Elections and TV News in South Africa

Elections and TV News in South Africa

“Those interested in either political journalism or South African politics will find
this book a valuable read. It eloquently unpacks how the media constructed their
stories of South Africa’s first six post-apartheid elections. Importantly the book
also helps build our theoretical understanding of political journalism by critiquing
the journalistic practices it uncovers and by suggesting ways that political journal-
ism can be improved.”
                                   Professor P. Eric Louw, University of Queensland

“This book chronicles the television coverage of the birth and growth of South
African democracy. By contrasting local and international perspectives on one of
the most tumultuous and exciting periods in the country’s history, Jones asks
questions about how the global mediatization of politics has played out in this
young African democracy. Covering more than two decades of history in an engag-
ing and accessible way, the book will appeal to scholarly and general audiences
interested in the intersection of politics, media and visual discourse.”
                            Professor Herman Wasserman, University of Cape Town

“South Africa’s struggle for freedom was one of the defining events in modern
history. It was important not only for South Africans, but globally. In the eyes of
the world, its future was our future. South Africa was a beacon of hope that
democracy would always eventually triumph. We now live in a different world.
Almost 30 years on from the election that brought Nelson Mandela to power,
Bernadine Jones explores the legacy of that election, the interplay of politics and
the media, and the way the ‘foundation story’ of South Africa has been mytholo-
gised by the ANC. Incisive, and ofttimes chilling, it is a wake-up call for those who
hoped to see South Africa take its place as a role model for democracy in a world
where tyranny thrives, and where nations—once thought to be stalwarts of demo-
cratic politics—are falling prey to conspiracists and populists.”
                                                   Mr Tom Collins, OBE, Journalist

Bernadine Jones

 Elections and TV
News in South Africa
    Desperately Seeking Depth

Bernadine Jones
University of Stirling
Stirling, UK

ISBN 978-3-030-71791-9    ISBN 978-3-030-71792-6                             (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71792-6

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To ELJ

Timeline

                     Beginnings of the Union
1910—Formation of the Union of South Africa. The Union incorporated
former British colonies of the Cape and Natal and the Boer republics of
Transvaal and Orange Free State.
   1912—South African Native National Congress (SANNC), later
renamed African National Congress (ANC), founded by John Langalibalele
Dube in Bloemfontein on 8 January. SANNC was in direct response to
injustice against black people by those in power.
   1913—The Natives Land Act introduced to prevent black people,
except those living in the Cape Province, from buying land from white
people outside dedicated reserves. The Act was finally rescinded in 1991.
   1914—Afrikaner nationalists founded the National Party (NP) in
Bloemfontein after disagreement with Prime Minister Louis Botha. The
NP held Afrikaner ethnic protection at its heart and came to power in
coalition with the Labour Party in 1924.
   1915—De Nasionale Pers Beperkt (National Press Ltd., or Naspers)
founded as a publisher and printer of newspapers and magazines. Cape
lawyer and National Party organiser W.A. Hofmeyr launched Naspers and
published Die Burger newspaper in June.
   1918—Secret society, the Broederbond (literally “band of brothers” or
Brotherhood), established to advance the Afrikaner cause. It was originally
named Jong Zuid Afrika (“Young South Africa”) until 1920. All leaders of
the government and many prominent apartheid figures were members.
   1918—Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela born in Mvezo.

                                                                        vii

viii   TIMELINE

   1921—Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA; later renamed South
African Communist Party or SACP) formed by William H. Andrews.
   1923—Radio broadcasting began in the country with the support of
South African Railways.
   1923—J.L. Dube renames SANNC to the African National
Congress (ANC).
   1923—Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe born in Graaff-Reinet.
   1927—Radio services merged into the African Broadcasting Company,
owned by wealthy American businessman Isidore Williem Schlesinger.
   1928—Mangosuthu Buthelezi born in Mahlabathini.
   1934—Union of South Africa parliament enacts the Status of the
Union Act, which declares the country to be a sovereign and indepen-
dent state.
   1936—F.W. de Klerk born in Johannesburg.
   1936—Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela, otherwise known as
Winnie Mandela, born in Mbongweni, Pondoland (Eastern Cape).
   1936—Government founds the South African Broadcasting
Corporation (SABC), taking over the assets of the African Broadcasting
Company.
   1942—Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki born in Mbewuleni, eSigangeni.
   1942—Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma born in Nkandla.
   1942—Martin Thembisile Hani (also known as Chris Hani) born in
Cofimvaba, Transkei.
   1948—National Party wins the general election.

