The omnivore at home and abroad: The value to the state of food tourism discourse of diversity. (1st June 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Duffy, Andrew; Pang, Annabel
• Is Part Of: International journal of media and cultural politics. Volume 16:Number 2(2020)
• Page Start: 175
• Page End: 189
• Publication Date: 2020-06-01
• Subjects: Mass media -- Political aspects -- Periodicals; Political culture -- Periodicals; 302.33
• DOI: 10.1386/macp_00023_1
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1740-8296

Abstract

While a discourse of difference has routinely been used as a marker of national identity, such an approach is premised on exclusion. By contrast, this article considers how inclusion or diversity may be employed in nation-building discourse, and its impact on the citizenry, as embodied in the omnivore – one who appreciates a wide range of cultural artefacts and, in doing so, evokes a high status. Using a Verstehen approach to critical discourse analysis, we analyse one kind of state media – the Singapore Tourism Board's food-related webpages – to assess how they represent citizens and tourists as culinary omnivores, and how this may be interpreted to reveal mechanisms of hegemonic state control.