New Technologies and Print Journalism Practice in Zimbabwe: an Ethnographic Study
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New Technologies and Print Journalism Practice in Zimbabwe: An Ethnographic Study Hayes Mawindi Mabweazara Doctor ofPhilosophy School ofArts and Creative Industries Edinburgh Napier University, Scotland, United Kingdom June 2010 New Technologies and Print Journalism Practice in Zimbabwe: An Ethnographic Study Hayes Mawindi Mabweazara A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment ofthe requirements of Edinburgh Napier University, for the award of Doctor of Philosophy School ofArts and Creative Industries Edinburgh Napier University, Scotland, United Kingdom June 2010 ABSTRACT This study uses an ethnographic approach (participant observation in conjunction with in depth group and individual interviews) to closely examine how Zimbabwean print journalists in the state-controlled and private press deploy new K'Ts (the Internet; email; and the mobile phone) in their everyday professional practices. It explores how immediate conditions of practice and broader social circumstances set conditions for distinctive forms of new technology use, as well as how the technologies are impacting on traditional journalistic standards, values, and practices. The study rejects deterministic approaches to technology and argues that to understand the impact ofnew technologies on journalism practice in Africa, we must put journalists into a critical analytical context that takes into account contextual factors that coalesce to structure and constrain the uses ofthe technologies. To conceptualise the structuring impact of context and the degree of agency available to journalists in their deployment of new technologies, the study reinvigorates the sociology ofjournalism and social constructivist approaches to technology. The findings of the study offer insider perspectives of the practices and cultures around new technology use in the newsrooms and point to complex individual and socially patterned explanations of the appropriations ofthe technologies. While newsroom practices and cultures examined here broadly affirm early studies by showing: how new technologies impact on journalists' work routines; the news content they produce; the structure of their work environment; and their relationships with sources and readers, a closer analysis points to a number of contextual factors that collectively shape and constrain the uses of the technologies. These factors result in 'local context' appropriations that move beyond a simple substantiation of early studies. Thus, while the technologies offer journalists a wide range of resources and technological possibilities to work with, they also pose ethical and professional challenges. These and other findings highlight the deficiencies of deterministic or 'technicist' approaches to technology and their claims for a straightforward causal connection between technology and society. The study should thus be read as a challenge to the popular and utopian assumptions about the impact of new technologies on African journalism and as a dialogue with constructivist approaches that see technologies as inherently open to interpretive flexibility. ii For my parents Smart and Judith Mabweazara iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ii DEDICATION iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv ACKNOWLEGDEMENTS viii PUBLICATIONS AND CONFERENCE PAPERS .ix LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES xi CHAPTER 1: Introduction and background 1 1.0 Research questions and methodological approach 2 1.1 Research context and background 4 1.1.1 A briefoverview ofthe press in Zimbabwe and its adoption ofICTs 5 1.1.2 The Internet, email and mobile telephony in Zimbabwe 9 1.2 Significance and justification for the study 13 1.3 Thesis outline and structure 16 CHAPTER 2: 'New' ICTs in Africa: situating the study in emerging research 19 2.0 Introduction 19 2.1 Problematising the 'newness' ofICTs in Africa 20 2.1.1 The 'digital divide' 22 2.2 New ICTs and journalism in Africa 26 2.3 The promise ofnew ICTs for Africa: mixed opinions 30 2.4 Local context appropriations ofICTs in Africa 35 2.4.1 Mobile phone use and culture in Africa 39 2.5 Conclusion 43 CHAPTER 3: Theorising newswork: framing an approach to understanding the use of new ICTs by African journalists 44 3.0 Introduction 44 3.1 Towards non-reductionist approaches to new technologies .45 3.2 Theorising newswork: foregrounding the sociology ofjournalism 51 3.3 Michael Schudson's typology ofthe sociology ofjournalism 58 3.3.1 The social organisational approaches to news production 60 3.3.2 The cultural approaches to news production 63 3.3.3 The limitations ofthe sociology ofjournalism 66 3.4 Framing a critical sociological approach 68 3.5 Placing the approach in the African context.. 