Arguments

The arguments of the independence debate examined: civic and ethnic nationalism, democracy, the media, and the case put to England and America.

• A letter to America: what Scotland's post-2014 experience suggested to US progressives in 2017

  When Donald Trump was inaugurated on 20 January 2017, some Scottish independence supporters compared the mood of American progressives with their own after losing in 2014. What did the Scottish experience actually show about organising after defeat?

• Civic or ethnic? The argument over nationalism in the Scottish independence debate

  In February 2017 the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, set off a row by comparing division between English and Scots with division by race or religion. What do scholars mean by civic and ethnic nationalism, and how does the Scottish case fit?

• The media and the independence debate: newspapers, broadcasters and the limits of criticism

  Only one Scottish newspaper backed Yes in 2014. How the press and broadcasters covered the independence question, how the media landscape changed after the referendum, and where legitimate criticism of journalists ends and abuse begins.

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  Writing to England in 2014: the arguments put to English readers during the independence debate

  During the 2014 referendum, supporters of independence living in Scotland addressed open letters to England. What did they argue about anti-English feeling, subsidies, oil, the pound and pensions, and how do those claims look against the record?