Summary COM4809 Portfolio Exam_2021 Lockdown new updated

1. INTRODUCTION In any democratic nation, the role of the media is always emphasized as paramount (Jacobs 2002: 280). The media are thus facilitating the process of national building; they are therefore not only reflectors of the realm of society or transmitters of information but are also seen as contributors to the well-being of the nation at large (Steenveld 2004: 92). Given its impact on society, how the media operates becomes an issue of importance. Media policy deals with both the internal and external factors that weigh in on how the media conducts its day to day operations (Fourie 2009). In any democratic nation, the role of the media is always emphasized as paramount (Jacobs 2002: 280). The media are thus facilitating the process of national building; they are therefore not only reflectors of the realm of society or transmitters of information but are also seen as contributors to the well-being of the nation at large (Steenveld 2004: 92). Given its impact on society, how the media operates becomes an issue of importance. Media policy deals with both the internal and external factors that weigh in on how the media conducts its day to day operations (Fourie 2009). The study explores the various code of ethics and conduct (for both print and broadcast) that South African journalists use when reporting on violence against women and children. The research sent the questionnaire to various journalists and analysed their responses. 1.1. CONTEXTUALISATION OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM South Africa has one of the highest number of cases of violence against women and children, forty percent of men have beaten their partners and one in four men have admitted to committed a sexual crime (Leburu and Phetlho-Thekisho 2015: 399). Given the intensity of violence in South Africa, how it is reported in South African media is very important. Violence on its own is on issue South Africa struggles with, many blame the history of the country that left many in poverty and desperate for a decent livelihood. It is no secret that when South Africans are faced with a situation that is untenable to them, they most of the time resort to violent protest. The main purpose of this study is to look at violence against women and children. Whilst the South African media has over the years reported on violence against women and children, is there a deliberate and proactive approach by both the Press Council of South Africa (PCSA) and the Broadcasters Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA) to ensure that this reportage minimises harm, whilst being in line with the South African laws around violence against women and children. Carter (1998: 223) argues that journalists cannot report on each and every story and have developed a ‘hierarchy of crimes’, with the murder being at the top of the list. Carter (1998: 223) further argues that this hierarchy is also influenced by the fact that the decision makers in media outlets are still predominately male. This also has an influence on how violence against women and children is reported on. All of this becomes important when trying to analyse the code of ethics and code of conducts used by journalists when reporting on violence against women and children. Both the code of ethics and code of conduct for South African Print and Online Media (also known as the “Press Code”) and the BCCSA Code of Conduct are catalyst to what journalists that subscribe to these 8 codes deem as best practice in the profession. This study will not look at the adequacy or debates around the self-regulation mechanism. 1.2. RESEARCH PROBLEM The study explores both the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct as a tool journalists use when reporting on violence against women and children- a cross- sectional quantitative survey. This study is done primarily for the completion of the course titled: Advance Research Report (COM 4809), at the University of South Africa. 1.3. SUB-PROBLEMS OR SUB-ISSUES • Does the Press Code have a detailed section on reporting on violence against women and children? • Does the Broadcasters Code of Conduct have a detailed section on reporting on violence against women and children? • Is the Press Code and the Broadcasters Code of Conduct in line with the Sexual Offences Act, the Criminal Procedure Act, the Children Act and the Domestic Violence Act? • Do Journalists understand the current sections (in relation to violence against women and children) in both the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct? 1.4. ASSUMPTIONS • The Press Code does not have a detailed section on reporting on violence against women and children? • The Broadcasters Code of Conduct does not have a detailed section on reporting on violence against women and children? • Both the Press Code and the Broadcasters Code of Conduct are not aligned with the Sexual Offences Act, the Criminal Procedure Act, the Children Act and the Domestic Violence Act? • Some Journalists do not understand the current sections (in relation to violence against women and children) in both the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct? 1.5. RESEARCH QUESTIONS • Are journalists aware of any sections in the Press Code or the BCCSA Code of Conduct that guide them on how to report on issues around violence against women and children? • Do journalists receive any training on how to report on issues around violence against women and children, that is in line with sections (or lack of) with the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct? • How is the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct aligned to some of the following laws; Sexual Offenses Act, Criminal Procedure Act, Children Act and the Domestic Violence Act? • Do Journalists think that the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct should have a uniform detailed section on how to report on violence against women and children? 