Academic literature on the topic 'Sowetan Newspaper'

The media influence society’s understanding of gender and other social phenomena including how we view fatherhood. Fatherhood is rarely presented positively in both visual and print media. Through an analysis of newspaper articles from The Sowetan, City Press, The Daily Sun and The Pretoria News, this article shows how shaming is used to represent fatherhood and child support in the South African print media. These representations, the article argues are limiting and provide fewer positives for fathers and fail to account for socio-economic challenges experienced in relation to fatherhood. In conclusion, the article illustrates that the media could play an important role in presenting a balanced sense of fatherhood, where affirmation of positive fatherhood is used as a more effective way of representing fatherhood in the media.

<p>The aim of this conceptual research was to establish whether Soweto spaza shops use marketing communication tools to promote their businesses. This research undertook qualitative research method and exploratory research design and was essentially textual as numerous literatures were consulted.</p>The conducted research established that the top five most regularly used marketing communication methods are direct sales, ‘word-of-mouth’, point of sale materials; networking and newspaper advertisement. The least regularly used marketing communication methods are YouTube, television, direct mail, press releases and coupons/ vouchers. Therefore, the consulted references agreed that although limited marketing communication methods are used by spaza shop owners. The study concludes that South African spaza shops use marketing communication tools to promote their businesses.

During each of the five elections held in post-apartheid South Africa, from 1994 to 2014, the African National Congress (ANC) accused the mainstream media of being racially biased against the predominantly black political party. The newspapers and the other media were condemned for being privately owned and monopolised by white capital and dominated by white editorial staff, who allegedly reported negatively and critically on the party’s electoral policies—thus alienating it from the voters. Despite such criticism, the ANC gained a majority of votes at each election. This article examines: i) the presumed powerful influence of the press on electoral support for the ANC; ii) the extent that newspaper reporting on elections were racially biased against, and hostile to the ANC; and iii) the racial composition of the editorial staff. Five influential South African newspapers were analysed: three daily newspapers, Beeld, The Star, and Sowetan; and two weekly publications, The City Press and The Sunday Times. A total of 111 170 newspaper articles and editorial pieces relating to the elections were content-analysed to establish their manifest positive, negative, or neutral tonality. It was found that mainstream newspapers’ reporting did not negatively influence voters’ support for the ANC, that reports on elections were predominantly objective with a slight positive bias in favour of the ANC, and that the racial composition of editorial staff changed from being predominantly white to more representative of black personnel, which in turn introduced more visible anti-white bias.

This article sets out to interrogate the ideological hegemony of the superstructuring narrative voice in advertisements by studying linguistic, structural devices and encoding that are employed, in order to expose its racial, class and gender undertones embedded in the authorial voice. The sample of advertisements discussed is derived from The Bantu World and its two sequels, The World and The Sowetan. The sample is thinly dispersed over a period of five decades. Most of the advertisements selected were duplicated in the sister newspapers, Mochochono (Sesotho) and Imvo (isiXhosa), which were published under the auspices of the Associated Bantu Press. In the latter case the advertisements in the different languages were directly translated from English. The thrust of our argument is that the narrative voice, together with the images, are loaded with a stereotyping preconceived notion of the “other”, which is either conscious or subconscious. We also suggest that the change of the newspaper’s name is accompanied by a perceptible evolution of ideological bias in both the images and the narrative voice.

