M.Tech. (Architectural Technology) / This research aims to explore the ways in which offering media and architectural facilities to protesters might contribute to a healthy culture of protest and dissent in Johannesburg. It looks at the rich and complex history of activism and protest in both South Africa in particular but also drawing on recent global protests and their spatial ramifications. It proposes a new facility on the site of one of the city’s most (in)famous protest and incarceration sites, Constitution Hill, and proposes a programme of information and education aimed at encouraging all interested citizens and activists to both understand their options, rights and responsibilities in a young democracy, and crucially, a platform to enact them.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the degree of Masters by Research in Media Studies, Johannesburg, March 2017 / In post-colonial, post-apartheid South Africa, “media wars”1 appear to have become a strong feature. Traditionally, the news media rarely report about other media. Media wars seem to manifest themselves more when news publications subject each other to critical scrutiny. Recent media wars between newspaper companies and editors have highlighted the agonistic pluralist nature of the South African print media which is facing persistent and complex disruptions. This research asserts that a notable feature of these media fights is that they are linked to the battle to gain market share in the South Africa print media market stranglehold by big media organisations. They are often couched in ideological discourses which are constitutive of editors and media owners speaking out publicly about issues internal to the media in order to carry the freight of public attention. The foci of this study will be two-fold: Firstly, it seeks to investigate whether these media wars are related to the broader issues of transformation in the South African print media. Secondly, the study seeks to unravel how some of the country’s leading news publications represent their competitors using editorial platforms and will investigate the editorial motivations behind certain representations. Despite the growing interest in media wars, South Africa is still underrepresented due to a lack of literature published in the field. The main rationale behind the study is to show how the media’s ‘independence’ from political parties plays itself out in ideological discourses found in the tensions between newspaper companies and editors in the period between 2010 and 2015. Two examples or case studies of media fights will be critically examined in this study and a qualitative discourse analysis will be undertaken in order explore the ways in which the media war texts spoke to or problematised the main theories employed in this study, namely: Critical Political Economy (CPE) of the media and Michel Foucault’s material post-structuralism blended with Bourdieu’s concept of the ‘media field’. Keywords: media wars, agonistic media space, market share, ideological discourses, transformation, representations. / XL2018

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Community Work) in the Department of Social Work in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Zululand, 2006. / This study examined aspects and strategies the communities adopt to manage the production and the distribution of agricultural commodities. The research also focused on problems experienced by small - scale farmers in the production and management of their produce. The food security of the communities relies on the good management of natural resources and production. It would appear that communities need to utilize and manage natural resources properly and appropriately if future generations have to sustain good produce for their livelihood. The study further found out that small-scale farmers live in conditions that are intolerable in terms of their access to water, market and land. The identified problems limit the access of farmers to produce good quality agricultural commodities, which could be acceptable to market retailers and wholesalers. Agriculture cannot be neglected as the backbone of community survival. Empowering communities about agricultural production management is a development strategy that is aimed at facilitating economic growth. In conclusion the researcher recommends that communities need to be provided with inputs like irrigation facilities so that their production could not be seasonal but could be able to produce throughout the year.

This thesis critically examines the nature and purpose of the MobiSAM partnership, in relation to its value as a model resonating with normative theories on the role of the media in South African democratic society. The MobiSAM project introduces a mobile polling application, designed for citizens to provide real-time, user-generated data on crucial municipal service delivery such as clean water in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The project has partnered with the local community newspaper, Grocott's Mail, to broadcast this data, with the aim to facilitate citizen participation in public problem solving and support local government accountability in service delivery. Despite pervasive poverty in areas such as the Eastern Cape, mobile penetration in South Africa is near universal. The MobiSAM partnership is an ongoing effort to forge new links between social accountability monitors, new media, traditional media, citizens and local government around public issues in Grahamstown, in line with the development objectives of the post-apartheid South African state. The overall theoretical framework for this thesis is taken from Christians, Glasser, McQuail, Nordenstreng and White's Normative Theories of the Media, which provides an analysis of four roles of the media in a democratic society, that is: the monitorial, the facilitative, the radical and the collaborative roles. Within each of these roles, the stated journalistic approach is explored, that is investigative journalism, public journalism, radical journalism and development journalism. Public journalism is focused on as having the most resonance with the goals of the MobiSAM partnership. The chosen research design is a critical realist case study with the selected methods of thematic document analysis and, primarily, in-depth interviews with key project participants. The research goals were to analyse this primary data against the normative theory on the role of the media in a democratic society, and the 'real world' constraints posed by the project’s specific political and socioeconomic context. The findings conclude by offering certain recommendations and areas for further research, such as the central importance of a dedicated municipal reporter for covering complex public issues. This critical realist case study, drawing on qualitative interviews with both the accountability monitors and the media practitioners, interrogates the philosophical understandings on the role of the media in this new project, towards an empirical model for advancing substantive socio-economic change through media in South Africa.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the level of community participation employed by the City of Tshwane in the implementation of the Indigent Exit Strategy (IES) as a poverty alleviation measure in Olievenhoutbosch. A total of twenty two respondents participated in the research. The first group was ten beneficiaries and the second was ten that was exited from the database. Lastly, two Social Workers coordinating the programme were interviewed as well. The research findings reflect that the IES was not sufficiently rolled out as outlined in the policy and strategy. Capacity building and skills development, assistance to emerging entrepreneurships and other forms of economic development support did not reach out to the broader community as outlined in the IES. The study recommends that: the Indigent Exit Strategy interventions should be made accessible to the registered indigent households so that they can clearly know what is expected of them. / Development Studies / M. A. (Development Studies)

