The use of semiotics in content analysis: The case of belarusian patriotic advertising

Abstract

After the collapse of the USSR, Belarusians entered a brand new era of independence experiencing a profound lack of a collective sense of identity. Having become an independent state, Belarus had to assert itself both as a new player in the international political arena and as a homeland for people with a unique national identity. Through the period of President Lukashenko’s rule, several public campaigns have been introduced aimed at construing a certain view of Belarus and Belarusians. The initial aim was to provide an internally significant nationalistic discourse and actualize the point of shared identification, which, as I argue, is intrinsically connected with present political power and designed to legitimize it. This paper aims to develop a framework for analyzing the processes of reimagining Belarusian identity through the discourse of outdoor public campaigns, employing a mixed analytical technique of semiotic and content analysis that is considered to be especially helpful in the analysis of ideologically driven media messages.