Academic literature on the topic 'Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC)'

This article reports on a study that assessed the organisational learning activities for the purposes of retaining critical knowledge in three Southern African Development Community (SADC) public broadcasting organisations. The article reports the partial findings of a doctoral study that focused on analysing the knowledge retention strategies in three public broadcasting corporations, namely, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), Department of Broadcasting Services (DBS) and Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC), in the SADC. The aim of the study was to establish how organisational learning strategy captured and retained knowledge in these public broadcasting corporations. A structured self-administered survey questionnaire was used to purposively sample 162 professionals and managers in the three organisations. The study concluded that through organisational learning the three public broadcasting organisations captured and retained knowledge but were limited by the lack of knowledge management officials. The study recommends the establishment of knowledge officers’ posts to manage the organisational knowledge and to implement sound mentorship programmes to assist learning in these organisations. While the Human Resources (HR) departments may be managing the training of individuals as a way of acquiring knowledge, the study further recommends that the management should provide HR with more funds to improve the learning culture that allows for innovation, continuous knowledge creation and transformation.

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The aim of this analytical study was to establish whether the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) operates as a true public broadcaster or as a state-controlled broadcaster. The performance of the ZBC was analysed through its main 8.00 pm television news bulletins broadcast during the period between the signing of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) by the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front, ZANU (PF) and the two Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) political parties in September 2008 and the establishment of the inclusive Government of National Unity (GNU) in February 2009. The study was undertaken from within the paradigms of the Social Responsibility Theory as this was deemed the most applicable in terms of the research subject. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were applied as part of a process of triangulation. The qualitative research method, as the main methodological approach, was applied to solicit views and opinions of participants by use of questionnaires designed to interview specific interviewees, namely the ZBC journalists and spokespersons for the various political parties now in the GNU. The journalists explained how they gathered and packaged news bulletins having to endure some government interference on a regular basis. The MDCs' spokespersons outlined how the ZBC denied them broadcast time for their rallies, press statements and participation in live debates. ZANU (PF) was of the view that the MDC parties only wanted to blame the previous ZANU (PF) government through “unsubstantiated” remarks about bias and the breakdown of the rule of law and absence of democracy and freedom of expression in the country. This, according to ZANU (PF), they did in order to please their alleged Western financiers like Britain and the United States who imposed targeted sanctions on the country. Through the analysis of political parties' accessibility to the main television news bulletins, the research confirmed the assumption that the ZBC is still biased in favour of the former sole ruling ZANU (PF) party which is also in charge of the information ministry in the GNU. The study concluded that since the ZBC, as a public-funded institution, was clearly not accessible to different political parties and civic society groups in order for them to participate in a crucial nation-building process, it failed to fulfil its expected mandate as a public broadcaster. By also negating a social responsibility role that calls for high professional conduct, fairness and objectivity expected of public broadcasters, this study showed that the ZBC was still a state-controlled broadcaster that needs to be reformed.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie analitiese studie was om vas te stel of die Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) as 'n ware openbare uitsaaier of as 'n staatsbeheerde uitsaaier funksioneer. Die werkverrigting van die ZBC is geanaliseer deur die 8 nm-TV-bulletin gedurende die periode tussen die ondertekening van die Global Political Agreement (GPA), deur die Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front, ZANU (PF) en die twee Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) politieke partye in September 2008 en die totstandkoming van die inklusiewe Government of National Unity (GNU) in Februarie 2009 te bestudeer. Beide kwalitatiewe en kwantitatiewe navorsingsmetodes is toegepas deur dit met die proses van triangulering te kombineer. Die kwalitatiewe navorsingsmetode, wat die hoof-metodologiese benadering is, is aangewend om perspektiewe en opinies van deelnemers te verkry, deur gebruik te maak van vraelyste wat ontwerp is vir spesifieke deelnemers, naamlik die ZBC joernaliste en woordvoerders van die verskillende politieke partye, tans in die GNU. Die joernaliste verduidelik hoe hulle met die inwin van nuus en samestelling van nuusbulletins inmenging van die staat op 'n gereelde basis moes verduur. Woordvoerders van die MDC het in breë trekke uiteengesit hoe die ZBC hul uitsaaityd geweier het vir hul byeenkomste, persverklarings en deelname aan regstreekse debatte. Die ZANU (PF)-deelnemers is van mening dat die MDC- partye net die vorige regering wou blameer deur "ongesubstansieerde‟ opmerkings te maak oor vooroordeel en die ontbinding van die oppergesag van die gereg, die afwesigheid van demokrasie en vryheid van spraak in die land. Dit sou hulle doen om hul beweerde Westerse finansiers, soos Brittanje en die Verenigde State, wat geteikende sanksies op die partyleierskap opgelê het, insluitende president Robert Mugabe, tevrede te stel. 'n Analise van die politieke partye se toegang tot die hooftelevisie-nuusbulletins bevestig die hipotese dat die ZBC steeds die vorige enkel regerende ZANU (PF)-party wat in beheer van die inligtingsministerie in die GNU is, bevoordeel. Die slotsom is dat, aangesien die ZBC, 'n openbaar-gefinansierde instansie, ontoeganklik vir verskillende politieke partye en burgerlike gemeenskapsgroepe is, hulle van deelname aan 'n belangrike nasiebouproses uitgesluit is. Daarmee faal die ZBC in sy veronderstelde mandaat van 'n ware openbare uitsaaier, asook sy sosiale verantwoordelikheidsrol, wat hoë professionele gedrag, regverdigheid en objektiwiteit van openbare uitsaaiers vereis. Die studie bewys die ZBC is steeds 'n staatsbeheerde uitsaaier wat hervorm moet word.

