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SOUTHERN MYTHS AND THE NINETEENTH AMENDMENT: THE PARTICIPATION OF NASHVILLE NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS IN THE FINAL STATE'S RATIFICATION.

In 1920, Tennessee became the final state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment, which eliminated sex restriction on voting rights. This article uses the concept of myth to examine how Nashville newspapers made suffrage part of the discursive battle for regional identity. While the Nashville Banner amp...

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Published in:Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly Vol. 87; no. 2; pp. 238 - 260
Main Author: Marcellus, Jane
Format: Article
Published: Sage Publications Inc. Summer2010
Subjects:
Journalism & politics
Lost Cause (Confederate States of America)
Propaganda
Nashville Tennessean (Newspaper)
History of women's suffrage
Tennessee state politics & government, 1865-1950
United States. Constitution. 19th Amendment
United States history
Tennessee
Southern States
United States
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
Summary:In 1920, Tennessee became the final state to ratify the Nineteenth Amendment, which eliminated sex restriction on voting rights. This article uses the concept of myth to examine how Nashville newspapers made suffrage part of the discursive battle for regional identity. While the Nashville Banner amplified anti-suffragists' "Old South" propaganda of the Lost Cause and southern honor, Nashville Tennessean coverage was grounded in the "New South" myth's national, progressive focus. The two newspapers' publishers took their positions beyond their pages by becoming participants in the political contest.