A study of professionalism and the professionalisation of journalists in Uganda from 1995 to 2008
- Authors: Mayiga, John Bosco
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Journalists -- Uganda Journalism -- Political aspects -- Uganda Mass media -- Political aspects -- Uganda Journalism -- Sociological aspects -- Uganda Journalism, Commercial -- Uganda
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3461 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002916
- Description: This study seeks to examine how Ugandan journalists’ and politicians’ views on journalism professionalisation in Uganda relate to the broad theoretical arguments about professionalism within sociology and media studies. It also seeks to examine how such views impact on the democratic role of the media. The study finds out that there are two sets of distinct ideas on journalism professionalisation. The idea espoused by politicians is statutory professionalisation in which the state plays a major role through regulation and control, hence professionalisation is seen primarily as a control system. On the other hand, journalists perceive professionalisation as nurtured by voluntarily and socially inculcated professional values, hence as a value system. The study however, finds that both sets of understandings have their own complexities. While the statutory approach has complexities like how core elements of professionalism such as professional values can be imposed through legislation, the voluntary approach to professionalism also exhibits tensions within, especially stemming from the relationship between the professional and the news organisation regarding what constitutes professionalism. The study concludes that both sets of ideas have implications for the democratic role of the media, with both perceptions of professionalism curtailing this role. Statutory professionalisation in the Ugandan political context where the state is the dominant institution brings media institutions within its control, which leads to suppression of content of democratic value through a number of means. On the other hand, the self-regulatory perception does not protect media professionalism from the assault of commercial imperatives, especially when fused with state patronage in regard to broadcasting licences and placement of advertising.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Mayiga, John Bosco
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Journalists -- Uganda Journalism -- Political aspects -- Uganda Mass media -- Political aspects -- Uganda Journalism -- Sociological aspects -- Uganda Journalism, Commercial -- Uganda
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3461 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002916
- Description: This study seeks to examine how Ugandan journalists’ and politicians’ views on journalism professionalisation in Uganda relate to the broad theoretical arguments about professionalism within sociology and media studies. It also seeks to examine how such views impact on the democratic role of the media. The study finds out that there are two sets of distinct ideas on journalism professionalisation. The idea espoused by politicians is statutory professionalisation in which the state plays a major role through regulation and control, hence professionalisation is seen primarily as a control system. On the other hand, journalists perceive professionalisation as nurtured by voluntarily and socially inculcated professional values, hence as a value system. The study however, finds that both sets of understandings have their own complexities. While the statutory approach has complexities like how core elements of professionalism such as professional values can be imposed through legislation, the voluntary approach to professionalism also exhibits tensions within, especially stemming from the relationship between the professional and the news organisation regarding what constitutes professionalism. The study concludes that both sets of ideas have implications for the democratic role of the media, with both perceptions of professionalism curtailing this role. Statutory professionalisation in the Ugandan political context where the state is the dominant institution brings media institutions within its control, which leads to suppression of content of democratic value through a number of means. On the other hand, the self-regulatory perception does not protect media professionalism from the assault of commercial imperatives, especially when fused with state patronage in regard to broadcasting licences and placement of advertising.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
Journalists' perceptions of their roles and identities with regard to the new partnership for Africa's development
- Kanyegirire, Andrew Steve Tumuhirwe
- Authors: Kanyegirire, Andrew Steve Tumuhirwe
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: New Partnership for Africa's Development Journalists -- Africa Journalism -- Africa Mass media -- Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3443 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002897
- Description: This qualitative study features in-depth interviews with selected continental African journalists and offers exploratory insights into how they perceive themselves in terms of their journalistic roles and/or sub-identities with regard to the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). The study also examines correlations between their perceptions and their news stories on NEPAD. Grounded in the libertarian and social responsibility theories of journalism, and reading these theories from the standpoint of Africa, this study posits the neutral, watchdog, social agenda and development journalism sub-identities to explain the respondents’ journalistic identifications. Hence, the study explores how the journalists respond to NEPAD’s (pan)-Africanist and development journalism interpellations. The study draws on postcolonial theoretical perspectives to address questions concerning African identity and the wider NEPAD/African context of research. Findings indicated that the journalists perceive a role for themselves as neutral-objectivist information disseminators as well as social agenda enactors that conscientise their readers about NEPAD. Thus, the journalists tend to implicitly portray a pluralistic understanding of their roles that enables them to balance the ideals of journalism against the development and Africanist aspirations of NEPAD. Although the journalists were found to uphold oppositional stances towards NEPAD, they do not question it from outside of its own neo-liberal discourse. In fact, they still represent themselves as aspiring to its Africanism and remaining sympathetic to its development plans. Overall, they exhibit multiple identifications, and yet they often tend to lean towards their neutral-objectivist journalistic sub-identity. Ultimately, they prioritise the dominant libertarian-professional model of journalism over and above NEPAD’s interpellations. The study also examined the journalists’ interpretations of what they do and the apparent translation of this into their stories. Although in both their stories and interviews discourse they showed a broader orientation towards libertarianism, the findings show that the link between the two is not straightforward.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Kanyegirire, Andrew Steve Tumuhirwe
