The Beginnings of Tramway Transport in Olomouc as Viewed by the Local Press at the Turn of the 19th Century

Pages	119–130
DOI	10.37520/amnpsc.2022.030
Keywords	regional newspapers – electric railway – tramway – Moravian journals – 19th century – Olomouc
Type of Article	Peer-reviewed
Citation	BAŘINOVÁ, Kristýna. The Beginnings of Tramway Transport in Olomouc as Viewed by the Local Press at the Turn of the 19th Century. Acta Musei Nationalis Pragae – Historia litterarum. Prague: National Museum, 2022, 67(3-4), 119–130. DOI: https://doi.org/10.37520/amnpsc.2022.030. ISSN 2570-6861 (Print), 2570-687X (Online). Also available from: https://www.nm.cz/en/periodicals/acta-musei-nationalis-pragae-historia-litterarum/67-3-4/the-beginnings-of-tramway-transport-in-olomouc-as-viewed-by-the-local-press-at-the-turn-of-the-19th-century

Acta Musei Nationalis Pragae – Historia litterarum | 2022/67/3-4

The regional press played a crucial role in the turbulent atmosphere of the late 19th century. Moreover, it was the only medium of mass communi­cation through which the public could be informed about the latest events in the town of Olomouc and its surroundings. The key periodicals of the Olomouc environment include the Czech newspapers Olomoucký Pozor and Našinec and the German Die Neue Zeit and Mährisches Tagblatt, which slowly became a national battleground of the local population. These newspapers were pillars of the Olomouc journalistic scene, reflecting the tense mood of the ethnically di­vided city, usually according to the political or national focus of the particular paper. Local periodicals thus portrayed everyday events from the point of view of individual national groups, which through their newspapers tried to discredit each other, and illustrated individual events adequately to their ideological stance. The pages of the press frequently included purposely formulated articles based on the long-term tendencies and objectives of the two nationalities. As tensions increased, events that were at first glance quite apolitical became the subject of controversy. Even such an achievement of modern society as the introduction of fully electrified public transport in the city soon turned into a political and national topic, which for some time filled the front pages of both Czech and German Olomouc periodicals.

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