2 pursues this line of enquiry, seeking to explore the underlying ‘values’ of
tabloid based travel journalism. Similarly, the comparative study in Chap.
3 of the representational practices of travel blogs and broadsheet travel
journalism, aims further extend knowledge and understanding of how
online environments are impacting on representational practices. Lyn
McGaurr’s highly original study of travel journalism’s coverage of envi-
ronmental conflict in Tasmania provides a unique insight into the political
and cosmopolitan potential of the genre (2010). The focus in Chap. 6 on
the coverage of the Trump administration’s resizing of lands with ‘national
monument’ status in American travel journalism seeks to further advance
research into its ability to intervene politically, to respond to the news
agenda and convey awareness of environmental conflict.
Travel Journalism: An Image Problem

The media industry tends to perceive of travel journalism as a low status
format. It is not considered ‘real’ journalism because, as indicated in the
previous chapter, ‘it seems to defy several major values of journalism:
objectivity, editorial independence and public relevance’ (Fürsich, 2002,
p. 61). Within the profession travel journalism is often perceived as being
rather ‘lightweight’, less prestigious and of little importance relative to the
‘fourth estate’ function of news and current affairs journalism. As travel
journalist Chris Moss wrote in 2008, travel journalism is often viewed as a
fun, amateurish adjunct to the ‘real’ business of journalism. Consequently
At best, this copy [travel journalism] often comes in with a few factual errors
or sloppy observations. At worst, it is written up during a hangover on the
flight home and culled from a guidebook. Because everyone had to do a
“My holiday” essay at school, all journalists think they can knock off a quick
travel feature without much trouble (Moss, 2008, p. 36)
Thus, in comparison to most other areas of journalism which require spe-

cific training and skills, ‘…many newspaper journalists who write travel
pieces have generally not received any training in the field’ (Hanusch,
2009, p. 624). After all, travel is a leisure activity and the main aim of most
professionally produced travel journalism is to encourage us to spend our
money on travel and tourism activities. In this way, typically, travel journal-
ism tends to directly address ‘readers, viewers or users as individuals who
make consumer decisions’ (Fürsich, 2012, p. 13). Consequently, in
broader, socio-cultural terms travel journalism is understood to be pre-
dominantly a market driven form of journalism (Hanitzsch, 2007, p. 374).
The nature of the political economy of travel journalism, its close alliance
with the tourism industry, its reliance on paid trips, is further problema-
tized by the fact that travel journalism content is increasingly draw from
public relations and marketing materials. The rise of new media forms
online and the proliferation of user generated content have hit the eco-
nomics of journalism, particularly print journalism, very hard. The budget
for newspapers’ travel sections is no longer able to provide the resources
for slow burn, long form pieces: ‘Classic travel features—meaning those
containing narrative, colour, creativity, inquiry–are being replaced by
reader tips, lists of suggestions and thinly disguised advertorial puffs and
plugs for tour operators…’ (Moss, 2008, p. 37). A further consequence of
declining budgets in that less and less travel journalists work ‘in house’—
most now work on a freelance basis. The insecurity of freelance work
means that nowadays out of necessity travel journalists often end up
engaging in a much broader range of work activities than they have his-
torically. Typically, in addition to producing travel articles, they might also
contribute to travel guides, write hotel and restaurant reviews and produce
marketing literature for tour operators (ibid, p. 33). This places contem-
porary travel journalists in an even more complicated and compromised
position relative to the professional ethics and values of journalism than
their historic counterparts. In particular, journalistic objectivity and the
professional ‘capacity to narrativize the events in the real world’ would
appear to be almost at odds with the workaday practices of travel journal-
ists (Zelizer, 2004, p. 103). Certainly, at the very least, they are conceived
of in very different ways to other areas of journalism. Indeed, on a prag-
matic level, this is tempered by understanding the relationship between
travel content and public relations copy as being on a ‘quid pro quo’,
symbiotic, basis:
“We sell ourselves piece by piece. For a plane ticket, a hotel night. But I do
not look at it [relation to marketing] as a them-and-us kind of relationship.
It’s not adversarial. I know what they need, they know what I need and
we’re here to promote the same experience. I think you have to be honest,
but you don’t have to be brutal” (Marty, freelance travel journalist). (Marty
in Rosenkranz, 2019 p. 624)
6 B. COCKING
These complex and manifold issues are very much constituent elements
that make up the genre travel journalism. Clearly, that this is so influences
the ways in which it is understood within the journalism industry. It is also
no doubt the case that these issues are part of the reason why travel jour-
nalism is an emerging field of academic study. The study of news and cur-
rent affairs journalism is well established—it is accepted as such by
academics across all disciplines and understood to be a legitimate and
respectable field of enquiry. But travel journalism? Certainly, it is evident
that seeing the seriousness and import of studying accounts of tourism/
leisure activities requires significant justification—and this clearly contin-
ues to be so.
In the last 2 years I have presented papers on travel journalism at two
major international academic conferences. The first was at the European
Communication Research and Education Association in 2017 and the sec-
ond at the International Association for Media Communication Research
in 2018. On both occasions mine were the only papers on travel journal-
ism—in some ways surprising, particularly at the IAMCR conference
where there were over 1200 delegates presenting papers. That the study
of travel journalism is a young and relatively emergent field no doubt in
part at least accounts for this. However, I was also struck by the way in
which many of the delegates seemed not to have considered travel journal-
ism as a potential area of study. It was not so much the case that they
seemed to have written it off as a rather inconsequential area of journal-
ism—or at least they were not explicit in indicating this to me! Rather, if
my experience of speaking at academic conferences such as these is any-
thing to go by, it is that journalism’s potential role as a watchdog for
democracy is such a powerful ideal that it is difficult to look to areas of
journalism that are not primarily connected to this function. This is not to
suggest a uniformity of perspective or, indeed, conformity to a particular
conceptual framework. The role of journalism in democratic societies is by
no means an accepted given. Journalism studies conferences typically
bring together academics working across a broad range of disciplines that
draw upon very different methodological and theoretical approaches.
Nonetheless, as varied and interdisciplinary as perspectives are, predomi-
nantly the majority of academic research on journalism has remained
focused on news and current affairs and the abilities and potentialities, and
indeed shortcomings, of these forms of journalism in playing an important
and foundational role in the functioning of modern democracy. Many
recent developments in journalism studies are testimony to this—look for
example at the large body of work that has been amassing in recent years
around fake news. Principally, this is concerned with examining the phe-
nomenon of fake news in terms of its impact on ‘real’ news and the latter’s
implicit significance to the functioning of democracy (see, e.g., McNair,
2017; Waisbord, 2018). Likewise, other recent developments such as arti-
ficial intelligence, big data journalism, algorithmic processing, citizen
journalism and the rise in partisan and extreme news outlets can also be
seen in terms of how they are impacting, for good or bad, on journalism’s
role in our ‘mass-mediated democracy’ (McNair, 2002, p. ix). Journalism
continues to experience fundamental technological change—change that
has transformed not only the working practices and modes of employment
across the industry but the very nature of the content we understand as
journalism (see, e.g., Boczkowski and Anderson, 2017; Ornebring, 2018).
In recent years this has occurred in relation to transformational shifts and
schisms in politics; the rise of right wing populism, the dissolution of glo-
balization and the fracturing of traditional forms of political identity (see,
e.g., Wodak, 2015). In this context, the dominant lines of enquiry which
the discipline of journalism studies has pursued are vitally important and,
if anything, they are testimony to the productive and ‘real world’ contri-
butions academic studies of journalism can make (see, e.g., The Worlds of
Journalism Study, Journalism Safety Research Network and the
Humanitarian Journalism Project). By contrast, the study of travel jour-
nalism seems beset by the genre’s perceived low status. Though the field
is now nearly 20 years old, studies of travel journalism continue to expound
detailed justifications outlining why this form of journalism is culturally
significant and therefore worthy of further investigation. For example
‘We argue that travel journalism is an important site for studying the ideo-
logical dimensions of tourism and transcultural encounters, as well as the
ongoing dynamics of media globalization’ (Fürsich and Kavoori,
2001, p. 150)
‘The aim…[is] to highlight the crucial role of travel writing’s unique situa-
tion in the national press which gives an appearance of credibility and pro-
vides the context to influence readers’ (Daye, 2005, p. 15)
‘In short, travel journalism—just like ‘serious’ forms of journalism—war-
rants attention as documentation of the shared assumptions between jour-
nalists and readers about what representations are relevant from beyond
their borders’ (Day Good, 2013, p. 296)
8 B. COCKING
‘the myriad forms of travel journalism have seen extraordinary growth in

recent years, paralleling the growth and scale of tourism, and suggesting
that travel journalism is more than ready for serious scholarly attention
today’ (Abram and Norum, 2016, p. 272)
This is understandably evident in Fürsich and Kavoori’s foundational arti-

cle ‘Mapping a critical framework for the study of travel journalism’ from
2001. Exploring and explaining the object of study is no doubt a necessary
step towards establishing the integrity and rigour of any emerging field of
academic study. To find, though, a similar sense of justification in aca-
demic work on travel journalism two decades later, such as Abram and
Norum (2016), for example, speaks of the specific problems travel jour-
nalism faces in establishing itself as a legitimate area of academic study.
Travel Journalism and Travel Writing

In addition to its lesser professional status part of the need for continued
justification for the study of travel journalism arguably stems from a lack
of clarity over what travel journalism actually is. In part this is compounded
by confusion over its relation to another somewhat difficult to define
term, travel writing. Certainly, there is a degree of interchangeability in
the usage of these two terms. In academic literature the term ‘travel writ-
ing’ is sometimes used to denote travel content published in journalism
and media formats—as can be seen in the references to Daye (2005) and
Santos (2004a, b) above. Similarly, more broadly, in popular culture the
term ‘travel writing’ is often used as a kind of ‘catch all’ phrase that seem-
ingly encompasses everything from works of literature to online travel
blogs and articles in newspapers’ travel sections. Clearly, there is a long
and rich history to travel writing—with its origins rooted in ancient
Greece, we find ‘travel’ in ‘our myths of origin, in our earliest literatures,
in our oldest critical terms for the most essential figure of speech. After we
learn “to be” and “to have” in a new language, we learn “to go”’ (Campbell,
1991, p. 2; see also Blanton, 2002). It is a history that has become over-
lapped and blurred with the history of journalism and the emergence of
what we understand today as travel journalism. The ‘first experiments in
printed news and opinion on contemporary events’ began to emerge in
the sixteenth century (Conboy, 2004, p. 1). As Anderson’s seminal text
Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism
(1983) illustrates so clearly the development of print capitalism played a
crucial role in the emergence of the modern nation-state. At the heart of

Anderson’s conception of the advent of national identity we find ‘the
newspaper reader, observing exact replicas of his own paper being con-
sumed by his subway, barbershop, or residential neighbours, is continually
reassured that the imagined world is visibly rooted in everyday life’ (1983,
p. 34). Arguably, the cultural and social conception and everyday practices
of travel were also critical to this history moment too. Indeed, the very
circulation of the newspaper on which imagined communities are pre-
mised was dependent, conceptually and in actuality, on ‘travel’.
However, as Steward notes it was not until the mid-1800s, as the ‘aris-
tocratic grand tour gave way to its middle class successor’, that mass tour-
ism began to take hold (2005, p. 41). In its origins mass tourism was
principally a ‘western’ leisure time activity, emerging as a by-product of
the industrial revolution, modern tourism initially developed in Britain,
Western Europe and North America (Towner, 1995, p. 340, see also; Von
Buch, 2007). As the development of these new forms of leisure activities
gained popularity, so the commercial potential of tourism became increas-
ingly apparent. During this period, Hunter identifies a series of key devel-
opments in mass tourism:
The launching of the Cook excursions in Britain (1841), the appearance of

the first Baedekker guide (1843), the inauguration of a winter “season” in
Saint Moritz (1864), the creation of Yellowstone (1877): these were the
important markers of its growth path (2004, p. 28)
The nineteenth century also witnessed the burgeoning development of

national newspapers in Western Europe and North America. For example,
in Britain The Times was first published in 1785, The Manchester Guardian,
1821 and The Daily Telegraph in 1855. Whilst in France Le Figaro was first
published in 1826 with Le Temps emerging in 1861. Likewise, America’s
two principle newspapers of record, The New York Times and The
Washington Post were established in 1851 and 1877 respectively.
Newspapers, alert to tourism activities as socio-cultural practices, started
to publish travel related articles. However, they were though relatively
slow to focus on tourism and leisure activities as new forms of consumer-
ism. As Pirolli notes, whilst The New York Times featured travel related
content in its very first edition, it was not until 1896 and the introduction
of a Sunday magazine that the concept of dedicated ‘travel sections’ began
to take hold (2018, p. 27). In this way, the early twentieth century was an
10 B. COCKING
era when, for the first time, journalism played a crucial role in influencing
and modelling consumer trends and activities of modern leisure activities:
the world was presented as something to be consumed and it was here that
the search for novelty, authenticity and difference was at its most frenetic.
The new breed of travel journalists not only constructed their images of
their own social and cultural identities but also contributed to the formation
of those available to others (Steward, 2005, p. 52)
Hanusch and Fürsich seek to distinguish travel journalism from travel