1.6. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The study explores both the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct as a tool journalists use when reporting on violence against women and children- a cross- sectional quantitative survey.9 This study is done primarily for the completion of the course titled: Advance Research Report (COM 4809), at the University of South Africa. It will be completed on the 7th of January 2018 and will be conducted from the 1st to the 30th of August 2018. 1.6.1. AIMS OF THE RESEARCH The main aim of this research is applied research. Applied research “investigates practical issues, often to find solution for problems that can be applied in practice… it is undertaken to… evaluate current practices…” (Du Plooy 2009: 50). This research aims to evaluate current practices in the newsroom in order to understand whether or not the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct have adequate guidelines on reporting on violence against women and children and whether these guidelines are in line with South African laws such as; the Children’s Act, the Sexual Offenses Act, the Criminal Procedure Act and the Domestic Violence Act. The research also aims to test the waters to see if journalists are in support of a uniform guidelines for print, online and broadcast on how to report on violence against violence against children. 1.6.2. OBJECTIVES This research study has both explorative and descriptive objectives, It is exploratory because it seeks to “become familiar with unknown situations, conditions, policies and behaviours” (Du Plooy 2009: 51). The research investigates the following: • The need or lack of for the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct to have a uniform section on how to report on violence against women and children • The relationship between the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct and the South African laws. The research is descriptive because it describes to what degree the different “phenomena relate to another or vary together” (Du Plooy 2009: 51). The research describes the following: • The guidelines (or lack of) in the Press Code and the BCCSA Code of Conduct that are used when reporting on violence against women and children.10 2. LITERATURE REVIEW The media at most carry the responsibility of keeping the society well informed, it is one of the vehicles people use to recognise themselves and their aspirations (Steenveld 2004: 95). Therefore, journalists are able to counter institutional and market forces to push the media away from the economically elite to the less powerful in society (Steenveld 2004: 109). Kruger (2017: 28) further explains this by arguing that the media can be seen as part of civil society, they can be seen as an extension of such institutions where their members (journalists and editors) engage in a complex of non-state activities for the greater good of society. This section will do a literature review analysis on media and gender, it will look at the role of journalists in the production of news process, this is done in a way to ease in the discussion on the social responsibility theory. The social responsibility theory will be discussed in detail and linked to the research question. 2.1. ROLE OF JOURNALISTS IN THE PRODUCTION OF NEWS There is an expectation that journalists in South Africa must draw in marginalised voices into the national conversation (Franz 2017: 33). Franz (2017:33) further argues that journalists need to make the extra effort to reach people that are in marginalised areas so as to include their voices in national issues. This becomes important in trying to provide a balance of views on issues that are of national interest. It is not enough that journalists simply always get voices of the elite. Wasserman (2013) extends the argument and states that whilst it is desired for journalists to achieve a level of balance, journalists tend to consult a limited number of sources who usually meet the journalist ‘s expectation of authoritativeness. Wasserman (2013: 69) then justifies this entire process by arguing that “journalists may write news, but are themselves also ‘written by’ the discourse and practices of journalism” Allan (1998: 122) adds an interesting dimension arguing that some research has indicated that is impossible to separate a balance of views in media from the sociology of news. Allan (1998:122) states that a balance of views especially by both men and women is dependent largely on the media houses employing an equal number of male and female journalists. All of this discussion has indicated that, as stated by Wasserman (2013: 70) “Journalists work in accordance to deeply ingrained routines that shape the manner in which they cover issues” 2.2. THEORETICAL APPROACH: THE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY THEORY The aim of the research as outlined in part one of the assignment is to look into the Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct for Print and Online Media (also known as the Press Code) and the Broadcasters Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA) Code of Conduct sections (or lack of) on guidelines on how to report on violence against women and children. This section looks at the theoretical approach that deals with ethics and codes of conduct of the media in order to place the research topic within the scope. 2.2.1. Normative theories (Social Responsibility Theory)