                                Apartheid
1948—Policy of apartheid (literally “aparthood” or “separateness”)
adopted.
    1950—Population classified by race (white, black, Coloured, and
Indian) as one of the first acts of apartheid legislation. It paved the way for
“grand apartheid” that separated races on a large scale. These racial clas-
sifications continue to be normalised in South African society today.
    1950—Group Areas Act passed to segregate blacks and whites.
Resulting destruction of mixed race and black areas included Sophiatown
in Johannesburg and District 6 in Cape Town.
    1950—The Communist Party of South Africa (CPSA) banned. ANC
starts a campaign of civil disobedience, led by Nelson Mandela.
    1951—Helen Zille born in Johannesburg.

TIMELINE    ix

   1952—Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa born in Soweto.
   1953—J. Arthur Rank Organisation petitions government to introduce
television into the country. Government dismisses the suggestion, arguing
television was a threat to the system of apartheid and Afrikaner ethic.
   1955—The Congress of the People, an event organised by the ANC,
formally adopted the Freedom Charter on 26 June. These core principles
are driven by the opening line, “The People Shall Govern”.
   1959—Pan African Congress (later, Pan African Congress of Azania)
launched at Orlando Community Hall in Soweto, in opposition to the
ANC’s non-racial Freedom Charter. Robert Sobukwe becomes
leader of PAC.
   1960—Residents in Sharpeville, Vereeniging, in conjunction with the
Pan African Congress, organise a protest against passbooks—the govern-
ment required all black people to carry passes to enter white areas.
Resulting police action led to at least 70 demonstrators killed and the
event labelled the “Sharpeville massacre”. Sobukwe was arrested and jailed
for three years. Anti-apartheid groups (including the PAC and ANC) sub-
sequently banned.
   1961—South Africa declared a republic, and officially leaves the
Commonwealth.
   1961—In the wake of the Sharpeville massacre, ANC launches its
armed wing, uMkhonto we Sizwe (“Spear of the Nation” or shortened to
MK), with Mandela as first commander. MK launches widespread sabo-
tage campaign with first attacks against government installations on 16
December 1961. United States and South African governments class MK
as a terrorist organisation, and Mandela remained on the terror watchlist
in America until 2008.
   1963–1964—Rivonia trials of 12 ANC members take place in
Johannesburg, charged under the 1962 Sabotage Act to violently over-
throw the government. Co-accused included Nelson Mandela, Denis
Goldberg, Ahmed Kathrada, Govan Mbeki (Thabo’s father), Walter
Sisulu, and Elias Motsoaledi.
   1964—Mandela sentenced to life imprisonment on Robben Island.
   1966—Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd assassinated by Dimitri
Tsafendas on 6 September at the House of Assembly in Cape Town.
Verwoerd was replaced by B.J. Foster in September.
   1967—Oliver Reginald Kaizana Tambo becomes acting president of
the ANC after Chief Albert Luthuli died in 1967. OR Tambo led the
ANC while in exile until 1990.

x   TIMELINE

   1971—Television finally allowed in the country but took five years to
roll out across the country.
   1976—Television introduced in South Africa. First television broadcast
(in Afrikaans) on 5 January.
   1976—Youth uprising in South West Township (Soweto) on 16 June.
Many young people killed by police and security forces, most shot in the
back. Official figures state 176 people died, but estimates are well over
600. Hector Pieterson is the second child to be killed, and the image
spreads around the world quickly.
   1978—PAC president Robert Sobukwe dies of lung cancer in Kimberly,
aged 53.
   1980—Mmusi Aloysias Maimane born in Krugersdorp.
   1981—Julius Sello Malema born in Seshego-B, Polokwane.
   1982—Two further television broadcast services introduced on the
SABC: TV2 and TV3.
   1983—MK bombs the Church Street Airforce Headquarters in
Pretoria, killing 19 and injuring 217. This was the start of a widespread
bombing, landmine, and torture campaign by MK throughout the 1980s.
   1984–1989—Government declares a State of Emergency in the coun-
try after widespread township revolts and bombing campaign. This era
became known as the “crisis years”.
   1986—Competing subscription-based service M-Net launched, backed
by the Naspers newspaper consortium. M-Net expanded the media envi-
ronment by broadcasting imported shows from the US and the UK.

                           Peace Process
1989—F.W. de Klerk replaces P.W. Botha as president. The young, prag-
matic, and verligte (enlightened) de Klerk realises the current form of
apartheid is a “cul-de-sac”. de Klerk meets Mandela, starting the process
of reconciliation. Many ANC activists are freed and public facilities
desegregated.
   1990—ANC unbanned. Mandela released from Victor Venter Prison
and the images are televised globally. The Pretoria Minute suspended
armed struggle of ANC and MK, bringing the state of emergency
to an end.
   1990—Tripartite Alliance (or “Revolutionary Alliance” or simply “The
Alliance”) formed between the ANC, Congress of South African Trade
Unions (COSATU), and the SACP.