writing on the basis that travel writing ‘generally allows the inclusion of
fictional elements and other literary license that would not be accepted in
traditional news media’ (2014, p. 6). This definition is useful in some ways
and problematic in others. Firstly, McNair argues that in essence journal-
ism is: ‘an account of the existing real world as appropriated by the jour-
nalist and processed in accordance with the particular requirements of the
journalistic medium through which it will be disseminated to some section
of the public’ (1998, p. 9). Certainly, the general public have traditionally
understood journalism in this way. Thus, holding with this view, as indeed
Hanusch and Fürsich do (p. 7), then it is possible to see that content typi-
cally found in newspapers’ travel section would, no doubt, be popularly
understood in this way. However, what about other forms of travel jour-
nalism? What about, for example, travel blogs, YouTube travel channels,
or terrestrial television travel programmes? The public might well perceive
user generated content online as not conforming to the same professional
and ethical standards as print based journalism. Therefore, with no
recourse to prove otherwise, they might reasonably expect that such con-
tent could well be exaggerated, partially true, or indeed, entirely fabri-
cated. And yet they would most likely still understand such content as
‘travel journalism’.
Likewise, moving from the public’s general perceptions of travel jour-
nalism to the academic study of it also raises some issues and complexities
that need further unpacking. McNair (1998) and others such as Hartley
(1996) and Schudson (2016) who have defined journalism as being
accounts of real world events seemingly imply that these accounts are the
products of professional journalists’ labour—that they are in effect our
witnesses on the world. Clearly, historically this has been a significant,
arguably the most significant, aspect of journalists’ work. Yet, all forms of
journalistic content are increasingly been derived from and suffused with
marketing and public relations content (Lewis et al., 2008). The view that
journalism content is the result of journalists’ perception of the real world
does not appear to take account of the ways in which marketing and public
relations shaping and influencing journalism content. In the context of
travel journalism this is not to suggest material derived from marketing
and public relations content is not factually correct or that it does not bear
relation to the real world in some way. Rather, the perception that we read
and consume the individual seemingly eye witness style accounts of jour-
nalists does not acknowledge the other influences and pressures that shape
such accounts. In addition to the ways in which promotional materials
impact on travel content, it should be acknowledged that in some cases
such materials have come to form the basis of travel content. A personal
friend of mine who works as a freelance journalist regularly bids online for
travel assignments—some of which involve repurposing promotional
material on a specific destination into the form of a first person travel
account without even visiting the destination. Clearly, such content
remains factually correct (in terms of details on the destination, for exam-
ple) and it is very difficult for the public to understand it as anything other
than journalistic accounts of reality. Nonetheless, in terms of understand-
ing what travel journalism is it is vital that we acknowledge these influ-
ences and practices.
The distinction that Hanusch and Fürsich make between travel writing
as being subject to ‘literary licence’ and travel journalism as being an
‘account of reality’ is further problematized by Pirolli (2018) who points
out that academic studies of travel writing view the genre as being ‘“pre-
dominantly factual, first-person accounts of travels that have been under-
taken by the author-narrator”’ (Youngs, 2013, p. 3 in Pirolli, 2018, p. 18).
Youngs’s definition of travel writing is broad and it is worth noting that he
does not appear to see a clear distinction between the former and travel
journalism:
It includes discussion of works that some may regard as genres in their own
right, such as ethnographies, maritime narratives, memoirs, road and
aviation literature, travel journalism and war reporting, but it distinguishes
these from other types of narrative in which travel is narrated by a third party
or is imagined (Youngs, 2013, p. 3)
Whilst Youngs acknowledges that the boundary between factual and

imagined accounts is ‘not fixed’ it nonetheless delimits a set of defining
12 B. COCKING
characteristics, an approximate terrain, that constitutes travel writing

(p. 3). It is a broad and encompassing set of characteristics which, in con-
trast to Hanusch and Fürsich and, indeed, Pirolli, includes travel journal-
ism. Clearly, Youngs is writing about forms of travel writing—simply put
if the subject matter is travel related, if it purports to be factual and if it is
in written form then it amounts to travel writing. Though, it is obviously
beyond the remit of Youngs’s book, this does raise the issue of where
travel related writings blur and meld with other media forms. Perhaps
more fundamentally, whilst explicitly fictitious accounts might be dis-
missed, travel writing—however defined—has always had connection with
fiction. The question of extent to which it accommodates fictitious con-
tent has ‘dogged travel writing since its inception, whenever you take that
inception to have been’ (Hulme, 2002, p. 223).
A further complication seems to arise from the way in which Hanusch
and Fürsich demarcate travel writing’s ‘literary licence’ to include ficti-
tious content as being what sets it apart from what is ‘accepted in the
traditional news media’. Travel journalism may be understood to be
grounded in factual accounts of reality but this does not necessarily imply
that it is an accepted part of ‘traditional news media’. Indeed, as Hanusch
and Fürsich indicate travel journalism is generally perceived to be of lower
status than news journalism precisely because it seems to eschew the lat-
ter’s ethical and professional values, particularly in so far as being objec-
tive goes.
How, then, might we define travel journalism and how might we best
understand it in relation to travel writing? Whilst there are clearly com-
plexities in the way in which Hanusch and Fürsich seek to distinguish
between travel journalism and travel writing, ultimately, viewing these
terms as pertaining to different genres provides a more productive basis
for exploration and analysis than viewing travel writing as an umbrella
term. However, understanding the differences and variations between
these two genres as being primarily about literary licence on the one hand
and factual accounts on the other does not entirely account for the subtle
and complex relationship travel journalism has with the its production of
its ‘truths’, the complex elements that help make up and shape these
‘truths’, and the professional values of journalism. Equally, nor does it
account for the ambiguous and composite relationship travel writing has
with fiction and fact. Neither genre is static, both are constantly evolving
and online environments are changing the nature of travel journalism very
fast. Arguably, then, the multifaceted and varied forms of travel journalism
produce multifaceted and varied forms of ‘truths’. For example, a newspa-

per article which details the tourism company the journalism travelled
with along with the costs of flights and accommodation, is likely to be
understood as an account of reality in that it is subject to a legal obligation
to be factually correct. However, online, for example, the commercial
drivers of content may well be much less clear—indeed, it is possible there
may be none. Consequently, the extent to which such content purports to
be ‘true’ may also be less clear, more nebulous and perhaps also less impor-
tant in terms of our engagement with it.
Perhaps then, a distinction between travel journalism and travel writing
is more productively situated in the differences in the forms and political
economies of each genre? In terms of forms, travel writing is almost exclu-
sively produced in book length, while travel journalism is typically signifi-
cantly shorter in length and is much more varied. Indeed, it spans a variety
of media forms, it very often includes still and/or moving images and
some of the forms it takes do not include any writing at all. Consequently,
travel writing has the potential to be much more historically significant
and enduring, whereas travel journalism is much more consumer driven
and ephemeral. There are profound differences in their underlying politi-
cal economies too. Travel writing may, as Youngs notes, serve as historical
memoir, ethnographic account or personal reflection but ultimately in
commercial published form it must be these things in ways that sell—ways
that engage, entertain and bring vicarious pleasure. Clearly, travel journal-
ism is also about engaging and entertaining its readers—whether this be in
terms of driving website traffic or as part of a broader selection of news,
information and entertainment that, for example, a newspaper might
offer. Over and above, the endeavour to engage and entertain, travel jour-
nalism positions us—to some degree or other—as consumers and it seeks
to influence the cultural and economic decisions we make about our lei-
sure time. In this sense, ‘The travel journalist as an expert and tastemaker
is in a position of power over the consumer, a position that is of value for
commercial interests’—whether directly in the form of encouraging us to
buy into a particular destination or more indirectly in the form of promot-
ing goods such as guide books or clothing (Rosenkranz, 2016, p. 6). That
both genres typically make use of a first person narrative style that posi-
tions the reader in the footsteps of the author/traveller is illustrative of the
genres intertwined history. However, this is deployed in travel journalism
as a means to entertain and encourage the reader to make commercial
decisions—ones that could see the reader undertaking the same tourism
14 B. COCKING
experiences that they have read about. By contrast, travel writing is not
primarily subject to the same commercial drivers. Certainly, many have
sought to follow in the footsteps of great travellers but this is not the prin-
ciple commercial aim of the genre. To summarize, travel journalism is
travel related content presented in written, visual, audio mediums—or a
combination thereof. It is in the public domain and is published across a
variety of platforms from legacy media such a print and television to ‘new’
media environments such as blogs and social media by both professionals
and ‘amateur’ content users and creators. Its narrative style is invariably
first person with its readers/audiences being directly addressed. It pro-
vides us with content about ‘foreign’ destinations and information about
tourism activities. It is inherently highly commercial and is stratified by
class and socio-economic groups. It is a fast changing genre of journal-
ism—the effects of technological development along with the styles and
influences of a broad range of other media and literary genres sluice
through its porous borders.
Mapping Lines of Enquiry

In this way, this book does not aim to characterize the constituent ele-
ments of the genre of travel journalism—Hanusch and Fürsich’s 2014
book comprehensively achieve the aim of providing this emerging field of
study with such a foundation. Similarly, the rapidity of changes such as
those outlined here means that it is difficult to accurately chart the ways in
which they are transforming travel journalism. Certainly, such an endeav-
our would surely be quickly surpassed by further developments, particu-
larly in the area of online travel journalism. Rather, this book seeks to
make a series of interventions into the study of travel journalism. These
interventions focus on the representational potential and strategies of the
genre; the developing forms of online journalism; the “news values” of
travel journalism and the intersection of the genre with the study of news
journalism; and travel journalism’s political potential. These lines of
enquiry fit in and around, and in some cases deviate from, the four dimen-
sions of research outlined by Hanusch and Fürsich. In this way, the inten-
tion is to further develop areas of existing research, such as travel
journalism’s representation of different parts of the world, but also indi-
cate new potential areas of exploration, hopefully in ways that resonate
and create dialogue with researchers working in other areas of journalism
studies. Since its inception journalism studies has overwhelmingly been
focused on the study of news. Yet news is in decline and areas of journal-
ism such as travel journalism are in the ascendency. The academic study of
news has a lot to offer the study of travel journalism, conceptually and
methodologically. Far greater dialogue is needed between different areas
of journalism studies. Travel journalism is an extremely potent media
force, both culturally and economically. It is important to recognize this
cultural and economic power not just as a basis for claiming travel journal-
ism as a legitimate area of academic study but in order to assess the effects
and influence of such power. It is hoped that the interventions this book
makes help in opening up and further developing areas of travel journal-
ism research and also contribute to further dialogue across the spectrum
of journalism studies.
Travel Journalism and the Lifestyle Turn

The impact of new media technology on the political economy of journal-
ism has precipitated a significant rise in the production of forms of content
that lie beyond the confines of political news and current affairs and these
developments are gaining recognition within the field of journalism stud-
ies (see,e.g., Kristensen and From, 2012; Karlsson, 2016). The study of
travel journalism has emerged and developed as a frontier area within a
broader turn towards lifestyle journalism. It is in this context that Hanusch
and Fürsich’s book can be seen. Indeed, Hanusch and Fürsich have, like
many of the other contributors, engaged in research on other facets of
lifestyle journalism prior to the publication of this book and, seemingly,
continue to do so (see, e.g., Hanusch, 2013, 2018, 2019; Fürsich, 2013,
2012). Their edited collection on travel journalism examines methodolog-
ical approaches to the study of travel journalism and explores the emer-
gence and popularity of online travel content. It also explores the ways in
which travel journalism represents different regions of the world, assessing
its contribution to the culture and politics of globalization as well as the
role it plays in the perpetuation and development of tourist activities and
behaviours. The intention was to ‘take stock’ of an emergent academic
area and ‘provide a comprehensive introduction to the field of travel jour-
nalism studies’ (3). A review of the book for the journal Journalism (Sage)
begins with ‘All studies of travel journalism must include a justification for
the chosen topic. Why study travel media and not news journalism? That
is also true of the edited volume Travel Journalism: Exploring Production,
Impact and Culture’ (Ljungberg, 2015, p. 798). In relation to the
16 B. COCKING
discussion above on the dominant lines of enquiry in journalism studies,

here the issue of travel journalism’s status and significance in relation to
news journalism is made explicit. The importance of news journalism is
presented as given here; so too is the requirement to justify studying travel
journalism.
Hanusch and Fürsich in the opening chapter of the book, ‘On the
Relevance of Travel Journalism: An Introduction’, address issues that per-
tain to the problematic status of the genre and its complex and fast chang-
ing political economy. In essence, it is precisely the issues that give rise to
travel journalism’s challenging status that provide fertile grounds for aca-
demic enquiry. Throughout the following chapters of this book these
issues will be explored in detail in relation to different facets of and devel-
opments within travel journalism. However, take for example, its political
economy and its reliance on the tourism industry for funded trips and
public relations copy. Though this may be deeply conflictual with the pro-
fessional values of news journalism, travel journalism’s alliance with the
largest industry in the world is very significant and worthy of further
investigation.
Hanusch and Fürsich identify four dimensions which they argue char-
acterized the parameters of existing research on travel journalism (2014,
pp. 9–11). In order to assess how the genre of travel journalism has con-
tinued to change and evolve since their co-edited collection of 2014, and
by way of mapping out the focus and principal lines of enquiry of this
book, it is important to briefly outline these four dimensions. The first of
which they term ‘The representation of foreign cultures’. They point out
that academic interest has, thus far, tended to focus primarily on its repre-
sentational characteristics of travel journalism—the stock in trade signifi-
catory resources through which other parts of the world are rendered
meaningful for its readers. The principle concern of work in this area is to
examine the representational practices that are deployed in the endeavour
of representing the foreign nations and cultures. Drawing on the academic
field of Cultural Studies, work in this area typically seeks to explore the
ways in travel journalism represents different parts of the world (see, e.g.,
Fürsich, 2002; Cocking, 2009; Day Good, 2013). This is predicated on
understanding travel journalism as an important ‘site where meaning is
created and where a collective version of the “Other/We” is negotiated,
contested and constantly redefined’ (Fürsich and Kavoori, 2001: 167).
Consistent with the consumerist function of travel journalism, its repre-
sentation of different parts of the world tends to be positive and
enthusiastic. After all, the intention is to exhort readers to make economic

