Donal McCracken – författare

Born in Dublin in 1822, Lieutenant-General John Nicholson was raised and educated in Ireland. He joined the East India Company’s Bengal Army as 16-year old boy-soldier and he saw action in Afghanistan, the two Anglo-Sikh wars and the Great Rebellion or Mutiny. He died in the thick of battle as the British army he was leading stormed the ancient city of Delhi in September 1857. He was only 34 years old. His legacy and his legend as the ‘Hero of Delhi’, however, far outlived him. As well as the Indian cult drawn to him, at home he became a hero and was portrayed in epic stories for children, inspiring generations of young boys to join the army in his footsteps. In more recent times, some turned the hero into a villain; others continue to consider him the finest army front-line British field commander of the Victorian era.

This volume on print and broadcast media in the 19th and 20th centuries highlights the pivotal role that the media played in the establishment and maintenance of imperial power. The media bolstered both the ideological and financial objectives of the empire in a myriad of overt, covert, and downright scandalous ways. From jeopardising the introduction of wireless telegraphy in order to maximise the financial gains of the investors of under-sea cabling, to newspaper proprietors cashing in on the thrilling, wonderful (and sometimes fabricated) adventures of war correspondents in exotic lands, the media has had a constant background influence in the public’s perception of empire. By covering diverse topics from Anthony Lejeune’s radio talk-show ‘London Letters’ – which supported the Allies by boosting morale and providing a link between soldiers fighting abroad and their families during both World Wars, to the complete subversion of imperial influence – as in the case of the proliferation of diverse media platforms being used by migrant communities in Britain as a means to promote ‘colonization in reverse’, the book hints at the politics, suspense, and intrigue of both the print and broadcast sectors. This book was originally published as a special issue of Critical Arts.