Discuss with a classmate similarities and differences in the selection of pictures in different magazines.

a. Can you find any tendency of national perspectives in the pictures?

b. What perspectives are evident in the photos (how do they for instance depict gender and power)?

c. What effect do you think the images of history can have in society today?

A national starting point can sell magazines, therefore it is quite common. On the front pages there are often white men, military and drama Ethnic minorities, women, peace, and daily life are made invisible. “Forgetting” some groups makes them invisible while other perspectives are highlighted and made manifest. The use of history can have an effect on contemporary society, for instance making war a question for men with power rather than ordinary people.

Look at articles from Germany, Sweden , England and Spain. How can one see that the texts are written for popular history magazines?

a. How long is the article (pages)? How many images are used? What types of images are used?

b. Compare headers and highlighted quotations in the texts.

c. What do you think is typical of headlines and layout in popular history?

d. Does the layout contribute to your perception of the article’s trustworthiness?

a. The use of images is more common in popular history than in academic writing. As stated above there are often male dominated and militaristic perspectives in the images.

b. First World War is a popular topic in this type of magazines, and the attempt to present spectacular views of the past is also a part of the media logics. For instance in the English text a spectacular drama is clearly central, and it is further emphasized by the layout and the Swedish text holds an ambition of pointing out spectacular coincidence in a well-known subject in popular history.

c-d Headlines and quotations show how the drama of the past is often central in popular history. Hopefully the students can see how the popularization and simplification makes history less nuanced and therefore less trustworthy. Selection and presentation always affect the story written. But a long article without images may also be very biased. Looking at layout can give you a hint, but critical literacy demand close reading to scrutinize the evidence, arguments and biases.