decisions about tourism and leisure activities or at the very least entertain
them so that they continue to consume travel journalism in specific media
sources. Such representations are, though, often based on or make refer-
ences to an ‘exoticizing and stereotypical discourse of the Other’ (Hanusch
and Fürsich, Hanusch, 2014: 9). Light hearted though such references
might typically be, they are by no means benign and should not be over-
looked. Studies of the representational characteristics of travel journalism
are significant not only for what interpretations and/or categorizations of
such characteristics reveal but also in terms of the significatory pathways
that can be plotted between the latter and the discursive frames of refer-
ence our cultural imagination calls upon.
Hanusch and Fürsich identify a second area of research on travel jour-
nalism as ‘The ethics of travel journalism’ (Hanusch, 2014. pp. 9–10). This
dimension pertains to the relationship between travel journalism and the
tourism industry. Specifically, issues such as journalists accepting paid trips
in exchange for producing features on particular locations, along with the
impact of public relations derived materials produced by commercial travel
operators and government run tourism boards on travel journalism con-
tent. This issue is also addressed in Hanusch’s ‘Travel Journalists’ Attitudes
toward Public Relations: Findings from a Representative Survey’ (2012)
examines travel journalists’ ambiguous position; at once reliant on PR
departments and the tourism industry to fund travel experiences and at
the same time grappling with the ‘traditional journalistic ideals of inde-
pendent, un-biased and critical reporting’ (2). Similarly, Volcic, Erjavec
and Peak examine the branding of post-war Sarajevo via a critical discourse
analysis of travel review, this necessarily involves consideration of ‘the
multi-faceted intersection of cultural memory with journalism, branding,
and tourism’ (Volcic et al., 2014, p. 727). The financial logic of tourism in
this region results in ‘War memories [becoming]…repackaged and
branded as consumer experiences for tourists in attempts to strengthen
local economies’ (Volcic et al., 2014, p. 727).
Related to the political economy of travel journalism is the issue of
market orientation. As Hanusch and Fürsich note, this is another aspect
that marks travel journalism out as being different from, and of lower sta-
tus to, other forms of journalism. By contrast, travel journalism identifies
its readers and audiences as consumers who it exhorts to make decisions
about leisure time and tourist activities. In this sense, travel journalism,
like other forms of market orientated lifestyle journalism, seeks to provide
18 B. COCKING
‘help, advice, guidance, and information about the management of self

and everyday life’ (Hanitzsch, 2007, p. 375). The issue of travel journal-
ism’s market orientation is also addressed in Mansfield’s ‘Travel Writing in
Place Branding—A Case Study on Nantes’ which seeks to examine whether
the city’s own place branding publicity filters into British travel journalism
on tourism experiences in Nantes. The study identifies representational
overlap between the city’s branding publicity and British travel journalism
features on Nantes, but also identifies areas of the city’s branding that if
they were better covered in travel journalism could result in the city being
better promoted. The bringing together of ‘travel section editors and their
travel writers, and destination managers, their branding analysts and their
press officers’ (2017, p. 1) in order to achieve this is, again, a further indi-
cation of high market orientation of travel journalism and the consumer
possibilities it affords. Likewise, this issue of travel journalism’s consumer
enterprise is examined by Hyan Yoo et al. in their study of ‘the factors that
drive online trust in travel-related CGM [Consumer Generated Media]
and examined the extent to which these trust perceptions influence the
perceived impacts and benefits of CGM use’ (2009, p. 50).
Hanusch and Fürsich identify a final, fourth, area of research in the
study of travel journalism. This they term the ‘motivational aspects of
travel journalism’ (2014, p. 11). It pertains to the cultural significance of
travel journalism’s capacity to ‘help construct differing ideal types of tour-
ists’ (ibid). This set of considerations is borne out the sociological study of
tourism. Seminal works in this field, such as Boorstin (1964), MacCannell
(1973), Cohen (1979, 1988) and Urry (1990, 1995). This particular
strand of sociological research has, from a range of different perspectives,
focused on the motivations and behaviours of tourists. It has sought to
understand how and why people engage in tourism activities. Given the
ways in which travel journalism is involved in the promotion of tourism
activities, it follows that it is important to consider the ways in which its
representations of such activities have a bearing on shaping our participa-
tion in them and, indeed, our practise of them. More recent work in the
field of Tourism Studies has sought to address not only the individual’s
motivations and cultural practices in tourism settings but also with specific
locations and destinations As Urry and Larsen note, this involves consid-
eration of ‘how places are intertwined with people through systems that
generate and reproduce performances in and of place (and by comparison
with other places)’ (2011, p. 2). This broadening of focus in Tourism
Studies is indicative of a further point of convergence with travel
journalism. For example, Santos’s ‘Perception and Interpretation of

Leisure Travel Articles’ (2004) examines the ways in which readers inter-
pret and are positioned by American travel journalism on Portugal. This
study sought to understand the ‘perception and interpretation of mass
mediated leisure travel texts as they reveal how readers socially justify
meanings assigned to destinations and the “Other”’ (p. 394). Santos finds
that the representational dynamics of the travel texts clearly have motiva-
tional consequences for their readers that go beyond a textual level to the
actual cultural practices of tourist activities:
Audiences are active participants in the construction and interpretation of

meaning since they actively carve out spaces that help them situate their
perceptions…This construction of meaning in leisure travel messages is
multi-layered in the sense that notions of intimacy, trust, tradition, authen-
ticity, and social-cultural knowledge were simultaneously engaged by par-
ticipants (p. 408)
The motivational dynamics of travel journalism and the extent to which

they come to bear on the enactment of tourism activities is also examined
in Steward’s study of the influence of British travel journalism on the his-
torical development of foreign tourism 1840–1914. She found that British
travel journalism played a foundational role in helping to shape the tour-
ism practices of this era. Again, there is strong sense of the interpretative-
textual impacting on ‘real world’ tourism activities:
By presenting readers with the world as a set of potential experiences to be

chosen and consumed, by constantly asking ‘Where will you go next?’, they
presented their readers with a set of choices through which they could
express their individual tastes and preferences, and thereby their desires and
fantasies, if not in reality, at least in their dreams (2005, p. 52)
Since the publication of Hanusch and Fürsich’s edited collection in 2014,

the field of travel journalism has, of course, continued to grow and
develop. The most significant development in travel journalism is its con-
tinued transition into online spaces. This has been a trend since the early
2000s and as early forms of social media such as blogging became estab-
lished as ubiquitous popular cultural practices, so too has become clear
that travel oriented content is a very popular fit with this media form (see,
e.g., Seppo, 2001; Pan et al., 2007). A significant further contribution in
20 B. COCKING
this area is Bryan Pirolli’s Travel Journalism: Informing Tourists in the

Digital Age (2018). As noted above, it takes the form of a part academic
study, part practitioners’ guide. Pirolli’s book seeks to ‘map’ the emerging
online spaces the genre is transitioning into: ‘Travel journalism is at a
crossroads, and its practitioners are still scratching their heads about the
best route to follow as they re-evaluate their roles’ (p. 4). Drawing on
interviews with travel journalists, blogger and consumers, Pirolli’s inten-
tion is to the explore ‘…the new demands and practices facing practices
facing professionals today’ in order to assess ‘how social media and search
engine optimization affect writing and topic choice’ (Pirolli, 2018, p. 4).
In this way Pirolli explores travel journalism’s repositioning in online
spaces in terms of the consequences this has for practitioners. In asking
‘how travel journalists distinguish themselves and what value they bring to
consumers’, he seeks further understanding of how the craft of travel jour-
nalism is changing and the new and emerging skills professional travel
journalists need to engage with (2018, p. 29). In so doing, Pirolli also
discusses in considerable detail the professional values of travel journalism,
‘questions of professionalism, ethics, responsibility, and trust’ and consid-
ers how these values are being refigured in the context of social media and
online settings (ibid).
Charting Lines of Enquiry

Certainly, it is clear that the development of online travel media, of both
professionally produced and user generated varieties, has burgeoned over
the last 4 years. A significant indicator of just one aspect of this rapid
expansion is that the total number of unique visitors to the top 50 travel
blogs world-wide increased from 29,911,790 in the final quarter of 2016
to 44,428,356 in the first quarter of 2018—an increase of over 48%
(Stabile, 2018). Whilst, the exploration of travel journalism’s transition to
online spaces is a central consideration of this book it is also one that pro-
vides the basis for the exploration of several other interlocking themes—
such as the conceptual and professional interaction between travel
journalism and ‘hard’ news; the former’s political potential, along with its
representation of ‘other’ peoples and places. In this sense, and in contrast
to Hanusch and Fürsich, the intention of this book is not to ‘take stock’
but to contribute some new/less chartered lines of enquiry as well as to
develop further research in some more established areas. Following this
chapter, the book shifts focus to consider in Chap. 2 ‘Making tabloid

travel journalism: values and visuality’ what might be described as the
underlying ‘values’ of travel journalism. In this chapter, some of the inter-
sections and boundaries between the study of mainstream news journalism
and tabloid based travel journalism are explored and mapped out. From
Galtung and Ruge’s seminal study of ‘news factors’ in 1965, there has
developed a significant literature devoted to consideration of what makes
the news, ‘the news’. However, the study of the factors that contribute to
the selection and ordering of news stories has, so far, been focused entirely
on ‘hard’ news and political reporting. There has been no real consider-
ation of ‘newsworthiness’ outside of ‘hard’ news. This chapter develops an
exploratory study of the ‘news values’ of travel journalism based on a sam-
ple drawn from British tabloid newspapers in order to better understand
the factors that help shape this form of travel journalism content. Chapter
3 ‘“itravel”: competing forms of travel writing in print based and user
generated journalism’ builds upon the previous chapter’s assessment of
the ‘values’ that determine travel content but here the focus is on the
travel journalism’s transition from being located predominantly in print
based media to being a prevalent form of content across the main online
media platforms. The chapter compares user generated content from the
top 50 worldwide most viewed travel blogs with professionally produced
travel content from the top four most read English language newspapers:
the Mail Online, The New York Times, The Guardian and The Washington
Post. In so doing, makes use of a Bourdieusian perspective in order to
examine how ‘symbolic mastery’ is manifest in professional and user gen-
erated content. It identifies two different types of blog: the ‘travel hack-
ing’ and the ‘digital nomad’ styles and observes that there appears to be a
much more personalized form of symbolic mastery in the latter, whereas
the former category made use of more traditional displays of expertise and
authority, much more akin to those found in the professionally produced
travel journalism found in the online newspapers.
Chapter 4 is titled ‘Visions of Past and Present? Travel journalism fea-
tures and TripAdvisor reviews of tourist destinations in the Middle East’.
Whilst the representational dynamics of travel journalism is undoubtedly a
dominant line of enquiry within the field, this chapter seeks to explore the
historical trajectory of representations of the Middle East from its origins
in Victorian ‘Arabist’ travel writing, through early mass tourism to con-
temporary travel journalism and user generated reviews on TripAdvisor.
22 B. COCKING
Drawing on the postcolonial perspectives of Edward Said (1991) and Ali

Behdad (1994), the chapter charts the origins of ‘Arabist’ modes of travel
writing and then explores how similar representational characteristics typ-
ify travel journalism and promotional material for early mass tourism in
the region. The emphasis then shifts to a contemporary setting where
some examples of contemporary travel journalism are examined in the
context of user generated reviews of Middle East holiday destinations on
TripAdvisor. The intention is to explore the nature of representations
‘flows’ across travel writing, travel journalism and accounts of tourist
experience—such as those found on TripAdvisor.
Following this, Chap. 5 ‘Looking West: representations of cultural dif-
ference and patterns of consumption in “Eastern” travel journalism’.
Typically, the focus on the representational characteristics of travel jour-
nalism has tended to be located in Western Europe and America, giving
consideration to how the West views ‘other’ parts of the world. By con-
trast, Chap. 5 focuses on travel journalism from the three largest English
language newspapers in Malaysia, the New Straits Times, The Star and the
Malay Mail. It examines how travel content from these newspapers repre-
sents tourist destinations, particularly Western ones. In so doing, consid-
eration is also given to practices of tourism being promoted and what this
might reveal about the consumption of leisure activities as well as the
cultural and economic stratification of tourism in Malaysia.
Chapter 6 ‘Selling it “green”: travel journalism, Trump and the U.S
National Monuments’ considers the political potential of travel journal-
ism, specifically the politics of environmentalism. It focuses on the ways in
travel journalism as a genre has the potential to engage its readers in ways
that move beyond the commercial endeavours of providing them with
consumer advice and a source of entertainment. This chapter seeks to
examine the extent to which travel journalism can respond to the main-
stream news agenda and, conversely, the circumstances under which the
discursive characteristics of other forms of journalism (such as ‘hard’ news)
might interject into the typical ‘what to see, what to do’ narrative struc-
ture of travel journalism. This chapter focuses on the US press coverage of
the Trump administration’s review of the national monument sites. It
compares the coverage this story received in all sections of all US newspa-
pers with the coverage given to it in the travel sections of these newspa-
pers. In so doing, it identifies the cosmopolitan potential of the genre, to
raise awareness and promote social reflexivity.
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CHAPTER 2
Making Tabloid Travel Journalism: Values

and Visuality
Introduction
Yet of the millions of events that occur every day in the world, only a tiny
proportion ever become visible as ‘potential news stories’: and of this pro-
portion, only a small fraction are actually produced as the day’s news in news
media (Hall, 1973, p. 181).
The processes governing news selection—the ways in which one news

story might be selected over another—has long attracted a great deal of
scholarly interest. Indeed, the publication of Galtung and Ruge’s seminal
‘taxonomy’ of ‘news factors’ first published in 1965, opened up an area of
academic enquiry—one that has continued to evolve in step with the
advent of new media platforms and technologies. This has led to research-
ers have endeavoured to ‘investigate the ideological imperatives embed-
ded in the work of constructing news as a truthful representation of reality’
(Allan, 2010, 71). Academic interest has, though, tended to focus almost
exclusively on the ‘hard’ news of political reporting. Nonetheless, since
the early 1990s there has been recognition of the rise of tabloidization
across all forms of journalism and news media. For example, Dahlgren and
Sparks (1992) collection Journalism and Popular Culture seeks to explore
the rise of tabloid culture across print journalism and television. However,
as they acknowledge the profession—and indeed, academic studies of it—
have tended to ‘downplay such historical and institutional aspects as jour-
nalism’s intersection with advertising and entertainment and underscore
© The Author(s) 2020 27