TIMELINE    xi

   1991—Start of multi-party talks at CODESA I, the first plenary, to
conceptualise the new constitution for the country. National peace accord
signed on 14 September 1991.
   1992—Increased factional fighting between ANC and IFP members
leads to township battles. Boipatong massacre on 15 June where 45 resi-
dents were killed by Zulu hostel dwellers.
   1992—CODESA II, the second plenary, breaks down, as Mandela
withdraws from negotiations. He accused the government of being com-
plicit over the Boipatong massacre and instead recommended mass action.
   1992—ANC’s “rolling mass action” met with tragedy at the 7
September Bisho massacre of 29 people. The Ciskei homeland army
opened fire on protest marchers. A new urgency to find a settlement
spurred the government, ANC, and IFP to resume negotiations.
   1992—Joe Slovo, former leader of the SACP, secured a major break-
through in the negotiation process by presenting the “sunset clauses”. A
coalition government (ANC/NP/IFP) would lead the country for five
years following the elections, while existing (white) civil servants would
have guarantees of land, jobs, and security. Even today, the sunset clauses
are controversial, and many accuse the ANC of “selling out” their Freedom
Charter ideals.
   1993—South African Communist Party leader and Commander in
Chief of MK Chris Hani assassinated on 10 April by Janusz Waluś. His
assassination seen as a turning point in the country’s transition—Mandela
addresses the nation, speaking like a president, and the negotiation pro-
cess galvanises into action. The election date is decided for 27 April 1994.
   1993—AWB crashes a “Viper” armoured vehicle through the doors of
the World Trade Centre in Kempton Park on 25 June, where the negotia-
tions were being held. AWB members took control of the building briefly
but departed peacefully. White right-wing groups vehemently opposed the
negotiation process as they felt their interests were not being considered.
   1993—Agreement on interim constitution of the country occurred in
the early hours of 18 November.
   1994—Bophuthatswana crisis unfolds as splinter white nationalists
from the AWB invade the homeland on 11 March. High-profile killing of
AWB militants threaten to destabilise peace process. Images of the dying
AWB commanders, taken by Kevin Carter and Greg Marinovich, spread
globally and draw the news spotlight to Southern Africa.
   1994—Township battles, the bombing campaign by the white right,
and IFP attacks precluded the 1994 election. Upwards of 20,000 IFP

xii   TIMELINE

members stormed Shell House (ANC headquarters in Johannesburg) on
28 March where ANC officials opened fire, killing 19 people. Bomb
explodes in Bree Street, Johannesburg, on 25 April, killing nine people.
Bomb explodes at Jan Smuts International Airport on 28 April, killing
21 people.
   1994—First all-race elections in the country over three days in April.
ANC wins by landslide. Mandela becomes first democratic president and
leads the Government of National Unity between National Party, ANC,
and IFP.
   1994—Final sanctions on South Africa are lifted and the country
resumes its seat in UN General Assembly. Township battles calm and the
nation breathes a cautious sign of relief.
   1994—New designations for the provinces: Transvaal briefly becomes
the Pretoria-Witwatersrand-Vereeniging (PWV) before settling on
Gauteng. Natal becomes KwaZulu-Natal. Orange Free State becomes the
Free State. Cape of Good Hope becomes Western Cape. Bantustans, or
homelands, are amalgamated into the nine provinces, including Ciskei,
Bophuthatswana, QwaQwa, and Venda.
   1995—Joe Slovo dies of cancer and is buried in Avalon Cemetery, Soweto.

                    Truth and Reconciliation
1996—Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) with Archbishop
Desmond Tutu as chair begins hearings on human rights crimes commit-
ted by both government officials and liberation movements during
apartheid.
   1996—Government adopts new constitution on 8 May and is promul-
gated by President Mandela on 18 December.
   1996—National Party withdraws from Government of National Unity
on 9 May, leaving the ANC and IFP as sole members until the 1999 elec-
tion, when the GNU lapsed.
   1996—SABC reorganises its programming to three channels—SABC
1, 2, and 3.
   1998—TRC report brands apartheid a crime against humanity and
finds ANC accountable for human rights abuses.
   1998—Competing free-to-air television service e.tv launched, expand-
ing the free television news bouquet in South Africa.
   1998—The government procures weaponry and military aircraft to
modernise the defence force under the Strategic Defence Acquisition. It

