Abstract

This thesis examines the coverage of Hong Kong’s Umbrella Revolution in the Canadian metropolitan newspapers and the political/diplomatic publications. Positioned in a ritual view of communication, this thesis intends to reveal how Canadian mainstream journalists relayed and interpreted the multi-faceted events, and whether serious Canadian journals succeeded in informing their readers in a meaningful way from a cultural studies perspective. This thesis examines the discourses around the Umbrella Revolution published in The Vancouver Sun and the Toronto Star, two daily newspapers serving major Canadian cities with large ethnic Chinese populations. To a lesser extent, Canadian publications targeting diplomats and policymakers are scrutinized to ascertain whether different discourses were published in more specialized journals and public releases of information. Prominent Chinese-language and English-language newspapers in Hong Kong are utilized for “control and reference” and as cultural exemplars to compare and contrast with the Canadian print media.