B. Cocking, Travel Journalism and Travel Media,
https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-59908-7_2
28 B. COCKING
journalism’s role in the rational transfer of socially and political useful

information’ (1992: 7). The ways in which news media has become
increasingly characterized by tabloid style content tabloidization of the
media is, though, addressed in Harcup and O’Neill’s (2001) significant
revision of Galtung and Ruge’s (1965) classic study of news values. In
introducing ‘celebrity’ as a category of news value, Harcup and O’Neill
sought to gauge the intensification of tabloid culture that occurred
throughout the 1990s. In particular, their study is revealing of the ways in
which tabloidization has infiltrated elements of traditional ‘hard’ news cul-
ture. However, their work—along with the vast majority of literature on
news values—focuses solely on ‘news’ journalism. There is a strong ratio-
nale for this—in the context of the journalism industry’s historical identi-
fication with the concept of the ‘fourth estate’ and its somewhat
self-proclaimed function as a facilitator of democracy, academic studies
have focused almost exclusively on the news values of ‘hard’ news. In this
sense, studies of news values have played a significant role in debates about
the function of journalism and its political economy and continue to do
so. However, traditional ‘hard’ news content is (and always has been) one
element of the ‘package’ of content readers and viewers are exhorted to
engage with. What then of the other forms of journalism that we encoun-
ter? Other forms of journalism might not be judged and ascribed values
based on its political significance (in the way that ‘hard’ news is) but
equally it cannot be valueless. If it is possible to ask what are the values that
underscore a story that is featured on the front page of a newspaper, it
must surely be possible to explore the values that determine the content
that features on in sports section, restaurant reviews, or travel section?
Indeed, ‘News Values Go on Holiday: the ideological values of travel jour-
nalism’ (Cocking, 2017) sought to pursue the latter line of enquiry in the
form of an initial, exploratory assessment of the news values of a selection
of British broadsheet travel journalism. In the conclusion of this journal
article it was noted that
In this respect, further research in this area could involve the comparative
analysis of broadsheet and tabloid newspapers in order to assess whether this
might reveal different news values or perhaps different inflections of the
same news values—such that they might be indicative of the cultural values
of their respective readerships (Cocking, 2017, p. 1362)
This chapter seeks to address this issue by developing further the study
the news values of travel journalism by focusing on a selection of travel
2 MAKING TABLOID TRAVEL JOURNALISM: VALUES AND VISUALITY 29
features from British tabloid newspapers. It will focus on travel content

from the online versions of The Sun, The Mirror and The Daily Mail. In so
doing, the intention here is explore the nature of travel features of this
form of journalism in order to better understand their underlying ‘values’.
Specifically, to what extent do they share the same values as their broad-
sheet counterparts? Does tabloid based travel journalism place different
emphasis on certain values? Does it indicate the presence of other values—
ones unique to this form of journalism?
In the context of news values, travel journalism is of interest for several
reasons. It is true that travel journalism is not as actively or inherently
political as ‘hard’ news. However, it would be wrong to infer from this that
forms of journalism such as travel journalism are inherently unpolitical and
therefore unimportant. Travel journalism does not construct for us a sense
of the political landscape in the way that news journalism purports to but
the values which shape and drive its content are, like political reporting,
inherently ideological. Similarly, whilst the ideological imperatives of travel
journalism do not bear directly on, for example, the media’s relationship
with political elites, they are, nonetheless, of significance for several rea-
sons. Firstly, travel journalism’s close—and often problematic—relation-
ship with the advertising and the tourism industry, shapes its content and
promotes certain patterns and modes of consumption. Secondly, by very
definition travel journalism involves the representation of ‘other’ parts of
the world and it is important to consider not only the characteristics and
features of such representations but also how these characteristics are
selected and shaped by the underlining ideological values of this form of
journalism. Thirdly, travel journalism presents its readers with the oppor-
tunity to undertake particular tourist experiences and in this sense has the
potential to impact on and influence specific tourist practices (Cocking,
2014 in Hanusch and Fürsich, 2014, p. 190). Thus, it is the potential for
travel journalism to influence what we imagine of different destinations
and regions of the world, its function as a promoter of consumer lifestyle
choices and the cultural significance of its ability to influence tourist behav-
iour that suggest its ‘values’ are worthy of consideration.
Analysing Travel Journalism from a News

Values Perspective
Such is the breath of research that builds on or makes reference to Galtung
and Ruge and factors pertaining to the selection of news that it crosses the
disciplines of sociology, media and cultural studies and journalism studies.
30 B. COCKING
One approach that is of particular relevance here is the development of a

‘discursive’ approach to news values (Caple & Bednarek, 2013; Kheirbadi
& Aghagolzadeh, 2012; Van Dijk, 2013). This approach has emerged out
the interdisciplinary theoretical perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis
(CDA) (see, e.g., Van Dijk, 1988; Fairclough, 1995; Wodak, 1996;
Barkho, 2010). It shares in the broad endeavour of CDA to analyse: ‘the
effects of power and ideology in the production of meaning are obscured
and acquire stable and natural forms: they are taken as “given”’ (Wodak &
Meyer, 2001, p. 3). In the context of analysing news content and news
values from a CDA perspective, Caple and Bednarek have adopted a ‘mul-
timodal’ focus. Historically, CDA has tended to focus on the discursive
reproduction of language, however, it has been acknowledged that it is
important not to overlook the significance of visual imagery in the pro-
duction of meaning and ideology. Consequently, Caple and Bednarek’s
CDA focused examination of news content and values aims to take account
of the ways in which in print journalism, for example, news photography
interacts with news text (2013, p. 9).
In the endeavour of analysing news values from a CDA perspective,
Caple and Bednarek have adopted a ‘multimodal’ focus in order to take
account of not only the ‘textual’ content of news but also the visual imag-
ery that often accompanies it. This method seeks to move beyond the
perceived limitations in linguistic approaches to news values in order to
examine the underlying discursive context of the language used in news
stories (2014, pp. 138–139). As Caple and Bednarek acknowledge, this
approach also seeks to take account of the importance of visual images and
the ways in which in print journalism, for example, news photography
interacts with news text (2013, p. 9). They argue that it is important to
investigate the:
roles that the different components of a news story play in the construction
of newsworthiness—for example, do language and visuals reinforce each
other, thus constructing the same news values? Do they complement each
other? Do they contradict each other? (Caple and Bednarek, 2015, p. 18)
The association of news values with a discursive perspective is of par-

ticular interest here. In terms of the conception of news values it would
seem most productive, regardless of the specific form of journalism under
consideration, to conceive of news values as being primarily ‘textual’. That
is, as discursive elements underpinning the significatory content of
‘texts’—including visual imagery. Clearly, in consideration of the processes

of news selection, it is possible to ascribe news values to real world ‘events’.
Indeed, it is possible to determine a higher concentration or presence of
news values in ‘events’ which can be factored into the journalistic practices
and processes whereby one ‘event’ is selected over another. Ultimately,
though, such judgements are ideologically motivated and these ideologi-
cal beliefs are produced and perpetuated discursively—and it has long
been acknowledged that media ‘texts’ play a fundamental role in the
promulgation of discursive formations (Tuchman, 1979).
Bednarek and Caple’s use of a multimodal form of CDA is particularly
instructive in that travel journalism can be very visual, especially the kind
under consideration here, that is., content from British tabloid newspa-
pers. And yet, as with studies of ‘hard’ news, comparatively little attention
has been given to the visual dimensions of travel journalism (Good, 2013,
p. 296). Given that travel journalism tends very often to make use of visual
material, it seems vital that any study of its news values takes its multi-
modal nature into account. In this way, Bednarek and Caple’s aim of
examining ‘systematically the role that language, image and other semiotic
resources play in the construction of newsworthiness’ (2013: 13), reso-
nates with the intentions of this chapter.
It is not possible, though, to simply apply the approach outlined by
Bednarek and Caple in its entirety. In focusing on news journalism,
Bednarek and Caple frame their analysis around a set of ten news values.
These are Negativity, Timeliness, Proximity, Superlativeness, Eliteness,
Impact, Novelty, Personalization, Consonance and Aesthetic Appeal
(2015: 5). Their list of news values is derived from Bell (1991: 156-58)
but with some relatively minor differences. For example, in the context of
distinguishing between news values and more general (and consistent)
professional practices, Bednarek and Caple discount two of Bell’s original
news values: Unambiguity and Facticity. For them, these factors are more
to do with establishing and maintaining the broader values of the profes-
sion, that is, producing factually correct and therefore credible content
than establishing the newsworthiness of a specific event (2015: 6).
In terms of this chapter’s focus on tabloid based travel journalism, the
distinction made between general professional factors that impact on the
shape and selection of content and the presence of specific news values,
seems a useful and productive distinction to draw. Like news journalism—
and indeed all forms of journalism—travel journalism is clearly subject to
general professional practices and procedures. However, it is important to
32 B. COCKING
note that the broad underlying values of the profession, do not impact
uniformly on all forms of journalism. As Hanusch has shown, amongst
travel journalists there is also a clear sense of the core values of the profes-
sion—objectivity and credibility (2010, p. 6). Evidently, though, their
relationship with these principles is quite different to that of news journal-
ists. Travel journalists produce content which tends to have some (often
quite direct) economic connection with the tourism industry. It is impor-
tant that the analysis of the ‘values’ of travel journalism is mindful of the
political economy in which values are ascribed and content is produced.
Another issue relates to the sequence of analysis. Caple and Bednarek
identify their list of news values and then move on to examples of ‘discur-
sive news values analysis (DNVA)’ (2015: 8). The news stories that they
base their examples on are, though, drawn from what might be seen as
‘traditional’ or ‘mainstream’ news journalism. They are not drawn from
specific genres of journalism such as arts, lifestyle, or fashion. In relation
to ‘hard’ news journalism, there is a general acceptance amongst academ-
ics as to the news values that characterize such content, indeed, where
different terms for specific news values have been employed there none-
theless remains considerable commonality in terms of how such terms are
defined and understood (Caple & Bednarek, 2013: 5). By contrast, whilst
my 2017 study of news values in British broadsheet travel journalism iden-
tified seven travel journalism specific news values, no literature exists on
news values and tabloid travel journalism. Thus, in the absence of a long
established and broadly agreed upon set of news values for travel journal-
ism, the intention here is to use the seven news values identified in my
2017 as a starting point for identifying news values in British tabloid travel
journalism—bearing in mind that variations of these values and/or entirely
new values may emerge during the analysis. The news values identified in
my earlier study were defined as follows:
Appeal Travel journalism is usually placed in the mid-section of most

newspapers or as an accompanying supplement. It is not the sort of con-
tent to feature on the front page. It does not have the shock, awe or
indeed, political significance of ‘hard’ news. Consequently, the nature of
travel content and its positioning within newspapers is such that it vies for
readers’ attention through the use of highly idealized images of and tex-
tual references to tourist activities. These visual and textual ques are often
premised on broader discourses about tourism and leisure activities that
circulate in popular culture.
The Cultural Frame Certainly it is the case that travel journalism has to
compete with the other sections of newspapers. In drawing the reader’s
attention, an immediate priority seems to be contextualizing the destina-
tion. Essentially, setting the scene and providing the reader with ways of
perceiving of the destination—a sense of the cultural practices that typify
a place or region. Not merely what to see and do but also of what goes on
and for the reader/tourist with a sense of how to carry on.
Identification The reader is encouraged to follow in the travel journalist’s

footsteps, to imagine themselves in a specific destination, engaging in
activities described by the travel journalist. This is often premised upon
developing a sense of uniqueness and authenticity—perhaps that a particu-
lar holiday experience is individually tailored or that it offers the opportu-
nity to ‘go off the beaten track’ and see aspects of a destination rarely seen
by tourists.
Positivity In many ways very much the converse of Galtung and Ruge’s
news factor of Negativity and Harcup and O’Neill’s term Bad News
(2001). As Hamid-Turksoy et al. (2014, p. 749) have noted, travel jour-
nalism tends to extremely upbeat in its presentation and is characterized
by positive hyperbole. In addition to facilitating reader engagement and
entertainment, this value is underpinned by the political economy of travel
journalism. A more critical or reflective tone would seem to run counter
to the intention of promoting tourism experiences and could undermine
the tourism industry’s provision of free trips to travel journalists.
‘At Home/Out There’ Contrasting representations of difference and ‘oth-

erness’ with recognizable signs of familiarity and ‘home’. At a f undamental
level travel journalism seeks to tread a fine balance between introducing
the reader to destinations and activities that appear appealing different,
ones that are intrinsically “out there” and beyond the realms of the every-
day, and those that provide them with a sense of reassurance and, very
often, comfort.
History There is a very strong tendency in travel journalism to provide

some historical details and background on destinations, activities and cul-
tural practices. In part, this provides the reader with a sense of context,
resonating with what MacCannell (1973) identifies as the tourists’ search
for authenticity. Historical content can also be seen as contributing to
34 B. COCKING
what Bourdieu (1986) terms, a sense of ‘cultural capital’ the reader (and
ultimately, tourist) attributes to particular tourism experiences and desti-
nations. Staying on a remote tropical island or visiting a site of great his-
torical significance, such as Machu Picchu, might for example, conjure up
for the reader a strong sense of cultural capital.
Timeliness A good deal of the content typically found in newspapers’

travel sections is seasonal. For example, winter sun or skiing holidays in the
Autumn and Winter months or, indeed, holiday experiences aimed at
young families during half term weeks. Other examples of timeliness
include event based holiday experiences—such as a holiday at a music fes-
tival—or new tourism practices (eco-tourism, for example) or newly estab-
lished destinations (such as those previously inaccessible due to political
tensions or regimes).
Identifying ‘News’ Values in Tabloid

