This thesis critically analyses music coverage in Maclean’s between 1967-1995, and reveals that the magazine continually stressed Canadian music as inferior to that produced by foreign artists. Only during times of intense nationalism were Canadian musicians positively received in its pages. More generally, domestic productions were seen as deficient. The historical components of this investigation reveal an essential irony in the perception of Canadian music during the last four decades of the 20th century. Despite nationalist rhetorics and Maclean's self-appointed title of "Canada's National Newsmagazine," its critics consistently emphasised that Canadian music was of poor quality in the 1967-1995 period.

This thesis critically analyses music coverage in Maclean’s between 1967-1995, and reveals that the magazine continually stressed Canadian music as inferior to that produced by foreign artists. Only during times of intense nationalism were Canadian musicians positively received in its pages. More generally, domestic productions were seen as deficient. The historical components of this investigation reveal an essential irony in the perception of Canadian music during the last four decades of the 20th century. Despite nationalist rhetorics and Maclean's self-appointed title of "Canada's National Newsmagazine," its critics consistently emphasised that Canadian music was of poor quality in the 1967-1995 period.

Dans son édition du 4 octobre 2010, le Maclean’s, périodique canadien de langue anglaise, a publié un dossier intitulé « Quebec : The most corrupt province in Canada », suscitant la controverse au Québec et dans l’ensemble du Canada. Si certains individus ont appuyé les propos des auteurs, d’autres les ont condamnés, affirmant qu’il s’agissait de Québec bashing, soit une forme de dénigrement du Québec et des Québécois. Par ailleurs, le débat, qui concernait initialement la corruption, s’est rapidement élargi pour porter sur la question québécoise, ce qui a intensifié les échanges et qui leur a conféré une dimension identitaire forte. Dès lors, et en raison de l’ampleur du tollé, la controverse entourant la publication du Maclean’s a pu être envisagée comme une affaire médiatique révélatrice de tensions sociales. Nous nous sommes intéressée au phénomène qu’est le Québec bashing et nous avons fait de l’affaire Maclean’s le point de départ de notre étude. Suivant une approche multidimensionnelle de l’analyse des discours sociaux, notre objectif était de mettre au jour la façon dont se construit le Québec bashing, d’identifier les mécanismes sociodiscursifs qui le sous-tendent et de faire état des réactions qu’il suscite dans l’espace public. Nous avons mené une analyse en quatre temps : sur le plan lexicologique, nous nous sommes attachée à définir ce qu’est le (Québec) bashing à partir de l’emploi de cette expression en contexte médiatique québécois francophone; sur le plan argumentatif, nous avons analysé la construction du discours à l’origine de la controverse avant de nous pencher sur les arguments mobilisés par les participants au débat pour qualifier ou non ce discours de Québec bashing; sur le plan sociohistorique, nous nous sommes intéressée aux événements du passé qui sont remis en discours dans le débat et qui témoignent de la mémoire collective des groupes qui s’affrontent; sur le plan sociodiscursif, nous avons identifié les procédés utilisés pour s’en prendre à autrui. Ultimement, cette analyse nous a permis de circonscrire le phénomène qu’est le Québec bashing, de l’envisager d’un point de vue sociodiscursif et de contribuer à l’avancement des travaux sur les discours de confrontation. / On October 4th 2010, the Canadian weekly news magazine Maclean’s published an issue about corruption in Quebec (“Quebec : The most corrupt province in Canada”), which caused controversy not only in Quebec but throughout the whole of Canada. While some people supported the writers, others argued that they were participating in Quebec bashing, a form of denigration of Quebec and Quebecers. Moreover, the debate quickly spiraled from one about corruption to one that encompassed questions of politics, language, and identity. Because of the extent and intensity of the debate, the controversy can be considered as an event that brought to light social tensions between groups. Drawing on the controversy surrounding Maclean’s issue about corruption in Quebec, this thesis focusses on the social phenomenon of Quebec bashing. Specifically, the aim of this research was to use a multidimensional approach to social discourse analysis in order to examine the construction of Quebec bashing, identify its sociodiscursive components, and investigate the reactions it provoked in public space. The analysis was conducted on four levels. Firstly, on a lexicological level, a definition of (Quebec) bashing, based on the use of the expression in Quebec francophone newspapers, is presented. Secondly, an argumentative analysis is used to study the organization of the discourse on which the controversy is based and to present the arguments raised by those debating whether or not to qualify this discourse as Quebec bashing. Thirdly, from a sociohistorical point of view, the way past events are used in the debate, as a reflection of the confrontation between different collective memories, is examined. Finally, on a sociodiscursive level, the discursive processes used to attack others are explored. Ultimately, this analysis defines the phenomenon of Quebec bashing, considers it from a sociodiscursive point of view, and contributes to the existing body of work on discourse confrontation.