TIMELINE      xiii

became known simply as the Arms Deal and was plagued by allegations of
corruption, implicating Jacob Zuma, Thabo Mbeki, politician Tony
Yengeni, and businessman Schabir Shaik. Patricia de Lille acted as whistle-
blower in 1999 with numerous bribery allegations.1
    1999—ANC wins second general elections. Thabo Mbeki becomes
second democratic president.
    1999—On 28 October, Mbeki gives speech to the National Council of
Provinces and questions whether the government should distribute anti-
retroviral (ARV) drugs to combat AIDS. The epidemic was exploding in
the country at the time.
    2001—ANC Today, an online newsletter, established to offset the
alleged mainstream media press against the ANC government.
    2001—Mbeki chairs the “Presidential Advisory Panel on AIDS” which
debated the significance of the HIV/AIDS link and the need for AIDS
testing in the country. Mbeki argues that alleviating poverty in the country
is more important than relying on expensive Western medicine. Mbeki’s
approval rating plummets and he acknowledges he caused “confusion” by
challenging the mainstream view of AIDS.
    2002—Bomb explodes in Soweto and Pretoria, thought to be the work
of right-wing extremists. Police also charge 17 right-wingers with plotting
against the state.
    2004—ANC wins third general election. Mbeki retains a second term
as president.
    2004—Government-approved ARV drugs to combat the spread of
AIDS begin to reach hospitals by April.
    2004—Deputy President Jacob Zuma becomes a key figure in the
Schabir Shaik corruption trial, related to the 1998 Arms Deal.
    2005—Pretoria, legislative capital of South Africa, is renamed Tshwane.
    2005—Mbeki sacks Zuma on 14 June due to the intense media specu-
lation of Zuma’s implication in the Shaik corruption trial. Zuma resigns as
a member of parliament.
    2005—Zuma is accused of raping 31-year-old HIV-positive “Kwezi”, a
family friend. During the trial, Zuma dismisses the risk of HIV/AIDS
because he “took a shower”. Political cartoonist Zapiro now frequently

  1
    See Andrew Feinstein’s After the Party (2007) for an account of the Arms Deal process
and impact.

xiv   TIMELINE

draws Zuma with a shower on his head because of this statement. Pro-
Zuma supporters gather at the High Court in December and condemn
the trial.

                                Zunami
2006—Zuma is acquitted of rape charges on 8 May. Throughout the trial,
Zuma and his supporters sing “Umshini Wami” (Bring me my machine
gun), a song associated with MK and the Struggle.
   2006—Arguments between AIDS activists and the AIDS denialist
ANC cabinet continue. Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang is
labelled “Dr Beetroot” after she advises herbal remedies (including beet-
root and garlic) to treat AIDS.
   2007—Helen Zille elected as new leader of the DA, the official opposi-
tion party.
   2007—The Directorate of Special Operations (also known as the
Scorpions) serve Zuma with an indictment to stand trial in the High Court
on 28 December. He faces charges of racketeering, money laundering,
corruption, and fraud. If convicted, Zuma would be ineligible to run for
presidency. Zuma appeared in court on 4 August 2008.
   2008—Mbeki’s government was responsible for about 343,000 pre-
ventable AIDS-related deaths, according to two studies.
   2008—eNCA news channel launched on 1 June. The channel became
South Africa’s first rolling news service and broadcast 24 hours a day on
the DSTV service, with scheduled news on the e.tv channel.
   2008—Xenophobic riots sweep the nation as dozens of foreign African
nationals die in township battles. Of the 68 people killed in the riots, 21
were South African nationals.
   2008—Zuma is accused of fresh corruption charges on 4 August, but a
judge dismisses the case on 12 September, declaring the charges unlawful
on procedural grounds. Zuma starts campaigning for presidency.
   2008—Mbeki is recalled from the presidency over allegations he was
involved in the Zuma corruption case. He steps down on 25 September,
and Kgalema Motlanthe is inaugurated as interim president.
   2009—Congress of the People (COPE) launched by Mosiuoa Lekota,
Mbhazima Shilowa, and Mluleki George, and campaigns for the fourth
democratic elections.
   2009—Zuma corruption trial resumes briefly in January but is dropped
on 6 April, days before the election. Supporters celebrate by wearing
T-shirts emblazoned with Zuma’s face with the caption “100% Zulu Boy”.

TIMELINE   xv

   2009—South African economy slides into recession for the first time in
17 years as a result of the Great Recession of the late 2000s.
   2009—ANC wins the election and Zuma is elected as third democratic
president in the fourth general election on 22 April.
   2010—Artist Brett Murray paints The Spear, a depiction of Jacob Zuma
in the style of Lenin, but with his genitals exposed. The painting provoked
intense debate on the freedom of expression, and the ANC triggered a
defamation lawsuit against Murray in 2012.
   2010—South Africa successfully hosts the FIFA World Cup tourna-
ment amidst nation-wide strikes.