Thesis (MA)-- Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The role and influence of interest groups and non-state actors in the foreign policy process remains an interesting topic for debate. This study explores the role of three South African trade union organisations, COSATU, FEDUSA and Solidariteit, in the foreign policy process of South Africa. It asks what role these trade union organisations played between 1999 and 2012 in the South African foreign policy process and what factors had a bearing on that role. The core argument of this study is that trade union organisations participate in creating public awareness of foreign policy issues among its members and the broader population. Through this role they, in turn, get involved in the foreign policy debate by promoting the participation of the masses. The dual approach of quantitative and qualitative content analysis of online news articles, statements and policy documents produced interesting results about the factors that motivate trade union interests in the South African foreign policy process. The main findings show that South African trade union organisations attempt to influence or engage in the economic and foreign policy processes when it affects their members. Their economic focus is on the extent to which economic factors have a bearing on how the macro-economic policy of the state favours the wealth and development of its citizens over the financial gain of international investors. Interesting findings are presented by the political factors that have a bearing on trade union organisations‟ roles in the foreign policy process of South Africa. The results show that trade union organisations have an inherent interest in the strengthening of democratic values, governance and the protection of human rights. Similar to the analysis of economic factors, it was found that South African trade unions show a greater interest in foreign policy events or issues that affect trade unions or workers domestically or in other states. This can be attributed to the strong sense of solidarity among trade union organisations for greater representation in political and policy processes. The findings of this study imply that South African trade union organisations are part of a growing trend among non-state actors and domestic interest groups that take an interest in issues and events beyond national borders. The results of this study correspond with arguments made in existing literature that South Africa trade union organisations play a minimal role in the making of foreign policy. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die rol en invloed van belangegroepe en niestaatsrolspelers in die vorming van buitelandse beleid bly 'n interessante onderwerp vir bespreking. Hierdie studie verken die rol van drie Suid-Afrikaanse vakbondorganisasies – Cosatu, Fedusa en Solidariteit – in die ontwikkeling van die land se buitelandse beleid. Dit ondersoek die rol wat hierdie organisasies tussen 1999 en 2012 in buitelandse beleid gespeel het, en die faktore wat daardie rol beïnvloed het. Die kernargument van hierdie studie is dat vakbondorganisasies hul lede sowel as die groter publiek van kwessies met betrekking tot buitelandse beleid help bewus maak. Deurdat hulle massadeelname aanmoedig, word die organisasies op hulle beurt by die debat oor buitelandse beleid betrek. Die dubbele benadering van kwantitatiewe én kwalitatiewe inhoudsontleding van aanlyn nuusberigte, verklarings en beleidsdokumente bring interessante resultate oor die redes vir vakbondbelangstelling in Suid-Afrikaanse buitelandse beleid aan die lig. Die hoofbevindinge toon dat Suid-Afrikaanse vakbondorganisasies die vorming van ekonomiese en buitelandse beleid probeer beïnvloed of daaraan deelneem wanneer dit hul lede raak. Ekonomies konsentreer hulle veral op die mate waarin die makro-ekonomiese beleid van die staat die welvaart en ontwikkeling van sy burgers bo finansiële gewin vir internasionale beleggers stel. Dit is egter veral die politieke beweegredes vir vakbonddeelname aan die land se buitelandse beleid wat insiggewende resultate oplewer. Die studie bevind dat vakbonde 'n inherente belang het by die versterking van demokratiese waardes en bestuur, en die beskerming van menseregte. Soos met die ekonomiese faktore, dui die ontleding van die politieke faktore ook daarop dat Suid-Afrikaanse vakbonde 'n groter belangstelling toon in gebeure of kwessies insake buitelandse beleid wat vakbonde of hul lede binnelands sowel as in ander state raak. Dít kan toegeskryf word aan die sterk samehorigheidsgevoel onder vakbondorganisasies om gesamentlik beter verteenwoordiging in politieke en beleidsprosesse te bekom. Die bevindinge van hierdie studie impliseer dat Suid-Afrikaanse vakbondorganisasies deel uitmaak van 'n toenemende tendens onder niestaatsrolspelers en binnelandse belangegroepe om al hoe meer in kwessies en gebeure buite landsgrense belang te stel. Die resultate van die studie ooreenstem met die argumente gestel in bestaande literatuur dat Suid-Afrikaanse vakbond organisasies ʼn beperkte rol binne buitelandse-beleidsmaking speel.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the level of community participation employed by the City of Tshwane in the implementation of the Indigent Exit Strategy (IES) as a poverty alleviation measure in Olievenhoutbosch. A total of twenty two respondents participated in the research. The first group was ten beneficiaries and the second was ten that was exited from the database. Lastly, two Social Workers coordinating the programme were interviewed as well. The research findings reflect that the IES was not sufficiently rolled out as outlined in the policy and strategy. Capacity building and skills development, assistance to emerging entrepreneurships and other forms of economic development support did not reach out to the broader community as outlined in the IES. The study recommends that: the Indigent Exit Strategy interventions should be made accessible to the registered indigent households so that they can clearly know what is expected of them. / Development Studies / M. A. (Development Studies)