Travel Journalism
The tabloidization of ‘hard’ news has profoundly changed its intrinsic val-
ues and indeed the underlying news agenda (Lewis & Cushion, 2009,
p. 310). It has also been acknowledged that tabloids tend to prioritize
specific news values, typically foregrounding content that focuses on scan-
dals, crime, sports and pop culture (Sparks, 2000). In the last two decades,
the categories of news Sparks identified have increasingly melded into one
which refracts such content through the all-encompassing lens of celebrity
culture (Turner, 2010, p. 12). To what extent, then, do these broader
news values of tabloid journalism play out in the travel journalism of tab-
loid newspapers? As Allern notes, tabloid news are often ‘highly personi-
fied; they will impart sensations and emotions’ (2002, p. 142). How might
these characteristic features of style and tone manifest themselves in tab-
loid travel journalism content? What are the commonalities and points of
departure in the underlying news values of broadsheet and tabloid travel
journalism?
The Sun, The Mirror and The Daily Mail all have well established online
versions of their newspapers that command a significant amount of web
traffic. Of the three, The Daily Mail has the most long standing web pres-
ence, first launching Mailonline in 2020 (Wikipedia). In the last 20 years
the Mailonline has built a very strong global presence; in 2019 it was
ranked the 8th most viewed news website in the world (by unique monthly
visitors), ahead of the Washington Post (Sharma, 2020). However, in the

last 2 years The Sun.co.uk has overtaken the Mailonline in terms of UK
based unique monthly visitors—respectively, 30.2 million and 29.6 mil-
lion unique visitors in April 2018 (Tobitt, 2018). In June 2019, Mirror.
co.uk attracted 25.49 unique monthly visitors (Mirror Online reaches its
biggest, 2019). In terms of readership demographics, by gender, The Sun
and The Mirror have a stronger male following (in both cases amounting
to approximately 60% of the readership) whilst the Daily Mail has slightly
more female readers than men; 52.5%/ 47.5% (UK newspapers reveal
readership demographics, 2017). With regard to readership age, the three
newspapers appear to draw their largest proportions of readers from differ-
ent age categories. For example, The Sun has the highest proportion of
15–34 year old readers (Kirk, 2015). Whereas, the highest proportion of
The Mirror’s readers fall into the ‘millennial’ and ‘baby boomer’ categories
(Yougov, 2020). Similarly, The Daily Mail has the highest proportion of
older readers, with 45% of its readers being over the age of 65 (UK news-
papers reveal readership demographics, 2017). Historically, The Sun and
The Mirror have been strongly marketed at working class readerships,
C2DE stratification—indeed, this tends to be how the papers present
themselves and how they are perceived in popular culture (Biressi & Nunn,
2007, p. 298; Conboy, 2006, p. 3). However, both papers have built sig-
nificant readerships from the ABC1 stratification (Boykoff, 2008, p, 552).
By contrast, The Daily Mail defines itself as a ‘mid-market’ tabloid with its
readership crossing working, middle and upper class stratifications
(https://www.metroclassified.co.uk/daily-mail). Politically, The Sun and
The Daily Mail are popularly understood to be ‘right wing’ newspapers,
supporting the Conservative party, whilst The Mirror is perceived as being
more ‘left wing’ and supporting the Labour Party. It is important to note,
though, that the political leanings of each paper belie the fact that signifi-
cant proportions of their readership vote against the political stance of
each paper (Negrine, 2017 p. 70). For example, a poll by IPSO Mori
found that 21% of Daily Mail readers intended to vote Labour in 2004, in
the lead up to the 2005 general election (Duffy & Rowden, 2004).
Demographically, then, The Sun, The Mirror and The Daily Mail represent
a cross section of the British tabloid newspaper market. As such, they can
be seen as key drivers and influencers of British tabloid style journalism.
Despite its popularity, and the influence it has come to exert over all forms
of news content, this style of journalism has attracted a great deal of criti-
cism. In the last decade much of this criticism has focused on the
36 B. COCKING
organizational culture and ethics of tabloid journalism in the wake of the

News of the World phone hacking scandal and the public enquiry lead by
Lord Leveson that resulted from it (Gershon & Alhassan, 2017, p. 189).
Over and above concerns about the ethical motivations of tabloid journal-
ism, criticism of tabloid style is as old as the form of journalism itself.
Denigration of tabloid style has been principally motivated by concerns
that this form of journalism is premised on ‘scandal, xenophobia, misog-
yny, bingo scratch cards and, most of all, celebrity gossip’ (O’Neill, 2012,
p. 27). Clearly, there is validity to such criticisms. The kind of journalism
produced at the News of the World, for example, undoubtedly fuelled con-
cern that tabloid journalism tends not serve the ‘fourth estate’ ideal and
that it can cheapen and devalue public opinion (Fenton, 2019, p. 3).
However, it is equally important not to overlook the popularity of tabloid
style journalism—in 2011 nearly three times as many people reader the
most popular tabloid (The Sun) than they did the most popular broadsheet
(The Guardian) (Haggerty, 2013). Clearly, tabloid style journalism can
speak to a wider audience than other forms of news. Consequently, it also
has the potential to be more inclusive—certainly it can be more entertain-
ing, effervescent and ‘fun’ than the kinds of content typically associated
with its broadsheet counterparts. In this sense, it is not the case that there
is something intrinsically wrong with tabloid style but rather the issue rests
with the uses that this style is often put to. Consequently, some academics
have taken the view that tabloid journalism has some very positive attri-
butes and that its impact on Britain’s media ecology and the quality of
public debate and opinion has by no means been ‘uniformly negative’
(Conboy, 2011, p. 119; see also O’Neill, 2012; Biressi & Nunn, 2007;
McNair, 2003).
The online versions of The Sun, The Mirror and The Daily Mail all
direct readers to discrete travel sections. What is immediately striking is
the dominance of visual imagery in not only their travel sections but across
their websites. Clearly, visually engaging images are being used as the prin-
cipal means of drawing readers’ attention. This is very much in keeping
with the attributes of personification, emotion and sensationalism Allern
(2002) identifies as typical of tabloid style journalism—as it is with the
increasingly ‘clickbait’ nature of online news content. The main sections
of each newspaper’s website are indicative of the immense power of celeb-
rity culture; images of celebrities abound and clearly celebrity focused
news drives the news agenda. In the travel sections, though all of the
newspapers regularly run features on celebrities’ holiday homes and
favoured destinations, the overall emphasis is less celebrity focused.

Nonetheless, the dominant visual signifiers associated with celebrity news
are very much in evidence: images of young, stereotypically attractive peo-
ple are widely used to draw readers to content on specific destinations.
Visual images also play an important representational role in broadsheet
travel journalism, particularly online. However, the significatory structure
of broadsheet travel journalism tends to follow the formula of seeking to
draws the reader’s attention through an engaging headline which is
accompanied by interesting/arresting visual imagery below. Whilst The
Daily Mail adheres to this format, The Sun and The Mirror seem to place
greater emphasis on visual images. The following analysis will be based
initially on assessing the presence of the seven news values identified in my
2017 study of British broadsheet travel journalism in the three lead arti-
cles, taken respectively from The Sun, The Mirror and the Daily Mail
online travel sections. These lead features were identified as being indica-
tive of the kinds of travel content ‘typical’ of each of the three newspapers’
travel sections and consequently provide the opportunity to examine the
presence of other, perhaps characteristically ‘tabloid’, travel journalism
news values. The online versions of each newspaper were visited on the
same day, Sunday 24th January, 2020 and the three leading features of
each paper’s travel section form the basis of the following analysis:
The Sun ‘Wa-ter view You can stay in a floating ‘Artic’ hotel with stunning
Northern Light views’, Sophie Finnegan, 24th January, Finnegan, 2020.
The Mirror ‘Universal Studios Orlando’s new theme park will have a Super
Nintendo World’ Julie Delahaye, 24th January, Delahaye, 2020.
The Daily Mail ‘My favourite national treasures: It’s the National Trust’s
125th anniversary—and ALAN TITCHMARSH reveals his pick of 500
jewels for you and your family to enjoy…’, Alan Titchmarsh, 24th
January, 2020.
Beyond The Sun’s characteristic use of a pun filled headline, it is clear

that visual images play an important role in drawing readers’ engagement.
This is evident in The Sun’s lead feature which focuses on a luxury floating
hotel, located on the River Lule in Sweden. Following the straightforward
caption ‘YOU can now stay in a floating hotel with stunning views of the
Northern Lights’ is a visually stunning, aerial photograph of the floating
hotel which is built to a circular configuration, featuring a ‘bird’s nest’
design log roof. Likewise, the visual impact of The Mirror’s feature on
38 B. COCKING
Universal Studio’s Orlando, USA new ‘Super Nintendo’ theme park is

also immediately evident. The Mirror’s article on this amusement park
combines simple, direct text with an aerial photograph of Universal
Studio’s new site. The site looks magical and otherworldly with fireworks
bursting into the night sky above palm trees, waterways and a complex
network of fairy-tale like buildings and palaces. The use of aerial—usually
‘drone’ captured—images are becoming an increasingly ubiquitous sig-
nificatory frame through which to photograph and film tourism destina-
tions and experiences (Dinhopl & Gretzel, 2016). Shared across user
generated content on social media sites such as Instagram, they are also
being increasingly deployed for the purposes of tourism marketing (King,
2014). Evidently, this way of imaging the world is also becoming increas-
ingly prevalent in tabloid travel journalism. In this sense, the use of these
visually arresting images attests to the use of a very visual, characteristically
tabloid, form of the travel ‘news’ value Appeal. In both The Sun and The
Mirror visual, rather than textual, content is used as the primary means of
encouraging reader engagement.
By contrast, The Daily Mail’s article on television personality/gardener,
Alan Titchmarsh’s favourite National Trust properties to visit seems to
rely primarily on capturing the reader’s attention through the title and
standfirst of the article. This is perhaps illustrative of The Daily Mail’s mid-
market status and its more middle class, educated readership. The subject
matter and its presentation by Titchmarsh speaks very much to an older,
less social media conversant readership than the content in the other two
newspapers. This article is clearly aimed at a generation who still watch
terrestrial, schedule-based television and therefore recognize and are
drawn to long established celebrities of this medium. In contrast to The
Sun and The Mirror, the accompanying visual images are only evident
once the reader has scrolled past quite a substantial block of text at the
head of the article. Beyond the opening text there is a large, page width,
photograph of a smiling Titchmarsh sitting on a tree stump in the grounds
of one of his favourite National Trust properties, Studley Royal Water
Garden in Yorkshire. The image is very much a visual illustration of the
textual content of the article. It attests to the potential for the reader to
follow in Titchmarsh’s footsteps and visit the National Trust properties he
has reviewed. In this sense, the significatory function of Appeal in this
article seems to be primarily grounded in the text with visual images play-
ing a supporting role. This is much more in keeping with broadsheet travel
journalism (Cocking, 2017).
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
vaiti, vaikkakin hänellä oli sentnerin paino omallatunnollaan.
"Uskotko sinä, että olen viaton?" kysyi Schorn sitte.
"Kyllä", vastasi agitaattori lujasti ja varmasti eikä mikään oikeuden

enkeli tullut ja reväissyt tällä hetkellä naamiota hänen kasvoiltaan.
"Pidä kaikki kunnossa, Gustav", sanoi tuomittu jälleen, kuten

ennen niin usein. "Suutele vaimoani ja lapsiani minun nimessäni ja
sano heille, että ajatuksissani olen aina heidän luonansa. Olet nyt
herra talossa, isännöi hyvin, vuosi menee, ja minä luotan ikuiseen
tuomariin. Päivä tuo totuuden esille."
Hän halusi kuulla jotakin valtiopäivävaalin kulusta, mutta he eivät

olleet kahden kesken.
Hän sanoi vain, edellyttäen Rassmannin ymmärtävän.
"Ja asiasi käy hyvin?"
"Oivallisesti, huomenna tulee ratkaisu", kuului valheellinen

vastaus.
"Tämän vien parhaana lohdutuksena mukaani", sanoi Schorn

viimeiseksi sanakseen. —
Rassmann oli tosiaankin herra talossa, hänellä oli valtikka

kokonaan käsissään. Hän ei ollut enää ainoastaan unelmissaan
tämän pienen paratiisin omistaja, hän oli sitä valveilla, täydellä
tajullaan. Jokainen askel, jokainen toimenpide, mihin hän ryhtyi,
vahvisti häntä siinä tietoisuudessa.
Mutta hänen isännöimisensä!