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: New Partnership for Africa's Development Journalists -- Africa Journalism -- Africa Mass media -- Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Doctoral , PhD
- Identifier: vital:3443 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002897
- Description: This qualitative study features in-depth interviews with selected continental African journalists and offers exploratory insights into how they perceive themselves in terms of their journalistic roles and/or sub-identities with regard to the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). The study also examines correlations between their perceptions and their news stories on NEPAD. Grounded in the libertarian and social responsibility theories of journalism, and reading these theories from the standpoint of Africa, this study posits the neutral, watchdog, social agenda and development journalism sub-identities to explain the respondents’ journalistic identifications. Hence, the study explores how the journalists respond to NEPAD’s (pan)-Africanist and development journalism interpellations. The study draws on postcolonial theoretical perspectives to address questions concerning African identity and the wider NEPAD/African context of research. Findings indicated that the journalists perceive a role for themselves as neutral-objectivist information disseminators as well as social agenda enactors that conscientise their readers about NEPAD. Thus, the journalists tend to implicitly portray a pluralistic understanding of their roles that enables them to balance the ideals of journalism against the development and Africanist aspirations of NEPAD. Although the journalists were found to uphold oppositional stances towards NEPAD, they do not question it from outside of its own neo-liberal discourse. In fact, they still represent themselves as aspiring to its Africanism and remaining sympathetic to its development plans. Overall, they exhibit multiple identifications, and yet they often tend to lean towards their neutral-objectivist journalistic sub-identity. Ultimately, they prioritise the dominant libertarian-professional model of journalism over and above NEPAD’s interpellations. The study also examined the journalists’ interpretations of what they do and the apparent translation of this into their stories. Although in both their stories and interviews discourse they showed a broader orientation towards libertarianism, the findings show that the link between the two is not straightforward.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
The impact of the broadcast legislative reforms on the newsroom staff's perceptions of the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC)'s editorial operations and news content
- Authors: Hamasaka, Clayson
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation Public broadcasting -- Zambia Mass media -- Management -- Zambia Broadcasting -- Law and legislation -- Zambia Broadcasting -- Political aspects -- Zambia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3432 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002886
- Description: The 1980s and 1990s saw major changes in the political landscape of the media in many countries that were either reverting or emerging from repressive nondemocratic regimes. Among the notable changes in media industry was the opening up of the national airwaves, which had been a state monopoly, to private sector and community participation. The democratic dispensation also put state broadcasters in the spot-light regarding their editorial content which was previously ‘institutionalised’ as belonging to the ruling regimes. This study set out to investigate the extent to which broadcasting reform legislation meant to address the unfair coverage of contending voices on Zambia’s public broadcaster has had an impact in reversing the situation in the newsroom. Using qualitative methods of investigation, the study established that while the ZNBC staff understand aspects of their role in their newsroom in relation to the principles of public service broadcasting and in line with the enacted legislation, they perceive that, in practice, they have to ensure that the news content still remains a reserve of a few voices in favour of the ruling regime. This was evidenced by testimonies from the news staff’s complaints of continued editorial interference in their work by government leaders and government appointed gatekeepers, as well as selfcensorship. The study recommends, among other things, the full implementation of the recently enacted laws on the operations of ZNBC in order to achieve some minimum levels of being a public broadcaster. It further recommends a serious re-orientation of the ZNBC newsroom and management staff to the current legislative requirements so as to shift their mindset away from their traditionally-held views of thinking that news at that station is only for the ruling regime.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
- Authors: Hamasaka, Clayson
- Date: 2008
- Subjects: Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation Public broadcasting -- Zambia Mass media -- Management -- Zambia Broadcasting -- Law and legislation -- Zambia Broadcasting -- Political aspects -- Zambia
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:3432 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002886
- Description: The 1980s and 1990s saw major changes in the political landscape of the media in many countries that were either reverting or emerging from repressive nondemocratic regimes. Among the notable changes in media industry was the opening up of the national airwaves, which had been a state monopoly, to private sector and community participation. The democratic dispensation also put state broadcasters in the spot-light regarding their editorial content which was previously ‘institutionalised’ as belonging to the ruling regimes. This study set out to investigate the extent to which broadcasting reform legislation meant to address the unfair coverage of contending voices on Zambia’s public broadcaster has had an impact in reversing the situation in the newsroom. Using qualitative methods of investigation, the study established that while the ZNBC staff understand aspects of their role in their newsroom in relation to the principles of public service broadcasting and in line with the enacted legislation, they perceive that, in practice, they have to ensure that the news content still remains a reserve of a few voices in favour of the ruling regime. This was evidenced by testimonies from the news staff’s complaints of continued editorial interference in their work by government leaders and government appointed gatekeepers, as well as selfcensorship. The study recommends, among other things, the full implementation of the recently enacted laws on the operations of ZNBC in order to achieve some minimum levels of being a public broadcaster. It further recommends a serious re-orientation of the ZNBC newsroom and management staff to the current legislative requirements so as to shift their mindset away from their traditionally-held views of thinking that news at that station is only for the ruling regime.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2008
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