The article covers history and practice of the development of economic sanctions as a mechanism of influence on countries that do not comply with the norms of international law. The objectives of the sanctions may include preventing wars, promoting freedom and democracy, combating environmental pollution, protecting human and labor rights, ensuring non-proliferation of weapons, releasing captured citizens, and countering land grab. Everything connected with sanctions (e.g. size, form, etc.) is determined by their acceptability by the community, and they are influenced by technology and the existing relations of power between social groups within countries. However, unlike well-defined rules concerning declared war and blockade of wartime, international law doesn’t establish any legal or formal restrictions on coercive measures with the exception of war. The first written economic sanctions were imposed in 432 BC by the Athens Maritime Union on the city of Megara. Sanctions were aimed at stopping the Megara’s practice of accepting runaway Athenian slaves and plowing sacred border territories. Sanctions were ineffective, due to which the Peloponnesian War began. Athens suffered a crushing defeat, and the Athenian union was destroyed. In the 19th century sanctions generally took the form of sea blockades. The question of the international legitimacy of sea blockades did not arise until the formation of the League of Nations in the 20th century. Article 16 of the Charter of the League of Nations allowed collective economic and military action against a state that turned to war in disregard of the League Agreement, which required states to settle disputes peacefully. In the Charter of the United Nations, the right to apply sanctions is enshrined in Articles 2 (4), 39, 41, 42, 43 and 46 of the Charter of this organization and in the “Unification for Peace resolution” 1950. In the period between 1946 and 1990 the UN imposed sanctions on North Korea, South Africa, Portugal, Rhodesia and Iraq. In the subsequent period, the UN began to apply sanctions more actively, especially against African states. Effectiveness of the implemented economic sanctions in most cases was dubious, since the desired results were not achieved or at least deviated from the initial purpose. After the massacre in Sharpeville, where civilians who protested against the apartheid became victims of inhuman police crimes, the problem of South African racist politics became a hot topic on the world agenda. Some countries led by India in the following years began to actively raise this issue with the UN Security Council. Western countries did their best to prevent the use of sanctions against South Africa, because of the country’s important role for NATO in advancing its strategic goals. After the Soweto Uprising, on November 4, 1977, when the photographs of young people killed by the police appeared in major newspapers worldwide, the UN Security Council finally adopted mandatory sanction measures. Nevertheless, governments of some of the Western powers sought to maintain their traditional tolerance for the apartheid regime, counting on South Africa to counter the Soviet-Cuban intervention in the civil wars of Angola and Mozambique. Since 1977 till 1994 The UN Security Council had repeatedly demanded that all states comply with the sanctions restrictions, which throughout this time gradually tightened and comprehensively affected all spheres of life of the South African society.

This thesis looks at the life and times of Aggrey Klaaste, the larger-than-life late editor of Sowetan who shot to fame by championing a novel idea of nation building. His initiative started in 1988 as flames of violence engulfed South Africa and it seemed as if an apocalypse was on the cards. Sickened by what the frustrated black community was doing to itself, for example the use of the dreadful practice of necklacing against the so-called collaborators, he called for moral regeneration. He wanted his compatriots to look into the future and take their destiny in their own hands. Through nation building he tirelessly launched into crusading journalism that sought to heal the scars of the black community after decades of apartheid. It was grassroots community building. He rewarded ordinary men and women who made a difference in their communities. He actively sought peace to end the violence of the 1980s and 1990s. He spoke his mind without wearing any ideological blinkers, even as some thought his initiative would disturb the march to freedom. He was the ultimate newspaperman. This thesis argues that by calling for reconciliation and rebuilding of battered black communities even before freedom came, Klaaste was ahead of his time and even predated Nelson Mandela. Klaaste preferred to do what was right and not be shackled to any ideology. In doing so, he angered many people who felt his thinking was derailing the struggle for freedom. But Klaaste stressed that nation building was ideologically neutral and was meant for everyone. By contradicting prevailing political orthodoxy, he very likely risked his own life. But, like a true leader, he stuck to his convictions. Klaaste was exemplary in calling for reconciliation and building when others called for breaking. Ten years after he died, as the country still grapples with issues he raised in his popular weekly column On The Line, it is worth appraising his thinking and actions. The thesis also looks at the environment that influenced his thinking. His life is interwoven with South African history. That he began his adult life shakily, spending his days in a drunken stupor at Johannesburg shebeens to being awarded the Order for Meritorious Service for his outstanding community work, makes him an interesting subject to look at. It’s a story of a man who vanquished his demons and, through his compassionate community engagement, became an asset to the country. It’s a story of redemption. As his private life attests, he was man with flaws – like anyone else. But Aggrey Klaaste strived to do what was right for his community at all times. He was a restless community builder.

