Ethnographic Content of Modern Children's Journalism

It is only natural that we begin to acquire knowledge about other nations and peoples early in our childhood. This is mainly facilitated by ethnographic media content. Ethnographic media content helps to overcome stereotypes and prejudices about other cultures. It also encourages the transmission of national values to the next generation. However, despite being an important educational tool, ethnographic media content has not been sufficiently studied. In particular, there is a dearth of research focusing on the specifics of its subject matter, genres, formats, readership engagement, visualization, and tools that communicate cultural values. The reported study explores how modern children’s magazines have been featuring ethnographic content over the last ten years. It also discusses the role of ethnographic content in shaping the cultural awareness of readers. The study assessed 23 children’s periodicals. The results indicate that children’s magazines underrepresent ethnographic content. They rarely feature ethnographic topics, if they do, however, the publications are limited in scope — they either focus on the cultural practices of the peoples of Russia or briefly describe some other ethnic group. Out of the 23 periodicals, only two were found to consistently produce ethnographic content and to feature thematic sections. To broaden children’s horizons and foster respect for other cultures, the present authors propose a framework for integrating ethnographic content into children’s media. This will help to adapt and diversify the content of children’s periodicals without radically changing their concept and structure.