Scott Lishak

School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities

PhD Student (History)

Profile

Thesis title: Das Magazin and its readers: State and society in the German Democratic Republic, 1954 - 1990.

Supervisors: 

Period:

Post-1800

Thesis abstract:

Das Magazin was a popular monthly cultural magazine authorised by the East German state in 1954, partly in response to the worker's uprising of 17 June 1953. It featured mild erotica, racy opinion polls and letters to the editor, with the authorities hoping the magazine's cultural focus would help to placate a restless populace.

My research seeks to investigate the relationship between Das Magazin and its readership, analysing readers' reactions to its content and the extent to which readers' opinions influenced what it published, leading to an evaluation of Das Magazin as a site of interaction between state and society in East Germany.

Qualifications
  • PhD History, University of Sheffield, 2022 – present
  • MA Modern History, University of Sheffield, 2021
  • PGCE History, Institute of Education, 2014
  • BA (Hons) Economics and Economic History, University of York, 2013
Professional activities and memberships
  • Teacher Fellow of the Historical Association, 2020: participant in the Teacher Fellowship Programme investigating Conflict, Art, and Remembrance with a focus on the First World War. My research led to a re-appraisal of how aspects of the War are taught in schools and was published on the website of the Historical Association: https://www.history.org.uk/secondary/categories/872/module/8692/teacher-fellowship-programme-conflict-art-and-re/11084/when-did-world-war-i-really-end