What signifies is what stays: Telêmaco Borba’s history and memory and the meaning production from O Tibagi newspaper

Abstract

The present paper aims to investigate if the narratives disseminated by the O Tibagi newspaper (published in Monte Alegre, current city of Telêmaco Borba – PR) have produced meaning effects related to the locality’s history. In order to do so, an analysis of thematic content was performed in the newspaper’s anniversary special editions between the years of 1948 and 1964, under two levels: self-reference and outerreference, observing the strategies used in the newspaper’s meaning production. On parallel, through the Oral History methodology, interviews were conducted with individuals who experienced the context in which the O Tibagi’s speeches were published, and, through their memories, it was possible to observe the fragility related to the historical aspects concerning Telêmaco Borba, showing that the local history’s comprehension occurred from the narratives conveyed in that journal. It is believed that the silences of the O Tibagi contributed to the formation of a founding speech, given that there were few publications about the past previous to the time when the Klabin family’s enterprise arrived in the location.

Keywords: regional journalism, content analysis, oral history, Telêmaco Borba, O Tibagi newspaper.