                       Splitting of the Rock
2011—Zuma sacks two ministers accused of corruption. ANC suspends
its controversial and influential youth leader, Julius Malema.
    2012—Mineworkers at the Marikana platinum mine Lonmin conduct
a wildcat strike and down tools. Between 10 and 16 August, 78 people die
including both police and miners. Prosecutors eventually drop murder
charges against 270 miners after public outcry.
    2012—Malema visits Marikana in support of the miners’ strike and
called for Zuma to resign.
    2013—Malema launches the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) on 26
July in Soweto. Malema is then charged with money laundering but says
this is politically motivated to silence his campaign.
    2013—Nelson Mandela dies at the age of 95 after a long illness.
    2013—Anti-Corruption ombudsman criticises Zuma for R246mil
upgrades to his private home in Nkandla using mostly public funds.
    2014—ANC wins majority in fifth general elections. Zuma retains the
presidency.
    2014—Oscar Pistorius, the “Blade Runner”, kills his girlfriend and is
sentenced to five years in jail. The trial draws heavy media coverage
globally.
    2015—Zuma announces plan to ban foreign farmland-ownership in an
attempt to redistribute land to black farmers. This was a key ANC mani-
festo from the Freedom Charter.
    2015—Power utility Eskom rations electricity to prevent power cuts in
a rolling nation-wide system of “load shedding” that continues for years.
Eskom blames poor maintenance for the crumbling system.

xvi   TIMELINE

    2015—On its centenary, Naspers CEO Esmaré Weideman apologised
for the company’s role in supporting apartheid.
    2016—Supreme Court rules Zuma violated constitution for using pub-
lic money to improve Nkandla. Zuma is ordered to “pay back the money”,
echoing a call from the EFF.
    2016—Weeks before the local elections take place, SABC COO Hlaudi
Motsoeneng bans news of protests where property is damaged, leading to
criticism from South African and international press freedom watchdogs.
    2017—Zuma dismisses popular Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, an
act that pushes the country’s credit rating cut to junk status.

                            The New Dawn
2018—Zuma resigns from the ANC and government presidency after
pressure from corruption charges. Cyril Ramaphosa is elected as successor
to ANC leadership.
   2018—Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, second wife of Nelson Mandela,
dies on 2 April.
   2019—ANC wins the general elections with the lowest majority since
1994. Ramaphosa becomes the country’s fourth president in the sixth
general election.
   2020—The coronavirus pandemic damages the ANC’s “course correc-
tion” agenda as millions are thrust further into poverty and lose their jobs.
The country enters into a harsh “lockdown” period before many other
nations on 23 March.
   2020–2021—Denis Goldberg and George Bizos, lawyers and political
activists during the Rivonia Trials, both die. Zindzi Mandela, daughter of
Nelson Mandela, Lungile Tom, promiment eNCA journalist, Mluleki
George, former COPE leader, Jackson Mthembu, Minister of the
Presidency, andKing Goodwill Zweluthini, King of the Zulu nation, die
with COVID-19.

Preface

We are living in a complicated and complex time, saturated by screens and
news media, navigating post-truth politics and living in a (post) pandemic
world. There is also a so-called ‘crisis’ in global political journalism, arising
from mediatised reporting that is more flashy than informative and news
media that has been captured by business interests. Our reliance on visual
news is at an all-time high, be that through traditional television broad-
casts or video on demand via YouTube or legacy news websites. Yet, if we
are to flourish as a society, one that can adequately see itself represented in
mainstream news, then we must take more care over these crafted and cre-
ated news narratives. Taking visual news seriously is a step in the right
direction. And it is in this imbroglio that Desperately Seeking Depth appears.
    This book reflects on six South African general elections, from 1994 to
2019, and considers both the journalistic representation of the elections
and the shifting professional practice of reporting over the years. But why
focus on South Africa and why elections? The political journalism crisis is
felt astutely all over the world. And yet so much of our understanding of
the practice comes from the North and the West, and few scholars dedi-
cate extensive time to African representations of Africa. Indeed, Achille
Mbembe once wrote that we know virtually nothing about what African
societies comprise but very much about what they lack. There is still much
to be said about the quality and content of actual news media, aside from
the structural and policy analysis. So, while election coverage is a popular
field of analysis, the scholarship on South African election reporting often
starts from a “top down” approach – political science first, and media
studies at the very end if it gets mentioned at all. In this book, election

