Die Legitimierung der italienischen Invasion Abessiniens in den Zeitungen „Dolomiten“ und „La Provincia di Bolzano“, 1935–1936

This paper examines how humanitarian and civilizing arguments were employed in two South Tyrolean newspapers, “Dolomiten” and “La Provincia di Bolzano”, between 1935 and 1936 to legitimize Italian aggression against Ethiopia. Seven articles from “Dolomiten” and five from “La Provincia di Bolzano” were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. According to the findings, the newspaper articles utilized narratives of slavery as well as stereotypical and eroticizing representations of Ethiopian women to legitimize colonial expansion.