Rassmann ei ymmärtänyt mitään liikeasioista: se oli ensi kivi
raunioon. Liiketuttavat huomasivat sen parhaiten; seuraus siitä oli,
että he vähitellen rajottivat tilauksiaan, vaikkakaan eivät niitä
kokonaan lakkauttaneet myötätuntoisuudesta rouva Schornin
onnettomuutta kohtaan. Lisäksi tuli, ettei Rassmann voinut omin
käsin ryhtyä työhön, mutta esiintyi sitä mahtavampana kisällejä
kohtaan. Ennen olivat he työpajassaan harvoin suuttuneet, nyt ei
kulunut ainoakaan viikkoa, ettei joku työntekijöistä olisi mieluummin
muuttanut kuin enää jäänyt epävarmuuteen.
Seuraus siitä oli, että ne työt, jotka vielä saatiin, lyötiin laimin
eivätkä valmistuneet oikeaan aikaan.
Niin poistui tilaaja toisensa jälkeen; ja lopuksi oli puusepän työssä

ainoastaan yksi mies eikä hänelläkään työtä riittämään. Sorvaustyö
oli jo aikoja sitten lakannut, kun Schorn, tämän ammatin ainoa etevä
edustaja kaupungissa, oli poissa ammattitaitoineen.
Niin jäi pääasialliseksi tulolähteeksi puotiliike.
Mutta ikäänkuin olisi Schornin tuomion jälkeen kohdannut kirous

koko taloa, niin kohdistuivat koko talon ikävät ilmiöt myös valmiiden
tavarain kauppaan. Ostajat vähenivät vähenemistään, ja nekin, jotka
tulivat, tulivat enemmän uteliaisuuttaan tyydyttääkseen. Mihin Hanna
katsoikin, ei hän kohdannut avointa, vapaata katsetta, ei henkilöä,
jolle olisi voinut uskoa luottamuksensa. Lopulta jäi hänelle vain
Rassmann, joka osasi hänen surulliset kasvonsa kirkastaa.
"Kaikki tulee jälleen paremmaksi", sanoi tämä vain jotakin

sanoakseen. "Koskeeko syyllisyys sitte tosiaankin meitä molempia?
Emmekö koeta parastamme? Pää pystyyn, Hanna, olenhan minä
luonanne."
Oi, niin, ystävä oli hänen luonaan. Sen huomasi hän
uudistuneesta hellyydestä, jolla tämä hänet hulvasi. Ja jokaisessa
sellaisessa tilaisuudessa halasi tämä ystävä hiljaa, mutta
järjestelmällisesti vanhaan puuhaansa: hän koetti vaimon rinnassa
tukahduttaa jokaisen ajatuksen miestään kohtaan.
"Hanna", sanoi hän sitte, "mitä siitä sitte tulee, kun Vilhelm palaa?
Vannon teille, että olen teidän totinen ystävänne, mutta juuri siksi
täytyy minun katsoa tulevaisuuteen teidän puolestanne. Miehenne
on ainaiseksi kunniaton mies, ja vaikkei tänään kukaan voi sälyttää
hänen rikostaan teidän eikä lastenne hartioille, niin tehdään se
silloin, kun hän on jälleen luonanne, Hanna, teidän täytyy —"
Nuori vaimo hypähti pystyyn ikäänkuin hänen eteensä olisi astunut

valoisa olento, joka varotti häntä tähän hurmahenkeen nähden;
mutta seuraavana hetkenä tunsi hän jälleen olevansa Rassmannin
vallassa.
Hän sanoi tosin: "Mutta taivaan tähden, mitä teillä on oikein

mielessänne, Gustav!" — mutta heti osasi Rassmann viedä
ajatukset eteenpäin.
"Hanna", alotti hän uudelleen, "kommunismin lakien mukaan ei

teidän tarvitse enää elää miehenne kanssa yhdessä. Tahdotteko
silloin iät kaiket käydä kuritushuonevangin rouvasta? Vilhelm on itse
sanonut minulle, ettei hän enää vapaaksi päästyään tahdo koskaan
käydä miehestänne. Ette tee mitään rikosta, vaikkakin hänestä
eroatte — nyt vasta olette sopimattomat toisillenne. — Ettekö näe
joka päivä, kuinka luonnottomat ja sietämättömät nykyiset olosuhteet
ovat? Oletteko te tehnyt kenellekään mitään pahaa? Oletteko te
vastuunalainen miehenne teoista? Ette. Ja kuitenkin karttavat teitä
kaikki, vetääntyvät pois luotanne. Jokainen on valmis teitä
loukkaamaan, sälyttämään häpeän niskoillenne, tärvelemään
perintönne, saattamaan teidät häviöön."
Tämän käsitti rouva Schorn. Hänen povessaan aaltoili, ja hän

sanoi nyreissään:
"Niin, Gustav, olette oikeassa, en ole tehnyt kenellekään mitään,

mutta minua halveksitaan, ja kaikki on mieheni syy. Mutta minä teen
samoin: vastaan halveksimalla."
Tämä oli vain hetkellistä katkeruutta; mutta kuinka Rassmann

ottikaan heti tämän nuoren rouvan mielialan täydestä! Kuinka
ymmärsi hän suloisesti imarrella, näytellä uhrautuvaisuutta, vaimon
mieltä yhä hullaannuttaa!
Mutta milloin kaupungissa puhuttiin Schornin talosta, puhuttiin siitä

kuin pahennuksen pesästä. Äidit ja isät katsoivat samalla huolissaan
ympärilleen, olivatko heidän tyttärensä saapuvilla.
"Onko sitä enää pidettävä säällisenä rouvana", sanottiin sitte, "joka

ei häpeä asua vieraan miehen kanssa saman katon alla, vaikka
kaikki tietävät että hän on naimisissa ja hänen miehensä
kuritushuoneessa?"… "Voiko sellaista vaimoa enää pitää arvossa?
Voiko sellaisen olennon kanssa enää olla tekemisissä?"… Ja sitte
seurasivat vanhat puheenparret sosialistisesta yhteiskunnasta…
Niinhän oli aina, villi avioliitto oli aina ollut sosialistin toive; tässä se
taas nähtiin selvästi j.n.e.
Niin kuluivat kaksi ensimäistä kuukautta, Schornin ollessa poissa.

Juttelu rouva Schornista ja hänen rakastajastaan, kuten Rassmannia
yleensä nimitettiin, kulki entistä uraansa, yhteyttä heidän kanssaan
vältettiin samalla tarkkuudella kuin ennenkin. Liike meni yhä
enemmän alaspäin. Rassmann koetti saada ulkona olevat saatavat
perityksi niin pian kuin mahdollista, se oli hänen pääasiallinen
työskentelynsä.
Talvi oli saapunut kaikessa ankaruudessaan, ja pureva pakkanen

kutsui houkuttelevammin kuin koskaan viivähtämään kapakassa.
Rassmann tunsi eräänä päivänä vanhan kaipauksensa sinne.
Hänellä ei ollut mitään tehtävää, päivät olivat niin lyhyet, että maksoi
tuskin nousta vuoteestaan — mikä oli silloin parempaa kuin viettää
iltansa kapakassa ja pitää suurta suuta.
Nyt vasta voi agitaattori oikein lyödä täyteen rahakukkaroonsa, nyt

vasta tahtoi hän kaikille näyttää, mitä hän oikeastaan oli, ja vaikkapa
kunnialliset ihmiset kääntyivätkin hänestä pois, kuten ihmisestä, joka
petti oman ystävänsä — niin oli sentään aina elukoita, jotka
kumarsivat rahan kilinälle kuten ennenkin ja kohottivat hattuaan.
Ainakaan ravintolan isännällä ei ollut mitään syytä kieltää
kunnioitustaan vanhalta vieraaltaan, jota hänen oli kiittäminen niin
monesta kirkkaasta taalarista.
Lopulta, kun Rassmannin oli uudelleen onnistunut koota joukko

syöpäläisiä ympärilleen, istui hän juopottelemassa aamusta iltaan
kuten ennenkin.
Hannalle osasi hän selittää sellaisen elämänsä sanomalla, että

hänen täytyi koettaa houkutella vanhat liiketuttavat takaisin.
Sellainen elämä luonnollisesti maksoi rahaa! Ja liikkeen tulot

vähenivät päivästä päivään. Mutta Rassmann ei koskaan huolehtinut
huomisesta; nyt vielä vähemmin kuin ennen; Kultaisessa leijonassa
kuuli hän eräänä iltana jutun, että herra Antonius Pätzoldtilla, joka
nyt oli kokonaan vajonnut viinapulloon, olisi seuraavana päivänä
ryöstö, jonka jälkeen hänen "salonkinsa" todennäköisesti sulettaisiin.
Tämä juttu olikin totta.
Marat toisen liike oli mennyt alaspäin vielä nopeammin kuin

Schornin. Kaksi hänen entistä apulaistaan olivat sijottuneet lähistöön
ja vakavuudellaan vieneet entisen esimiehensä vieraat aivan hänen
nenänsä edestä. Hän oli alituiseen juovuksissa ja alkoi kohta riidellä
jokaisen uuden apulaisensa kanssa, niin ettei kukaan enää tahtonut
tulla hänelle työhön. Häneltä itseltään eivät kansalaiset taasen
tahtoneet palvelusta, sillä silloin olivat he vaarassa joutua jonakin
onnetonna minuuttina pienen kähertäjän uhriksi sitä enemmän, kun
tämä hirmuinen mies silloin tällöin humalapäissään päästeli
suustaan epäiltäviä sanoja, jotka puhuivat joukkotelotuksista,
giljotiinista ja vallankumouksellisista tuomioistuimista.
Niin kävi että tilavassa salongissa pistäytyi ainoastaan sattumalta

joku vieras, joka ei kuitenkaan "kuningasmielisten" mielestä "kaalia
rasvottanut".
Niin tuli sitten ratkaisu. Vuokraansa ei aviopari ollut maksanut jo

neljännesvuoteen. Kaikkialle oli heillä velkoja, leipurille, teurastajalle,
kauppiaalle, yksinpä saippuankeittäjällekin; vaikkei oikeastaan
ollutkaan mitään saippuoitavaa.
Kaikki ahdistivat, kaikki olivat jo jättäneet saamisensa

oikeudellisesti haettavaksi. Oli odotettavissa, että jonakin päivänä
ulosottomies täyttäisi samalla kertaa velvollisuutensa kaikkia
valittajia kohtaan.
Ahdingossaan pieni kähertäjä mietti omia tuumiaan samalla
heittäen tuhoavia katseita kadun ylitse Schornin taloon.
Rassmann oli jo usein ihmetellyt, että hänen entinen

kapakkatoverinsa väistyi tykkänään hänen tieltään. Agitaattori oli
usein salaa toivonut päästä Pätzoldtin kera entisiin suhteihin,
ollakseen varma hänen ystävyydestään kaikkien tapausten varalta.
Mutta juoppoa tuskin enää sai nähdäkään.
Ja kuitenkin olivat Pätzoldtin ajatukset aina Rassmannin luona, ja

ne suunnitelmat, joita hän salassa takoi, olivat kerran saattavat
agitaattorin hänen käsiinsä.
Ja tuumiaan hauteessaan haki hän vanhaan tapaansa

lohdutustaan pullosta.
Niinpä niin — hänellä olikin syytä huumata omaatuntoaan. Eikö

hän ollut nähnyt, kuinka Rassmann varkauspäivänä oli hypännyt
ikkunasta?
"Jos tämä porvari sen tietäisi", olisi silloin kuullut pienen

kähertäjän usein puhuvan, "mitä hän tarjoisikaan jos minä pitäisin
suuni kiinni —"
Tämä oli se Marat toisen suunnitelma. Hän oli usein ajatellut tätä
kiristyskoetta, nähdessään kuinka puotikassa pysyi yhä tyhjänä ja
velat lisääntyivät, mutta ensin tahtoi hän nähdä saiko agitaattori
tosiaankin valtikan käsiinsä.
Ja nyt oli aika tullut, nyt oli hätä kynnyksellä, nyt oli joko taivuttava
tai taituttava. Nyt sai tämä porvari vetää kassansa esiin, kuten hän
kerran oli imenyt Schornia kaikella hienostuneella viekkaudellaan.
"Kuritushuoneeseen tulee hän sentään kyllin aikaiseen", täten
koetti herra Pätzoldt puolustaa attentaattiaan, jonka hän oikeastaan
teki Schornin omaisuutta vastaan.
Kultaisen leijonan eräässä nurkassa nähtiin pitkistä ajoista jälleen

Rassmannin ja hänen entisen ystävänsä istuvan yhdessä.
Mitä herra Antonius Pätzoldt kertoi, siitä ei ollut kellään aavistusta,

ainoastaan sen olisi saattanut huomata, että agitaattori näytti
kalpealta kuin seinä ja joka kerta, kun pieni kähertäjä oli
ampumaisillaan yli maalin, kuiskutti hänelle: "Ei niin kovaan, ei niin
kovaan. Voivathan muut kuulla kaiken. Saatte kyllä, mitä tahdotte."
Sinä iltana ei Rassmann jäänyt kauvaksi ravintolaan. Hän hiipi

ulos, aivankuin kummituksia istuisi hänen niskallaan.
Sepäs vielä puuttui, että häneltä nyt riistettäisiin ihanat päivät! Nyt
kun hän puhetaiteellaan oli saanut asiat niin pitkälle, että hänen
lemmittynsä oli taipuvainen ennen pitkää myymään talon ja tavarat,
lähteäksensä hänen kanssansa Ameriikkaan. Ja tämän kurjan
kääpiön täytyi kaikkialle tulla hänen tielleen. Mutta hänen turpansa
täytyi tukkia, sitte sai toistaiseksi olla rauhassa.
Niiden parin päivän kuluessa, jotka Pätzoldt oli agitaattorille

myöntänyt rahan hankkimista vasten, esitti myöskin Schornin
liikeystävä kolmikuukautisen viidensadan taalarin vekselinsä.
Rassmannille ei tullut tämä vekseli odottamatta, mutta hän pyysi

neljän kolmatta tunnin lykkäystä. Ne hänelle myönnettiin.
Niin paljo rahaa? Mistä ne olivat otettavat?