                                                                             xvii

xviii   Preface

reporting is considered through both the practice of that news reporting
(context) as well as the news representation itself (content). Media has a
growing and valuable role in the political process, and it is the struggle
over political meaning that is now at stake, rather than a gauge of political
participation through vote-catch events. This book is as much a descrip-
tion and analysis of news media in post-apartheid South Africa as it is a
reflection on symbolic representation during elections.
   This book originated from my PhD studies, completed in 2018 at the
University of Cape Town during a particularly intense period of student
and community protest action. Researching and writing the treatise dur-
ing the vigorous and emphatic dissent from students and workers became
a merciless task, because I simply could not detach my thoughts of the
decolonial movement occurring outside my door with the content of the
news and politics that covered the protests, and which I then analysed for
my PhD. The gap between my doctoral capping and the publishing of this
book allowed for some space between action and reflection, meant that
other researchers were able to objectively analyse the experiences I had
lived through, and during which time another general election had passed.
As such, this book uses the original thesis from my PhD, but expands
upon it greatly as I have had time and space to reflect and re-analyse much
of the broadcast data. The book therefore does not read as a theoretical
treatise as one might expect for a PhD, and I have left much of my emo-
tional connection to South Africa and its democracy within the pages. I
am and have always been proudly South African, and I realised while writ-
ing up this manuscript in Scotland, a world away from the Hoerikwaggo in
Cape Town, that detaching emotion from experience and analysis results
in an indifferent account, an aloofness where familiarity is required.
Writing chapters 3, 6, and 8 were particularly poignant due to the close-
ness of my own experiences with the news broadcasts I analysed.
   My PhD conducted a deep multimodal analysis of the broadcasts, but
this book is more of a historical overview of the elections, of democracy in
the country, and of the media landscape. I noticed that much of the pre-
ceding literature about South African elections and democracy was discon-
nected between these two – books tend to either be an historical overview
and political in nature or discuss media coverage of a single election. It is
the aim of this book to draw these two things together with an historical
overview in the first part and an analysis of media representation in the
second part. This book attempts to provide the field with a comprehensive
overview of South African news media, the television news coverage of its

Preface    xix

elections, and a critique of the mediatised political journalism that plagues
the practice. By creating a dedicated analysis of television news coverage of
South African elections, this book describes and critiques news coverage
across six election years. At its heart, this book argues for an approach that
revisits the fundamental tenets of journalism to revolutionise the represen-
tation of South Africa on visual news.
   Ultimately, this book shows how the visual representation of the elec-
tions on television news kept viewers apart from South African politics,
inserting levels of detachment via camera proxemics, evaluative voices, and
mediatised news frames. Desperately Seeking Depth takes television news
and visual rhetoric seriously, and adds new knowledge about what African
societies comprise, rather than what they lack.

Acknowledgements

What respectable body of work would be complete without expressing
one’s gratitude to those who have helped carry the author—mind, soul,
and sometimes body—through the wilderness of research? It stands to
reason then that I convey my utmost appreciation for my two PhD super-
visors, Drs Martha Evans and Wallace Chuma, for guiding me along the
path to this book with infinite patience, wisdom, and maddening attention
to detail. Despite being halfway across the world and enduring difficult
and uncertain times, they never failed to give consistently excellent feed-
back and support on the original form of this research. My mentor at
Stirling University, Tom Collins, is a constant source of inspiration and
kindly gave his time and care to help develop numerous chapters of
this book.
   Without the financial, academic, and moral support of the Next
Generation Social Sciences in Africa team from the Social Science Research
Council, this book and the study upon which it is based would not have
been possible. The two NextGen Fellowships granted me the time and
space to focus on writing the original study. My mentors and colleagues at
the Centre for Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town
have stood behind me throughout this project and provided funding for
the exorbitantly priced broadcasts. Vital funding from the South African
National Research Foundation (NRF) enabled this study’s depth and
original research. Without this generous grant, I would not have been able
to continue with this project, or afford the expensive broadcast data that
made up my sample. Speaking of archives, a special thank you goes to Sias
Scott and Duma-Sandile Mboni at the SABC Archives and Carmen