This thesis examines the complex ways in which notions of the public interest and commercial imperatives intertwine in journalism practice. It does this through a study of the 2004 takeover and relaunch of the Sowetan newspaper, the highest circulation daily in South Africa throughout the 1990s and an institution of black public life. The ‘public interest’ and ‘the commercial’ are recurring ideas in journalism scholarship and practice, and the relaunch appeared to be a challenge to reconcile the Sowetan’s commercial challenges with its historical responsibility to a ‘nation-building’ public. However, the research shows that the public/commercial aspects of journalism were inextricably entangled with Sowetan’s organisational culture, which was the matrix through which its journalism practice was expressed. Conflict in the organisation over the changes was not simply a contest between commercial realities and the public interest, with journalists defending a responsibility to the public and managers pushing commercial solutions, but a conflict between the culture of Sowetan “insiders”, steeped in the legacy of the newspaper, and “outsiders”, employed by the new owners to effect change. Another conclusion of the research is that commercial “realities” – often conceptualised as counter to the public interest – are highly mutable. Basic conditions, such as a dependence on advertising, exist. However, media managers must choose from a range of strategies to be commercially viable, which requires risk-taking, innovation and, often, guesswork. In such situations, the ‘wall’ between media managers and senior editors is porous, as all executives must manage the relationship between business and editorial imperatives. Executives tend to overlook culture as a factor in changing organisations, but I argue that journalism could benefit from engaging with management theory and organisational psychology, which offer ways to understand the specific dynamics of the organisation. Finally, I argue that the case of the Sowetan throws into question the idea that there may be a broadly universal journalism culture. The attachment of Sowetan journalists to their particular values and practice suggests that forms of journalism evolve in certain contexts to diverge from the ‘professional’ Anglo-American modes. These ‘journalisms’ use similar terms – such as the ‘public interest’ – but operationalise them quite differently. The responsibility to the public is imagined in very different ways, but remains a significant attachment for journalists.

This study aims to draw on some of the ethical guidelines enshrined in the South African Press Code (SAPC 2007:10). This SAPC states that “the press shall be obliged to report news truthfully, accurately, fairly and in a balanced manner, without any intentional or negligent departure from the facts”. This insight is used in order to analyse the way in which the 2008 xenophobic attacks were reported in South Africa by the Sowetan and Daily Sun newspapers. Overall, the findings show that the two newspapers adhered to the South African Press Code (2007), and were ethical in their 2008 news reports. This specifically contradicts the dominant perception of most mainstream newspaper readers, who thought that, the Daily Sun is just a tabloid newspaper which “represents the lowest standard of journalism” (Wasserman 2012:1), because of its sensational crime and sex stories.
Communication Science
M.A. (Communication)

Thesis ((M. A. (Media Studies)) --University of Limpopo, 2018
This is a comparative study on the coverage of the consumption of nyaope in two South African tabloid newspapers, namely the Sowetan and the Daily Sun. The study examines how the tabloids understudy reported on the consumption of the street drug; nyaope, by determining the frequency and nature of news reports, assessing the quality of the news reports and comparing the news reporting styles adopted by both newspapers. The research report draws from media effects theoretical propositions, namely the agenda setting and framing theories. Detailed literature review on tabloids and coverage of illicit drugs particularly nyaope is discussed in this study. The study adopted quantitative-qualitative as the research approach through the use of descriptive design. In addition, data were collected through quantitative-qualitative content analysis. The study used the check list as a method of collecting data. Subsequently, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was adopted for the data analysis process. The study noted that the quality of any tabloid newspaper is centred on the manner in which it reports on societal issues like drug use and abuse, crime, health issues, politics, et cetera. The study results revealed that both tabloids’ frequency on the coverage of the consumption of nyaope was minimal as part of the requisite contribution towards combating drug use among young people. Furthermore, the study noted that the quality of news reports in both newspapers was truthful, accurate, fair, and balanced. The styles of news reporting indicated that the two newspapers made conscious efforts to avoid deliberate derogatory or discriminating references discriminatory towards nyaope users. In conclusion, the study examined the employment of mechanisms by the South African print media (tabloids) to ensure frequent, non-sensational, informed and detailed reporting, regarding issues on the consumption of illicit drugs particularly nyaope.