71 3.6 Conclusion 72 CHAPTER 4: Research methodology 74 4.0 Introduction 74 4.1 Researching new ICTs: some methodological issues and considerations 74 iv 4.2 Ethnography: an enduring research tradition in news production studies 79 4.3 Research design and procedure 81 4.3.1 The qualitative research tradition: some philosophical underpinnings 81 4.3.2 The case study strategy 84 4.4 Research techniques and sampling procedures 87 4.4.1 Participant observation 87 4.4.1.1 The gains ofmy insider-status 90 4.4.1.2 My role as an observer 94 4.4.1.3 Data collection and recording 95 4.4.2 Focus group interviews 99 4.4.2.1 Sampling and recruitment ofgroups 100 4.4.2.2 My role as moderator 102 4.4.3 Individual in-depth interviews 103 4.4.3.1 Sampling and interview procedure 104 4.4.4 Documentary sources 105 4.5 The rationale for triangulation 106 4.6 Data processing and analysis 109 4.7 Ethical considerations 110 4.8 Conclusion 112 CHAPTER 5: News production practices, cultures and the centrality of new technologies 113 5.0 Introduction 113 5.1 Everyday practices and routines 114 5.2 The gate-keeping processes 122 5.2.1 Editorial policies and proprietary demands 126 5.2.2 Source cultivation, selection and deployment 129 5.2.3 The 'beat' system and its entrenchment in politics 133 5.2.4 Politics, economy and the journalists' quest for economic survival.. 136 5.3 Conclusion 138 CHAPTER 6: Everyday uses of the Internet and email: patterns, trends and implications for the profession 141 6.0 Introduction 141 6.1 The appropriation ofthe Internet in newsroom practices 142 6.1.1 The Internet as an alternative source ofnews and story ideas 143 6.1.1.2 The selection criteria ofnews websites and content.. 146 6.1.2 The Internet as a research tool 148 6.2 Beat influences on the use ofthe Internet.. 150 6.2.1 Political reporting 152 6.2.1.1 The proliferation of 'vendetta journalism' in political reporting 154 6.2.2 Entertainment reporting 155 v 6.2.2.1 Entertainment reporting and social networking sites 156 6.2.3 Sports reporting 161 6.2.4 Business, health and court/crime reporting 163 6.3 The adoption ofinteractivity and user generated content.. 165 6.4 The impact ofthe Internet on practice and professionalism 171 6.4.1 The Internet and 'armchair' journalism 171 6.4.2 Plagiarism and the challenge ofverifying Internet content 173 6.4.3 The impact ofthe Internet on news access and sourcing routines 176 6.4.4 The Internet and 'moonlighting': some professional implications 178 6.5 Email as a journalistic tool: trends and patterns ofuse 181 6.5.1 Email as a tool for interviewing sources 182 6.5.2 Email news alerts, 1istservs and press releases 183 6.5.3 Email as a tool for interacting with readers 185 6.5.4 The significance ofemail as a newsmaking technology 186 6.5.5 Ambivalences and fears in the use of email as a newsmaking tool 188 6.6 Conclusion 191 CHAPTER 7: The mobile phone in the dynamics of everyday newswork: appropriations and impact 193 7.0 Introduction 193 7.1 The entrenchment ofthe mobile phone in journalists' everyday life 193 7.2 The expediency ofthe mobile phone in everyday newswork 196 7.2.1 Mobility and flexibility 196 7.2.2 The mobile phone as a 'source' ofnews and story ideas 20l 7.2.3 The private press's embrace ofthe SMS technology 205 7.3 Stretching the boundaries ofsocial time and space 208 7.4 Challenges and obstacles to the effective use ofthe mobile phone 211 7.4.1 Connectivity and censorship concerns 211 7.4.2 Prohibitive costs and limited company support " 214 7.5 Meeting the challenges, overcoming the obstacles 217 7.5.1 The 'single-owner-multiple-user' phenomenon 217 7.5.2 The multiple-ownership ofmobile phones 218 7.5.3 The use ofSMS text messaging and 'beeping' 219 7.5.4 Navigating censorship and snooping concerns 221 7.6 Generational tensions and the impact ofthe mobile phone 222 7.7 Conclusion 224 CHAPTER 8: Conclusions 226 8.0 Introduction 226 8.1 News production practices and the place ofnew technologies 227 8.2 New technologies in the dynamics ofeveryday production routines 229 8.3 Challenges and obstacles to the effective use ofnew technologies 231 8.4 Ethical and professional implications 232 vi 8.5 Summary ofthe main findings 234 8.6 Study weaknesses, strengths and scope for further research 236 APPENDICES 239 REFERENCES 244 vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis was completed thanks to the academic and personal generosity of a number of people. I particularly wish to thank Professor Chris Atton and Dr. Alistair Duff whose continued efforts on my behalf far exceeded what could fairly be expected of PhD supervisors. Thank you for allowing me to pick your brains and for always giving different perspectives to ideas I thought could never mutate. Special thanks are, likewise, due to Professor Alistair McCleery for his advice and experience. I am deeply grateful to journalists across the newsrooms studied for allowing me to interfere with their busy work schedules in my intellectual pursuits. I am equally indebted to staff at The Herald and The Zimbabwe Independent's editorial libraries for being enormously helpful in locating useful material in addition to providing space to write up notes and reflect on my observations.