                                                                        xxi

xxii   ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Whitcher at the eTV Archives. Their consistent hard work and helpfulness
made a long and difficult task that much easier, and I want to acknowledge
their capabilities in what is often a thankless yet important role at these
two South African broadcasters.
    Parental support is not always a given during authorship, and I am
lucky to have parents who motivate, support, and encourage me in every
step that I take in my career. I am eternally obliged to my father, Arthur,
for his undying love and support throughout my degree, career, and my
life. Without his advice and encouragement, I would be a lesser person
than I am today. My mother, Madeleine, has been a constant source of
support, including proofreading endless samples, and keeps the light in
me burning even on the bleakest of days.
    To my soul mate, best friend, eternal optimist, and husband, Emlyn.
For all those times you had to listen to my jumbled up thoughts and yet
somehow managed to slowly drag them out into a solid, sequential line;
for having to speak via Facebook Messenger for hours on end because I
needed isolation; for letting me fall asleep on you during exciting movies;
for taking me on long walks when all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball.
For joining me on this path and always seeing the light in this world; for
supporting me emotionally, financially, physically, and mentally, without
reservation, for many years. For all of these things, and countless others
that you do for me and with me, I dedicate this book to you.

Contents

Part I The Story of South Africa   1

1	Contextualising Election Reporting  3
    Introduction   3
    Aims   6
    Concepts in Reporting Elections   7
       Lack of Media Studies in Studies About Elections   7
       The Hype-Ocracy   9
       Framing and the Game Frame  10
       Mediatisation  11
    Reporting (South) African Elections  12
       Local Media Coverage  13
       International Media Coverage  14
    Who Studies South African Elections?  16
       But Why Television News?  16
    Research Methods  18
       Sample  18
       Characteristics of the Multimodal Instrument  19
       Juxtaposition  20
       Analysis  20
    Structure of the Book  21
    References  23

                                                        xxiii

xxiv   CONTENTS

2	Political Parties Over 25 Years 29
    How Democracy Works in South Africa  29
    Political Parties Over the Years  30
       National Party/NNP  30
       Democratic Party/Alliance  31
       African National Congress  33
       Inkatha Freedom Party  35
       Economic Freedom Fighters  37
       Congress of the People  38
       AGANG  39
       White Right/Black Left  39
    Election Results, 1994–2019  40
    References  43

3	Story of South Africa’s Democracy, 1994–2019 45
    Introduction  45
    1994: Getting to This Point  47
       It Would Have Been a Miracle  48
       Qunu Cattle Herder to Freedom Fighter  49
    1994–1999: The Rainbow Nation  50
       The Outgoing King  51
       Problems in Paradise  52
    1999–2004: African Pride, Renaissance  53
       Deputy President to Favourite Son  54
       The Dissipating Froth of the Miracle  55
       The Beguiling Academic with Rural Beginnings  56
       African Renaissance  57
       Loyalty Above All Else  58
       Profile of the Electorate  59
    2004–2009: Ousting of a Would-be King  59
       Polokwane 2007  60
       A Push Towards Populism  61
       Broedertwis  62
       Splitting of the Rock  63
    2009–2014: 100% Zulu Boy  63
       Zuma’s Damoclean Issues  65
       Marikana  66
       Changing Electorate  67
       ANC on the Defence  68

CONTENTS   xxv

  2014–2019: Pin Pricks of Light in a Tunnel  69
    The Wheels Are Coming Off the Vehicle of Our State  69
    Rise of the ANC Party-State  70
    The Iron Grip of Umshini Wami: State Capture  71
    RET and White Monopoly Capital  72
    GuptaGate and GuptaLeaks  73
    Polokwane 2017: By a Whisker  76
    A Mask for the Elections  77
  Ending the Illusions  78
  References  80

4	South Africa’s TV News Landscape 83
    Introduction  83
    SABC: Views, Not News  85
       That Evil Black Box  86
       Shake Up and Shake Down  88
       The Long Walk to Transformation  90
       Power Struggles and the Parallel Road  91
       An Ugly Monster  92
    MultiChoice: A Global Empire  95
       DSTV: Shaping Mass Culture on the Continent  96
       Plurality of News Choice  97
    Diversification and Digitalisation  98
       24-Hour Rolling News  99
       GroundUp Grassroots News 100
       Gupta News 101
    Journalism in South Africa 101
       Newsroom Challenges 101
       Top-Down and View of the Suburbs 102
       Trust in Journalism 103
       Freedom of the Media and Expression 104
    Deteriorating Relationship 105
    References 106

xxvi   CONTENTS

Part II South African Elections on Television News 109

5	News Values and Frames of Elections111
    Introduction 111
    Political Journalism 112
       Post-Cold War News Values 114
       Media Logic and Mediatisation 116
    Reporting (South) Africa 118
       The Rhetoric of Empire 119
       Binaries and Stereotypes 121
       Entangled Narratives 123
    (South) African Reporting 125
       Partisanship 125
       “Universal” and “African” Professional Ideals 128
    Listening to the Ground 129
    References 130

