Settlers, War, and Empire in the Press Unsettling News in Australia and Britain, 1863-1902

“Settlers, War, and Empire in the Press is a true heir of the New Imperial History, and builds on the work of Simon Potter, Alan Lester and Tony Ballantyne. … I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the history of British settler colonialism, print culture, nineteenth-century Australia and frontier violence with Indigenous peoples.” (Kenton Storey, Journal of Colonialism and Colonial History, Vol. 20 (1), Spring, 2019)

“A focused reading of Victorian newspapers to consider the uncertain position of British settlers on the periphery of empire. … reads Australian engagement in the press as a continual series of shifting negotiations, with settlers always navigating between presenting themselves as servants of empire and independent agents in the imperial project.” (Jennifer Fuller, Victorian Periodicals Review, Vol. 51 (4), Winter, 2018)

“What is particularly valuable in Hutchinson’s analysis is its explanation of the press as a vehicle for the expression of collective emotion. … Hutchinson is able to enrich the explanatory power of Patrick Wolfe’s description of settler colonialism … . Taken together Hutchinson’s conception of these events within public discourse outline the unsettling contours of the emotional needs that the Australian colonies sought to satisfy through their involvement … .” (Mick Warren, Postcolonial Studies, November, 15, 2018)

“Sam Hutchinson's Settlers, War, and Empire in the Press … is, in a myriad of ways, an important contribution to Australian colonial history. Through a careful analysis of Australian colonial reporting of imperial conflicts, Hutchinson has shed light on the ways newspapers both shaped and reflected the sentiment and value of their readers over time.” (Nathan Wise, Journal of Australian Colonial History, Vol. 20, July, 2018)

“Settlers, War, and Empire in the Press is a valuable addition to the Cambridge Imperial and Post-Colonial Studies Series and is, in a myriad of ways, an important contribution to Australian colonial history. Through a careful analysis of Australian colonial reporting of imperial conflicts, Hutchinson has shed light on the ways newspapers both shaped and reflected the sentiment and value of their readers over time.” (Nathan Wise, Journal of Australian Colonial History, Vol. 20, 2018)