Media Representation of a Cultural Event: Local, National, and International Levels

Abstract

The aim of the study is to identify the characteristics of media representation of theatrical events across different segments of the media environment and to examine how their communicative functions vary according to media type, using the coverage of the performance Romeo & Juliet by the Frankivsk Drama Theater as a case study.

The research methodology is based on a combination of general scientific and specialized methods: analysis and synthesis – to explore theoretical approaches to cultural journalism and media communication; content analysis – to examine publications in local, national, and international media; comparative method – to compare different ways in which the performance is represented across various media texts (news articles, multimedia publications, video works, analytical articles); interpretative (hermeneutic) method – to identify the key semantic emphases in journalistic materials; typological method – to classify forms of media representation and define the functions of cultural journalism.

Results. It has been established that the nature of coverage of a theatrical event varies depending on the scale of the media environment. At the local level, the performance is interpreted as an element of the cultural life of the urban community and serves an integrative function. At the national level, it appears as a phenomenon of contemporary culture and becomes the subject of analytical and critical journalism. In the international media environment, the performance acquires symbolic significance and functions as a message about the country conveyed through culture. The expansion of the audience is accompanied by a shift from mere reporting to interpretation and cultural explanation.

Novelty. The study’s novelty lies in identifying distinct models of interpreting a theatrical event across different media contexts, which supports viewing cultural journalism as a tool of meaning-making and cultural legitimation of artistic phenomena. The findings can be applied in the training of journalists and cultural editors, in teaching courses on cultural journalism, media communications, and media criticism, as well as in the practice of media coverage of cultural institutions’ activities.

Key words: media representation, cultural journalism, theatrical event, media communications, convergent media, international reception.