THE ‘REPORTER VOICE’ AND ‘OBJECTIVITY’ IN CROSS- LINGUISTIC REPORTING OF ‘CONTROVERSIAL’ NEWS IN ZIMBABWEAN NEWSPAPERS. AN APPRAISAL APPROACH BY COLLEN SABAO Dissertation presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Stellenbosch University SUPERVISOR: PROF MW VISSER MARCH 2013 Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ii DECLARATION By submitting this dissertation electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Date: 17 September 2012 Copyright © 2013 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za iii ABSTRACT The dissertation is a comparative analysis of the structural (generic/cognitive) and ideological properties of Zimbabwean news reports in English, Shona and Ndebele, focusing specifically on the examination of the proliferation of authorial attitudinal subjectivities in ‘controversial’ ‘hard news’ reports and the ‘objectivity’ ideal. The study, thus, compares the textuality of Zimbabwean printed news reports from the English newspapers (The Herald, Zimbabwe Independent and Newsday), the Shona newspaper (Kwayedza) and the Ndebele newspaper (Umthunywa) during the period from January 2010 to August 2012. The period represents an interesting epoch in the country’s political landscape. It is a period characterized by a power- sharing government, a political situation that has highly polarized the media and as such, media stances in relation to either of the two major parties to the unity government, the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) and the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T). Couched in the theoretical explications of Appraisal Theory, specifically the ‘reporter voice’ configuration, the study sought to investigate the proliferation of journalistic ideological subjectivities in ‘hard news’ reports – a genre of news reporting that is largely characterised by claims of ‘objectivity’ and/or ‘neutrality’ and dispassionate journalistic reporting positions. The study, also assuming the orbital structure model developed by Iedema, Feez and White (1994) and White (1997, 1998) in the analysis of ‘hard news’ report in English broadsheet reporting, furthermore sought to investigate whether the textuality and cognitive/rhetorical structure of ‘hard news’ reports in news reports from the three Zimbabwean language journalistic cultures are organised around the same structure. The corpus of news reports analysed in this study were examined for the proliferation of instances of observable authorial ideological positionings by focusing how the choices made in terms of lexical, lexicogrammatical and syntagmatic resources signal evaluative keys that betray authorial ideological subjectivities. The texts were, thus, subjected to close textual analyses in terms of generic structure and journalistic voices. The study shows that Zimbabwean news reports in English, Shona and Ndebele generally share the same structure as expressed by the orbital model, in which authorial subjective evaluations are curtailed through a variety of strategic impersonalisations – largely ‘attribution’. However, despite these similarities, significant differences were observed with regards to the textuality of news reports as well as the uses made of attributed materials. Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za iv OPSOMMING Die verhandeling behels ʼn vergelykende analise van die strukturele (generiese/kognitiewe) en ideologiese eienskappe van Zimbabwiese nuusberigte in Engels, Shona en Ndebele, wat veral op die ondersoek van die proliferasie van subjektiwiteite in die houdings van outeurs by ‘kontroversiële’ ‘hardenuusberigte’ en die ideaal van ‘objektiwiteit’ fokus. Die studie het dus die tekstualiteit van Zimbabwiese gedrukte nuusberigte uit die Engels koerante The Herald, Zimbabwe Independent en Newsday, die Shona-koerant Kwayedza en die Ndebele-koerant Umthunywa uit die tydperk Januarie 2010 tot Augustus 2012 vergelyk. Dié tydperk verteenwoordig ʼn interessante tydvak in die land se politieke landskap. Dit is ʼn tydperk gekenmerk deur ʼn magsdelende regering, ʼn politieke situasie wat die media tot ʼn groot mate gepolariseer het en as sodanig mediastandpunte in verband met enige van die twee belangrikste partye in die eenheidsregering, die Zimbabwe Africa National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU PF) en die Movement for Democratic Change (MDC-T). Uitgedruk in die teoretiese uiteensettings van teorie van waardebepaling, in die besonder die ‘stem van die verslaggewer’-konfigurasie, het die studie gepoog om die uitbreiding van joernalistieke ideologiese subjektiwiteite in ‘hardenuusberigte’ – ʼn beriggewingsgenre wat grootliks deur aansprake van ‘objektiwiteit’ en/of ‘neutraliteit’ en posisies van emosielose joernalistieke beriggewing gekenmerk word – te ondersoek. Die studie, wat ook die orbitale struktuur- model ontwikkel deur Iedema, Feez en White (1994) en White (1997, 1998) by die analise van ‘hardenuusberigte’ in Engelstalige breëbladberiggewing gebruik het, het verder daarna gestreef om ondersoek in te stel daarna of die tekstualiteit en kognitiewe/retoriese struktuur van ‘hardenuusberigte’ in drie joernalistieke kulture in Zimbabwe om dieselfde struktuur heen georganiseer is. Die korpus nuusberigte wat in hierdie studie ontleed is, is nagegaan vir die proliferasie van gevalle van waarneembare ideologiese posisionerings van die skrywers deur te fokus op hoe die keuses wat gemaak is ten opsigte van leksikale, leksiko-grammatikale en sintagmatiese hulpbronne bewys lewer van waardebepalende sleutels wat ideologiese subjektiwiteite van die outeurs verklap. Die tekste was dus onderworpe aan noukeurige tekstuele analises ten opsigte van generiese struktuur en joernalistieke stemme. Die studie het aangetoon dat Zimbabwiese nuusberigte in Engels, Shona en Ndebele in die reël dieselfde struktuur deel as wat deur die orbitale model uitgedruk word, waarin subjektiewe evaluerings deur die outeur beperk word deur ʼn verskeidenheid strategiese onpersoonlikhede – hoofsaaklik Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za v ‘toeskrywing’. Ondanks hierdie ooreenkomste is beduidende verskille waargeneem met betrekking tot die tekstualiteit van nuusberigte asook die gebruik wat van toegeskryfde materiaal gemaak word. Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I hereby, firstly, acknowledge the inspiration, advice, guidance, suggestions and criticisms, from my supervisor, Professor Marianna Visser, that this thesis has immensely benefited from. She has constantly challenged, encouraged, and guided me throughout this process, which, because of her support, has been incredibly rewarding. Secondly, I express deep gratitude to the Graduate School (Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences – University of Stellenbosch) for the funding/scholarship extended to me through the African Doctoral Academy (ADA), which has made this work see the light of day. I express profound gratitude to the Department of English and Communication of the Midlands State University, especially the Chair, Dr. T. D. Javangwe, for the opportunity to learn and for all the moral support (especially in circumventing the office bureaucracies). I also express, in this regard, gratitude to the following members from the department: Ernest Jakaza, Cuthbert Tagwirei and Hugh Mangeya. The following people also deserve special mention: My mother, Mrs. Joyce Sabao ‘Snr’, (who has always been a constant pillar of strength), all my siblings (Sam, Tafadzwa, Linda and Ashley, for the moral support), Samusha Muneri (for the constructive beer outings and the banter), my beloved uncles Mr Nicholas Masunga and Mr. Brian Muzemba. Professor Charles Pfukwa (for encouraging me kuenda kuschool) and Dr. William Zivenge (for the inspiration). Lastly, and most importantly, to two very important people to me: my daughter Bethel Joyce Takudzwa for all the patience and the love that inspires me to work and my ‘son’ Sibusiso (who always ‘hated’ Uncle Terry for ‘making fun of jokes’!). Finally, the best (and probably the only one!) of the best friends I will ever meet in this lifetime, Ms. Asante Lucy Mtenje (who was always the encouragement I always needed to take on this challenge through ‘the pushes’ and most of all, for making me believe in life and myself! I dearly miss you, dear ‘friend’! and always will) All errors, shortcomings and half-truths that lie herein in this thesis are entirely mine, and not in way of my supervisor(s) nor of any of the persons mentioned above. To Bethel, ukakwanisa kuronda matsimba angu ini baba vako, ungandipase manyemwe mwanangu! Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za vii DEDICATION This work is dedicated to the memory of all my heroes, my father David Sabao (31/05/51 – 15/12/07), you are all of them! …and to my two daughters: Bethel Joyce Takudzwa & Herschelle Coleen ‘Jnr’ Kuzivakwashe (24/03/09 – 11/04/09 …and to my ‘son’, Sibusiso Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za viii THE ANALYTICAL KEY USED IN THE APPRAISAL ANALYSIS OF DATA IN THIS STUDY1 KEY bold underlining = inscribed (explicit) negative attitude bold = implicit (implied) negative attitude italics underlined = inscribed positive