This study is an investigation of how the white English Language Press reported on black gangs in Soweto and their crimes during the 1940s and 1950s. The aim of this investigation is to increase our understanding of white English-speaking racial attitudes during the 1940s and the 1950s by investigating white perceptions of criminal gangs in Soweto during this time. To provide a yardstick, the study includes a discussion of our present state of knowledge on the topic as reflected in the secondary literature about gangsters and their crimes. During the 1940s black gangsters and their crimes were very seriously underreported compared to what we now know to have been the situation at that time. This suggests that English-speaking whites were not particularly interested in black gangsters and their crimes at this time. The reports that did appear reflected the attitude that unemployed blacks, whether they were part of gangs or not, had to be expelled from urban areas as they were all perceived to be gangsters. The headlines, reports and letters on black gang crime worked together to imply that blacks were criminals by nature. In the 1950s the level of reporting improved, as compared to the 1940s and reflected a much more serious concern about “Tsotsis”. The detailed descriptions of Tsotsis, their fashion and the language that they spoke reflect this concern. But the newspapers failed to indicate that not all young men who fitted their descriptions were Tsotsis. This omission strengthened white readers’ negative perception about young black men in general instead of distinguishing between criminals and other elements. Today, we know far more about black migrant and urban gangs and their crimes during this period from modern secondary sources than was reported in the white English Press at the time. This underreporting must have helped whites to remain ignorant of the real state of affairs in the black communities of the area. Both in the 1940s and 1950s the press concentrated on the harmful influence and criminal activities of gangs, which further strengthened the prevailing negative perceptions about young black men, who would all be perceived as “Thieving Blacks”.
Mr. GR Allen

Student Number : 9400560N - MA research report - School of Social Sciences - Faculty of Humanities
This research report critically analyses – through qualitative content analysis – how the Sowetan and the Mail&Guardian newspapers reported the alleged corruption in the arms deal in November 2001. The analysis includes a contextual discussion of factors shaping or influencing media coverage of important political topics in a transition to democracy. Theories of the role of the media in democratic transition inform the analysis of media coverage of the arms deal. ‘Transition’ in the context of this research report is used to refer to the process of South Africa’s ‘conversion’ from an undemocratic apartheid system based on unfair prejudices and practices grounded on class, race and gender to a ‘fair discrimination’ and application of remedial measures (political, social and economic) to correct the imbalances caused by apartheid policies. The research applies liberal pluralism, gatekeeping, public sphere, as well as Marxist-related media theories, including the critical political economy of the media approach and notes that it is not possible for a single approach to offer an absolute analysis of the role of the media in a transition to democracy. In addition, the research employs theories of news, language and society to show how social relations affect language used in news and ultimately affect notions of ‘bias’ and ‘objectivity’. The study observes that complete ‘objectivity’ as an ideal is unattainable, especially when one considers that news making processes are complex and influenced by diverse factors, some of which allow for anticipated processes of selection and inevitably, bias. This applies to the two publications under study. The report observes that through their reportage of alleged corruption in the arms deal during the month of November 2001, these newspapers attempted to open up, create and democratize the space for free inquiry. At the same time, however, it is noted that this space was dominated by certain voices and not representative of all civil society organizations and interests that had a stake in the arms deal. The report concludes that media should be encouraged to promote genuine diversity of voices. Diversity, within such a scheme, should be measured by equal and participatory dialogue from all the voices of all civil society institutions.