"Meidän täytyy ottaa kiinnityslaina taloamme vastaan, Hanna",
sanoi hän, "ja sitte koetettava myydä talo niin hyvin kuin mahdollista
—"
Rouva Schorn sanoi vaan pari sanaa, käskien hänen tehdä miten
hyväksi katsoo. Hän jätti jo kotiystävälle vapaat kädet.
Niin päätettiin ottaa kiinnityslaina. Seuraavana päivänä löytyi

kaupungista rahamies, joka suostui antamaan tuhat taalaria
ensimäistä kiinnitystä vastaan.
Suuri vekseli lunastettiin, Pätzoldtin lurjus tyydytettiin.
Nyt oli jälleen elämää Marat toisen kodissa. Kuningasmielinen tuli

jälleen miehelleen hyväksi, lapset saivat leivoksia syödäkseen ja
herra Antonius Pätzoldt otti päivän kunniaksi kaksinkertaisen
annoksen kuminaviinaa.
Oi, että hänelle onnistuisi tämä ensimäinen kepposensa, sitä ei

hän ollut uskonut itsekään. Eikö tässä ollut oivallinen lähde, jota
saattoi käyttää useamminkin hyväkseen.
Herra Antonius Pätzoldt tuli pian siihen. Partaveistään tarvitsi hän

yhä vähemmän. Hän eli humussa ja sumussa.
Marat toiselta ei rahapula enää koskaan loppunut, ja aina kävi hän

Rassmannin kimppuun. Milloin vaati hän pienempiä, milloin
suurempia summia. Ja vaikkakin Rassmann raivoissaan puri
huultansa — Pätzoldtin uhkaukset saivat hänet lannistumaan ja —
maksamaan edelleen.
Rassmann tunsi yhä suurempaa halua talon myymiseen, mutta

niin usein kuin Hanna suostuikin, ei löytynyt sopivaa ostajaa.
Onnettomuus kasaantui onnettomuuden päälle. Pieni Villy tuli äkki
sairaaksi ja kuoli muutaman viikon jälkeen. Tämä oli hirvein suru
rouva Schornille. Ensi kertaa pitkistä ajoista tunsi hän pienokaisen
kirstun ääressä, kuinka häneltä puuttui mies, jonka lemmikki Villy oli.
Rassmann ei huolehtinut hautajaisista, hän istui mieluummin
"Kultaisessa leijonassa".
Jättiläissuuren, uhkaavan nyrkin tavoin nousi äkkiä nuoren vaimon

mieleen ajatus, mitä hänen miehensä sanoisikaan, kun palaisi
rangaistuslaitoksesta ja näkisi miten kaikki oli mennyt alaspäin. Ja
hän — eikö hän ollut hyvällä tiellä unhottaa miehensä?
Mutta hurmahenki Rassmann seisoi jälleen hänen takanaan ja

kuiskutti: "Kuka on kaikkeen syypää? Miehenne — hän on tullut
rikokselliseksi, hän ei ole enää teidän arvoisenne."
Ja sitte ahdisti häntä hurja pelko ajatellessaan hetkeä, jona hänen

miehensä palaisi — kulmikas, mutta rehellinen Schorn, jonka sydän
oli täynnä altista rakkautta ja lapsellista uhrautuvaisuutta.
Kun hän sellaisena seisoisi hänen edessään ja sanoisi:

"Hannaseni, oletko pysynyt minulle uskollisena?" — mitä olisikaan
hänellä silloin vastattavaa? Nuori vaimo vapisi. "Mieluummin paeta
maailman ääreen", tuumi hän sitte.
Rassmannia vastaan ei hänen oma mielipiteensä enää merkinnyt

mitään — hän oli myynyt tälle sielunsa kuin paholaiselle. Agitaattori
hallitsi kuin isäntä. Samalla jatkoi hän vanhoja tapojaan, istui
aamusta iltaan kapakassa. Ja yhä oli hänellä rinnallaan
verenimijänsä, herra Antonius Pätzoldt.
Saapui päivä, jolloin täytyi ottaa toinen kiinnitys, ainoastaan
saadakseen rahaa välttämättömiin menoihin ja Marat toisen
tyydyttämiseen. Lisäksi tuli, ettei puotiin tahdottu saada luotolla
valmiita tavaroita myytäväksi, vaan entisistäkin laskuista vaativat
saamamiehet suoritusta.
Kaikilta tahoilta ahdistivat velkojat, ja oli lähellä se mahdollisuus,

että talo myytäisiin julkisella pakkohuutokaupalla, jollei viime
hetkessä saataisi ostajaa omasta alotteesta.
Rassmann ponnisteli ponnistelemistaan, hän ilmotti

sanomalehdissä kerta toisensa jälkeen — ei ilmestynyt ketään, joka
olisi maksanut vaaditun summan. Aika kului, Schornin vapautuksen
päivä oli tuleva — ja yhä olivat olot ennallaan. Rassmann selvisi
enää humalastaan yhtä vähän kuin pieni parturikaan; hän joi vain
itsensä huomatakseen.
Hänen täytyi miettiä rohkeimpia suunnitelmia saadakseen käteistä

rahaa;
vähitellen oli hän myynyt rouva Schornin tietämättä enimmät
työkalut.
Jos hän liikutteli kapakassa suuria rahoja, kävi herra Antonius
Pätzoldt kimppuun vaatien puolet.
"Mikä on minun, on sinun", tuli nyt näiden juopporenttujen kesken

täyteen voimaan.
He jakoivat rehellisesti; mutta kuten kaksi varasta, joista toinen ei

luota toiseen.
XVII
Istunut kuritushuoneessa, istunut syyttömästi kuritushuoneessa —

kuinka pian se on sanottu, ja kuinka vaikea sitä on ymmärtää!
Orja, joka tuntee ajajansa ruoskaniskut selässään, hän kestää

kivun murisematta, sillä hän tietää olevansa orja ja taipuu
kohtaloonsa. Maankulkuri, joka maantieltä otetaan kiinni ja viedään
korjuuseen, seuraa vastustelematta, sillä hän tietää, että hän on
siellä ulkona hyödytön ja hän tyytyy siihen. Vieläpä äitikin, köyhä äiti,
joka nälkäisenä harhailee kadulla, kerjäten leipää lapsilleen, ja
jokaisella toisella ovella saa kirouksia almun sijaan — hänkin kantaa
osansa hymyillen, sillä hän tietää kärsivänsä lastensa puolesta. He
kaikki kärsivät vakuutettuina, ettei heillä ole oikeutta murinaan; mutta
mies tuolla, joka vilusta väristen ja sateesta valuen huhtikuun
hämärässä astuu kuraista maantietä, joka vie X:ään, hän vain ei
tiedä miksi hän vuosikauden on kantanut pahantekijän polttomerkkiä,
miksi hänen tukkansa on leikattu lyhyeksi, miksi on hänet puettu
vanginpukuun.
Tämä mies on Vilhelm Schorn.

Kurja, mitään sanomaton sana on tämä "miksi", kun sen huutaa
maailmaan koko sielunsa tuskalla ja kaiku on ainoa vastaus. Niin,
tämä kysymys se sai Schornin öisin puristamaan kätensä nyrkkiin,
kunnes hän unhotti rukoilemisen ja nousi omaa jumalaansa vastaan.
Sitte itki hän, kunnes kyyneleet kuivuivat, ja miksi, miksi? —
Päivästä päivään oli hän toivonut sanomaa, että todellinen

syyllinen olisi ilmottautunut, ja hän oli vapaa ja edelleen sama
verraton mestari Schorn, joka kohotti kunniallisen nimensä kaiken
muun ylitse — mutta tunnit, päivät, kuukaudet olivat kuluneet — hän
oli yhä numeroitu rangaistusvanki: ilman oikeutta kunnioitukseen ja
pääsemiseen ulkopuolella olevain nauravain ihmisten rinnalle.
Mutta vapautuksen päivä oli tullut, päivä, jona hän vapaana

miehenä sai oleskella vapaiden ihmisten seurassa, keinuttaa
lapsiaan polvellaan kuten ennenkin, itkeä kyllikseen vaimonsa ja
ystävänsä rinnalla.
Mutta eikö hän yhä kantanut kunniattomuuden merkkiä?
Ei, ei — vaikkapa kaikki ihmiset pitäisivät häntä syyllisenä, niin ei

varmaan hänen vaimonsa. Eikö Rassmann ollut pitänyt häntä
viatonna? Ja ajattelisiko hänen vaimonsa toisin? Oi, jo ajatuskin, että
se voisi olla mahdollista, näytti hänestä rangaistavalta.
"Oi, Hanna, oi, Gustav, oi, Villy, oi, Liisu!"
Niin ylimaailmallisen huokaavasti kuin Schorn lausui nämä

rakkaidensa nimet ristissä käsin yön tummaa taivasta kohden ei
konsanaan ole kaikunut kaihonhuuto kurjuuden ruoskimasta ja
kuitenkin toivon läpitunkemasta ihmissielusta.
Oi, lämmin huone kotona, uskollinen ystävä, rakastava vaimo,
nauravat lapset, oi kuinka tämä kaikki viittoikaan häntä vastaan
iloisia tulotervehdyksiä.
Sade pieksi Schornia vasten kasvoja, huhtikuun inha tuuli vinkui

hänen päänsä ympärillä — hän ei niitä huomannut. Hän olisi nyt
voinut kulkea kuinka pitkälle tahansa, tiesihän hän, että hänellä oli
jälleen päämäärä. Hän ei palattuaan tahtonut enää kauvemmaksi
jäädä kaupunkiin. Vaimonsa, lastensa ja ystävänsä kera tahtoi hän
etsiä uuden kotiseudun, missä häntä ei tunnettu, ei tiedetty mitään
hänen entisyydestään.
Rassmann oli varmaan pitänyt liikkeen kunnossa, olihan hän

siihen jo aika hyvin perehtynyt ja oli niin nokkela ja varustettu
monenlaisilla tiedoilla.
Ja sitten valtiopäivävaali — oikein, hänet oli aikoja sitte täydytty

valita edusmieheksi. Oi, mitä suuria asioita olikaan täytynyt tapahtua
näinä hirveinä kahtenatoista kuukautena. Varmasti oli silloin niin
paljo kerrottavaa, juteltavaa ja kyseltävää, että pahat muistot pian
häipyivät menneisyyteen. Oi, kuinka he ottaisivat hänet vastaan, kun
ovi aukenisi ja hän astuisi sisään. —
Schorn kuuli jo hengessä vaimonsa riemuhuudon, lastensa

ilakoimisen, ystävänsä sydämellisen tervehdyksen. Eikö hän toki
ollut heitä kaikkia valmistanut tuloonsa, kirjottamalla heille muutamia
päiviä sitte.
Olisipa hän vain tiennyt, ettei Rassmann ollut kirjettä Hannalle

lainkaan näyttänyt, vaan kironnut ja toivonut hänen ainaiseksi
häipyvän!
Niin astuessaan tietään hengessään maalaillen näitä suloisia
kuvia tunsi Schorn jo lämmittävän hengähdyksen, joka herätti hänet
uuteen elämään ja kannusti hänen voimiaan. Sadekin lakkasi ja ilma
tuli puhtaammaksi ja läpinäkyvämmäksi. Loitompaa pilkkui jo valoja
näkyviin. Schornilla oli jo päämääränsä, vanha kotinsa, silmiensä
edessä. Tuolla näki raatihuoneen tornin ikäänkuin äänettömän
tunnusmerkin, lähellä sitä kohosi kirkon torni taivasta kohden;
ensimäinen katu kaupungin puistikosta, jonka pensaat ja puut
ojentelivat paljaita, vettävaluvia oksiaan häntä vastaan, oli jo se,
jonka varrella hänen talonsa, hänen vanha paratiisinsa sijaitsi.
Oi, kuinka sykkikään hänen sydämensä, kuinka hänen verensä

melkein pysähtyi autuaasta hämmennyksestä!
Kadulta ei hän tahtonut astua taloon, ei, kuten varas tahtoi hän
hiipiä puutarhan aitovartta pitkin, kaikkien näkemättä, tuntematta,
ensin seistä kotvan aikaa mykkänä, kädet ristissä kotiaan katsellen;
rukoilla Jumalalta rohkeutta seuraavaa hetkeä varten.
Schorn näki jo maantien loppuvan edessään, hän oli jo kulkenut

tullihuoneen ohitse ja aikoi kulkea puistomaan lävitse, kun hän kuuli
muutamasta haudasta vasemmalta ihmisäänen; kuului siltä kuin
puhuisi jokin juopunut sekamelskaa.
Mutta sitte näytti siltä kuin mies ähkyisi pääsemättä paikaltaan.
Schorn meni paikalle. Hän näki pienen, huolestuneelta näyttävän

miehen, joka, istuen puoleksi kuraisessa haudassa, puoleksi nojaten
muutamaan poppeliin, edelleen koetti nousta pystyyn, mutta aina
kaatui takaisin. Samalla hän viittilöi käsillään ja puhui kaikenlaista,
ikäänkuin hänen edessään seisoisi joku, jonka kanssa hän oli
joutunut riitaan.
Schorn tunsi Pätzoldtin. Hän oli ravassa ylhäältä alas ja näytti
perin juopuneelta.
"Se ei ollut huonosti", kuuli hän Marat toisen puhuvan yksikseen.

