Chuma, W, Wasserman, H, Bosch, T et al. (1 more author) (2017) Questioning the media-democracy link: South African’s journalists’ views. African Journalism Studies, 38 (1). ISSN 2374-3670
Abstract
ABSTRACT
It is often assumed that a robust, free and independent media will contribute to the deepening of democracy by keeping governments accountable and broadening citizen participation in deliberative democratic debates. But in new democracies such as South Africa, the deepening and broadening of democratic participation is often curtailed by challenges such as unequal access to the media, the orientation of mainstream media towards elite audiences and renewed attempts by sources of power to control the free flow of information. Despite the promise of a peaceful, equitable and democratic society after the end of apartheid, conflicts continue to erupt due to continued social polarisation, vast socio-economic inequalities and new struggles for power. In South Africa these conflicts include social protests on a daily basis, repeated outbreaks of xenophobic violence and disruptions to the parliamentary process. This paper probes the role of the media in these conflicts from the perspective of journalists who have reported on these issues. The paper explores ways in which journalists critically reflect on their abilities to perform the roles expected of them within a normative framework informed by the Habermasian ideal of deliberative democracy. The reasons they offer for not fulfilling these roles, and the conditions underpinning these failures, lead them to question the ability of the South African media to contribute to an emerging democracy.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2017 iMasa. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in African Jounalism Studies on 13 June 2018, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/23743670.2017.1292703 |
Keywords: | South Africa, journalists, media, democracy, xenophobic violence, service delivery protests, community protests |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures (Leeds) > School of Media & Communication (Leeds) > Media, Conflict and Democratisation (MeCoDEM) |
Depositing User: | MeCoDEM Admin |
Date Deposited: | 21 Mar 2018 16:20 |
Last Modified: | 13 Dec 2018 01:39 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Taylor & Francis |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/23743670.2017.1292703 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:128857 |