The study sets out to examine the television coverage of the 2002 presidential campaign in Zimbabwe by examining the extent to which the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation fulfilled the mandate of public service broadcasting. The primary objective of this study is to assess how ZBC television newscasts mediated pluralistic politics in the coverage of the country's presidential election campaign, in line with the normative public sphere principles. The thesis comprises seven chapters organized, first, with an introductory chapter, which provides the general background of the study. The chapter offers the rationale for the focus on TV rather than other media fomls . There are two theoretical and contextual chapters in which the use of both qualitative and quantitative methods is explained and findings are presented. Finally, the conclusion offers recommendations about the form broadcasting might take to fulfil a public service mandate and these include the strengthening of the public service broadcasting model along normative public sphere principles. The findings of the analysed election newscasts confirm that ZBC television election news was constructed in favour of ZANU PF at the expense of voices from other social and political constituencies.
KMBT_363
Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in

Cultural and educational functions of public service broadcasting come at a fortuitous time, as the changing environment of broadcasting is on various agendas. At the heart of this is the question of the present and future status of public service broadcasting. Major changes have taken place in the political economy of the media and the world economy at large, technological advancement has resulted in privatization and commercialization of the media. In most societies where these changes have taken place, public service broadcasting has been threatened by the rapid rise of commercial institutions, resulting in stiff competition for audiences. This study will examine the extent to which the adoption of the Commercialization Act (No 26) of 2001 in Zimbabwe has affected Radio Zimbabwe’s role as a public broadcaster. The study is based on the hypothesis that with the adoption of the Commercialization Act, Radio Zimbabwe is no longer playing its public service role effectively. The current nature of programming at Radio Zimbabwe as the research hopes to show will highlight tremendous changes towards a commercial logic. The study uses a combination of document analysis, secondary literature and qualitative interviews.

This study examines the mediation of multilingualism, localism and the nation in the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation, henceforth, ZBC as the local content and multilingual broadcasting policies subsumed in the Broadcasting Services Act (2001) and the Broadcasting Services Amendment Act (2007) respectively translated into radio and television programming. This purpose is pursued by analysing the language choices and practices on the ZBC radio and television stations and programming. This study is informed by an eclectic approach within the critical theory tradition and therefore it disapproves the domination, marginalisation and exclusion of the indigenous African languages in the ZBC as a public sphere. Against this backdrop, the study envisages the promotion of linguistic diversity and indigenous African languages in the ZBC broadcasting. Data for this study was gathered from the ZBC employees, academics and the ZBC audience using questionnaires, interviews, and focus group discussions. As the local content and multilingual broadcasting policies translated into ZBC programming, this study detected a hierarchical organisation of the languages spoken in Zimbabwe on the radio and television stations where English is the most dominant language, while Shona and Ndebele dominate the minority languages, Shona dominates Ndebele and the supremacy of the Zezuru dialect in the Shona language is easily felt. This is a confirmation of the fragility of Zimbabwean linguistic nationalism in the ZBC which is convoluted by the ideological and political nature of the media, electronic colonisation, the political economy of broadcasting, the transformation of the ZBC public sphere by the market and state interests, the influence of the global media firms, and the relentless hegemony of the western countries in the world system. This study established that broadcasting in indigenous African languages is obligatory if the informative, communicative and symbolic functions of the public service broadcasting are to be achieved. However, this study contends that it is remarkably insufficient for linguists to minimally identify, lament and deplore the marginalisation and exclusion of the indigenous African languages in the ZBC without taking into account the economic, political and technological factors which contribute to the marginalisation and exclusion of these languages in the ZBC broadcasting in the context of the local content and multilingual broadcasting policies. Therefore, this study implores scholars in the discipline of language studies to ameliorate their sophistication by espousing a multidisciplinary approach to the study of language if they are to make meaningful arguments which can influence meaningful language policy outcomes instead of parroting.
African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)