"Mokoma lurjus sanoo, ettei hänellä muka ole enää rahaa, että kaikki
on luistanut tiehensä. Tämä roisto näyttelee nyt suurta porvaria ja —
minun kotiväkeni — no, minun puolestani, he voivat nähdä nälkää.
Minulla ei ole enää, mitään!!" huusi herra Pätzoldt sitte äkkiä
äänekkäästi yöhön, ikäänkuin hänellä olisi tuhansia piruja
manattavana.
Sitte jatkoi hän delirium tremens-monologiaan: "Mutta minä olen

— minä olen kuitenkin nähnyt, kuinka hän — hän silloin hyppäsi
ikkunasta, kun Schorn-parka oli Ehlertillä työssä — — niin, niin, olen
sen kuitenkin nähnyt", huudahti pieni mies raivoissaan, heristäen
nyrkkiään. "Niin, niin, sanon minä! Hän se oikeastaan oli varas, tämä
Rassmann, hän toimitti Schornin kuritushuoneeseen, hänen
vaimonsa, hänen talonsa tähden — niin sanon minä, ja jos minua
vielä niin kovin mulkoilette — olkaa hiljaa, sanon minä, kansalainen,
kuuletteko? — Konventti on koolla — sanon, hänet täytyy viedä
giljotiinille! Tämä petturi, tämä porvari nimeltään Rassmann on
saattanut Schorn-paran perikatoon."
Herra Antonius Pätzoldt koetti nousta jälleen; samalla alkoi hän

laulaa lallattaa jotakin laulua. Sitte kaatui hän jälleen takaperin ja
sanoi uudelleen, kuten tyytyisi kohtaloonsa: "No, se ei ole pahoin —
odottakoon — mutta hän ei tahtonut antaa enää rahaa, no, minun
puolestani ‒ ‒ he voivat kuolla nälkään, sanon minä! Kellä on mitään
sitä vastaan väittämistä?! Vaietkaa vain, ymmärrättekö, älkää vain
puhuko mitään!"
Hän päästi päänsä vaipumaan ja murisi yksikseen.

Schorn oli kuullut joka tavun.
Hän ei voinut uskoa, mitä oli kuullut, tai —? Hän ei voinut selvästi
ajatella, hänen ohimoissaan kihisi ja kiehui.
Mutta koura, joka seuraavana hetkenä tarttui Marat toiseen, oli

raudanluja. "Sinä valehtelet, kautta Jumalan, sinä valehtelet,
rappiolle joutunut mies", tiuskui Schorn ja nosti istuvan jaloilleen.
"Kuka — mitä—?" enempää juopunut ei voinut saada suustaan,

sillä tuskin oli silmännyt seisovaa kasvoihin, kun hän päästi suustaan
sekavan, valittavan huudon.
Sitte vikisi hän kuin olisi purskahtamaisillaan itkuun. Seuraavassa

hengenvedossa lankesi hän maahan Schornin eleen ja höpisi
edelleen: "Kyllä hän se oli, herra Schorn — minä — näin hänen
hyppäävän ikkunasta, hän on minulle jälkeenpäin tunnustanut
kaiken. Hän yksin on varas. Niin, niin, olen oikeassa! Hän on
keinottelija — koko kaupunki puhuu siitä — hän elää villissä
avioliitossa —"
Schorn sai äkkiä tempauksen, jotta hän kaatui pitkäkseen

maahan.
Schorn teki vääristyneine piirteineen kummituksen vaikutuksen.

Hänen jokainen hermonsa vapisi.
Mutta Pätzoldt jatkoi juopuneen tapaan:
"Varmasti — sanon minä, se on totta — teillä ei ole mitään

sanottavaa — kaikki on ollut huijausta, valtiopäivävaali, kirjojen osto,
kaikki, — kellä on sanottavaa sitä vastaan?! Rosa on saanut kaiken,
viisisataa taalaria myös, tiedän sen — hän on oikea porvari, kuten
kaikki muut."
Mitä Schorn vielä kuuli, se oli pöyristävää. Kymmenen kertaa oli

Schorn kohottanut kätensä tuhotakseen elukan edessään yhdellä
iskulla, mutta inho pidätti hänet siitä.
Hän ei voinut sitä uskoa, ei, ei ikinä!
"Valehtelija, selviä ensin —" Näin sanoen kääntyi hän ja poistui;

mutta hän horjui pehmeässä maassa sinne ja tänne.
Kadun kulmatalon edessä, juuri kuin hänen piti poiketa avonaiselle

pellolle, jäi hän hetkiseksi seisomaan. Tässä oli muutamalle taululle
kiinnitetty ilmoitus, jonka hän luki lyhdyn valossa: "Huomenna,
perjantaina, aamupäivällä 10 aikaan myydään julkisella
huutokaupalla Schornin avioparin talo siihen kuuluvine
irtaimistoineen täkäläisellä raatihuoneella, huone n:ro 4…"
Schorn ei voinut lukea pitemmälle. Kirjaimet tanssivat hänen

silmiensä edessä, kaikki meni hänessä mullinmallin. Hänestä tuntui
kuin se kivinen jättiläiskuva, johon hänen kotinsa häpeä liittyi, olisi
hänen muserrettava jättiläisvoimin.
Niin, nyt uskoi hän kaiken, mitä hulttio maantiellä oli hänelle
kertonut.
Schorn näytti äkkiä muuttuneelta toiseksi olennoksi.
Suomukset, jotka tähän asti olivat sokaisseet hänen silmänsä,

olivat pudonneet.
Kello löi juuri 8, kun hän seisoi talonsa edessä.

Pilvet olivat hajonneet ja kuu tuli kirkkaana näkyviin. Kaikkialla
näki hän taloissa valoa, omassaankin. Hän hyppäsi yli aidan,
oikeastaan tietämättä, mitä aikoi tehdä. Hän kulki puutarhan lävitse
eteiseen. Katuovi oli avoinna. Ovella oli sama ilmotus kuin
nurkallakin. Hän meni takaisin pihaan ja katsoi työpajaan. Mikäli hän
saattoi nähdä oli se tyhjä. Hän vihelsi hiljaa Amille, koiralle — hän ei
saanut mitään vastausta. Hän hiipi portaita ylös, avasi oven
käytävään, kenenkään häiritsemättä. Hän meni lastenkamariin —
kirkkaassa kuutamossa näki hän kaksi tyhjää kehtoa. Olihan
Pätzoldt hänelle sanonut, että myös Liisu, suloinen valkotukka Liisu,
oli seurannut pikku veikkoaan iäisyyteen.
Syvästi liikutettuna jäi Schorn seisomaan molempain

pikkuvuoteiden eteen.
Silloin säikäytti hänet viereisestä huoneesta kuuluva heleä nauru.
Schorn kuunteli painaen korvansa ovea vasten.
"Hanna" — "Gustav" — "sinä" ja "sinä" kuuli hän.
Hän sysäsi oven auki. Kuului kaksinkertainen kauhun huuto.
Schorn ei ollut enää ihminen.
Hänen vaimonsa toverin sylissä —?
Tuokioksi hän jähmettyi paikoilleen. Sitte ei hän enää tiennyt mitä

teki. Mihin hän katsoikin, näki hän sumua, joka kietoi hänen
mielensä.
Hän teki hyppäyksen. Ja hän ulvahti kamalasti tuskasta.

"Vapaus, tasa-arvoisuus — roisto!!" huusi hän, ja tämä sulki
silmänsä.
Ja kädet irtautuivat jälleen ja kouristuivat toisen kerran — tällä

kertaa hänen oman vaimonsa kurkkuun, vaimonsa, joka oli vaipunut
polvilleen vavisten ja ristissä käsin, kuin armoa rukoillen.
Mutta Schorn ei nähnyt enää mitään. "Takaisin

kuritushuoneeseen!" kaikui hänen mielessään. "Siellä on todellinen
yhdenvertaisuus."
Kuinka olikaan hän kerran sanonut? "Asia näyttää läheltä katsoen

toiselta kuin ainoastaan ajatellessa!" Tässä oli ollut hänen ainoa
filosofiansa.
*****
"Murhaaja, apuun!" kajahti alhaalta kadulta.
"Schorn on murhannut vaimonsa!" kuului toinen ääni.

"Kaksoismurha se on!" puuttui taasen toinen ääni sekaan. Ikkunat
kilisivät, ovet narisivat, nuoria ja vanhoja riensi paikalle. Poliisi
lähestyi, miehiä kaikenlaisissa aseissa. Kaikki ympäröivät taloa,
mutta kukaan ei uskaltanut tulla lähelle. Silloin ovi sysättiin auki ja
muuan mies astui ulos vaalein kasvoin, paita revittynä auki rinnalta.
Hän puristi rintaansa kuin olisi pakahtumaisillaan.
Hän näytti mieheltä, joka on tehnyt tilin elämänsä kanssa.
Kaikki astuivat takaperin ja pakenivat.
Schorn ojensi kätensä. "Sitokaa minut, olen murhaaja. Olen,

kuristanut vaimoni ja ystäväni — älkää peljätkö."

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Travel Journalism and Travel Media:

Identities, Places and Imaginings 1st

Travel Journalism and

ISBN 978-1-137-59907-0 ISBN 978-1-137-59908-7 (eBook)

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2020

Cover illustration: gettyimages / Photo by Sayid Budhi

1 Introduction: Travel Journalism—Forms and Origins 1

2 Making Tabloid Travel Journalism: Values and Visuality 27

3 “Itravel: Competing Forms of Travel Writing in Print

4 Visions of Past and Present? Travel Journalism Features

5 Looking West: Representations of Cultural Difference and

6 Selling it ‘Green’: Travel Journalism, Trump and the US

Fig. 4.1 Thomas Cook & Sons 1870s. https://www.shapell.org/

Table 3.1 Travel journalism in online newspapers 62

Introduction: Travel Journalism—Forms

© The Author(s) 2020 1

ways of monetizing content are shaping the representational practices and

of established travel journalism representational practices with those asso-

Travel Journalism: An Image Problem

Thus, in comparison to most other areas of journalism which require spe-

‘the myriad forms of travel journalism have seen extraordinary growth in

This is understandably evident in Fürsich and Kavoori’s foundational arti-

Travel Journalism and Travel Writing

crucial role in the emergence of the modern nation-state. At the heart of

The launching of the Cook excursions in Britain (1841), the appearance of

The nineteenth century also witnessed the burgeoning development of

Hanusch and Fürsich seek to distinguish travel journalism from travel

Whilst Youngs acknowledges that the boundary between factual and

characteristics, an approximate terrain, that constitutes travel writing

produce multifaceted and varied forms of ‘truths’. For example, a newspa-

Mapping Lines of Enquiry

Travel Journalism and the Lifestyle Turn

discussion above on the dominant lines of enquiry in journalism studies,

enthusiastic. After all, the intention is to exhort readers to make economic

‘help, advice, guidance, and information about the management of self

journalism. For example, Santos’s ‘Perception and Interpretation of

Audiences are active participants in the construction and interpretation of

The motivational dynamics of travel journalism and the extent to which

By presenting readers with the world as a set of potential experiences to be

Since the publication of Hanusch and Fürsich’s edited collection in 2014,

this area is Bryan Pirolli’s Travel Journalism: Informing Tourists in the

Charting Lines of Enquiry

chapter, the book shifts focus to consider in Chap. 2 ‘Making tabloid

Drawing on the postcolonial perspectives of Edward Said (1991) and Ali

Hanusch, F. (2009). Taking travel journalism seriously: Suggestions for scientific

Making Tabloid Travel Journalism: Values

The processes governing news selection—the ways in which one news

© The Author(s) 2020 27

journalism’s role in the rational transfer of socially and political useful

features from British tabloid newspapers. It will focus on travel content

Analysing Travel Journalism from a News

One approach that is of particular relevance here is the development of a

The association of news values with a discursive perspective is of par-

‘texts’—including visual imagery. Clearly, in consideration of the processes

Appeal Travel journalism is usually placed in the mid-section of most

Identification The reader is encouraged to follow in the travel journalist’s

‘At Home/Out There’ Contrasting representations of difference and ‘oth-

History There is a very strong tendency in travel journalism to provide

Timeliness A good deal of the content typically found in newspapers’

Identifying ‘News’ Values in Tabloid

visitors), ahead of the Washington Post (Sharma, 2020). However, in the

organizational culture and ethics of tabloid journalism in the wake of the

favoured destinations, the overall emphasis is less celebrity focused.

1 Introduction: Travel Journalism—Forms and Origins 1

2 Making Tabloid Travel Journalism: Values and Visuality 27

3 “Itravel: Competing Forms of Travel Writing in Print

4 Visions of Past and Present? Travel Journalism Features

5 Looking West: Representations of Cultural Difference and

6 Selling it ‘Green’: Travel Journalism, Trump and the US

Table 3.1 Travel journalism in online newspapers 62