6	The ANC Has No Clothes133
    Introduction 133
    The Liberation Narrative 134
       Under Apartheid Skies 134
       Post-Apartheid Struggle with the Free Press 136
       The ANC’s Liberation Narrative 137
       The Liberation Narrative and Elections 138
       Liberation Movements Tend to Age Disgracefully 140
    Journalists Emulate ANC Hegemony 141
       Sole Liberator 142
       The “Mandela Effect” 143
       Protests and Dissent Against the Government 146
    Implications 149
    References 152

7	Power and Populism155
    Introduction 155
    Representing People: The South African Electorate 157
       Early Depictions of Rural People 158
       Black Hopes and White Fears 160
       The IFP’s Frightening War Band in 1994 162
       The “Hands Up” Signification 164

CONTENTS   xxvii

    ANC Fealty from 2009 165
    The Red Tide of the EFF in 2014 167
    The Blindly Loyal and Confusing Electorate 168
    Born Frees and the Youth 170
    Disengaging with Realities 174
  Representing Politics: Leaders and Speakers 175
    The Jacob Zuma Show 176
    Offer and Demand 177
    Removing Mbeki 178
    South African Perspective: Mbeki Is Popular 179
    The 20-Year Mark 181
    Voicing Politicians in a Lip Flap 182
    Non-mainstream News Does the Heavy Lifting 183
  Talking Without Listening 184
    Political Drop-off 185
    Descriptive, Rather than Seeking the “why” 187
  The Challenge to Do Better 187
    Methods Change Meanings 189
  References 189

8	Visuals and Violence193
    Introduction 193
    Violence 195
       Election Violence Bookended the 1994 Election 196
       Peace Journalism or Simply a Lack of Violence? 198
       Protest Action Reduced to Neoliberal Values 200
       When Journalists Listen to Citizens 202
       Neoliberal Values Undermine Contextualisation 204
       Understanding the Protests 205
    Control of Violence 206
       Controlling the Edge of Democracy 206
       A “Subjective Angle” of South African Police 208
       Security in Maintenance Mode: 2014 and 2019 209
    Distance and Hesitation 210
       At Arm’s Length 210
       South African Hesitation 211
       The Lack of Listening 212
    References 212

xxviii   Contents

Part III Conclusion 215

9	Desperately Seeking Depth217
    Neoliberal Values and Mediatisation 218
       So, What Is a Journalist to Do? 219
    Mediatised Political Journalism 220
    Local and International Reporting 221
       Local Political Journalism 221
       International Political Journalism 223
    Voicing the Populous 225
       Top-Down Organisation of the Media 226
       The Lack of Listening 227
    Suggestions for Improving Practice 228
       Characteristics of Constructive Journalism 228
    Conclusion 234
    References 235

Index239

About the Author

Bernadine Jones is Lecturer in Journalism at the University of Stirling,
Scotland. She was the Next Generation in Social Science Fellow at the
University of Cape Town where she completed her PhD, and has written
on visual analysis methodology, African representation in news, and politi-
cal journalism during elections. She voted in her first South African gen-
eral election in 2009 in Rondebosch, Cape Town. Jones lives in Stirling,
Scotland, with her husband. She is proudly South African.

                                                                       xxix

Abbreviations

ACDP     African Christian Democratic Party
AMCU     Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union
ANC      African National Congress
AVF      Afrikaner Volksfront
AWB      Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
AZAPO    Azanian People’s Organisation
CODESA   Convention for a Democratic South Africa
COPE     Congress of the People
COSATU   Congress of South African Trade Unions
CP       Conservative Party
DA       Democratic Alliance
DP       Democratic Party, see DA
DSTV     Digital Satellite Television
EFF      Economic Freedom Fighters
FF       Freedom Front
FF+      Freedom Front Plus
GEAR     Growth, Employment, and Redistribution
GNU      Government of National Unity
IEC      Independent Electoral Commission
IFP      Inkatha Freedom Party
IM       Independent Media Commission
MK       uMkhonto we Sizwe
MMA      Media Monitoring Africa
NA       National Action
NEC      National Executive Council (of the ANC)
NNP      New National Party
NP       National Party

                                                             xxxi

xxxii   ABBREVIATIONS

NPA          National Prosecuting Agency
NROC         National Results Operations Centre
NUM          National Union of Mineworkers
PAC          Pan African Congress
RDP          Reconstruction and Development Programme
SABC         South African Broadcast Corporation
SACP         South African Communist Party
SAPS         South African Police Service
SANDF        South African National Defence Force
TRC          Truth and Reconciliation Committee
UDM          United Democratic Movement
UNOMSA       United National Observation Mission in South Africa