Co-operatives are multifaceted as they have different meanings for their members. They are an important passage to sustainable development as they provide their members and communities with the opportunity of joining forces and addressing their needs. Various pieces of South African legislation endorse the establishment of co-operatives and support community members to own co-operatives. The research findings show that cooperative members are motivated to participate even though they experience challenges in the cooperatives. What keeps them going is the drive to succeed. This is strengthened by cooperative principles to which they adhere. The role of the social worker in initiating and supporting cooperatives, utilizing empowerment and developmental approaches, provides extra benefits for cooperative members, their families and the larger community. One critical benefit is the income generated through economic activities to support members and their families. Based on the research findings, recommendation are made with regard to practice, policy and further research. / Social Work / M.A. (S.S.) (Social Work)

This thesis is an account of how a networking approach may assist participatory community development. The author undertakes naturalistic action research into how she can improve her social practice with a view to gaining equal participation amongst university and community members in a community development practicum. She describes how efforts to maximize group participation are typically countered with various forms of non-participation, analogous to a rebellion against authoritarianism. Dialogue with her doctoral peer group about tacit meanings from her personal history reveals that she is too heavily invested in community involvement. A stance of irreverence gives her the freedom to realize that her politically correct approach is conveying the message that "MY way of participation is THE way". She embarks on a networking programme of action in the hope of achieving more balanced participation. A multidisciplinary workshop and a study tour show her that openness to multiple inputs may free people from restrictive views and problematic styles of participation. She initiates the formation of a local network and finds that this is a more free-flowing structure that encourages fluid problem solving among community, government and university participants. The author's original anxieties are, however, revived when networking, too, becomes entangled in organizational complexities. She eventually realizes that she tends to base her actions on premises of power and justice and that it may be helpful to base new ventures on information flow and creativity instead. Her new approach to group facilitation elicits creative inputs from others. She finds that deliberate debate of the assumptions on which collective undertakings are based releases an awareness of alternative approaches to addressing unequal resource utilization in the commons. A review of the local Network's development over six years draws attention to networking resources, and its uses, structuring and management. The author's experiences continuously demonstrate that the assumptions of independence and freedom of choice may provide a more satisfactory basis upon which to manage community participation. / Social Work / D.Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)

This thesis is an account of how a networking approach may assist participatory community development. The author undertakes naturalistic action research into how she can improve her social practice with a view to gaining equal participation amongst university and community members in a community development practicum. She describes how efforts to maximize group participation are typically countered with various forms of non-participation, analogous to a rebellion against authoritarianism. Dialogue with her doctoral peer group about tacit meanings from her personal history reveals that she is too heavily invested in community involvement. A stance of irreverence gives her the freedom to realize that her politically correct approach is conveying the message that "MY way of participation is THE way". She embarks on a networking programme of action in the hope of achieving more balanced participation. A multidisciplinary workshop and a study tour show her that openness to multiple inputs may free people from restrictive views and problematic styles of participation. She initiates the formation of a local network and finds that this is a more free-flowing structure that encourages fluid problem solving among community, government and university participants. The author's original anxieties are, however, revived when networking, too, becomes entangled in organizational complexities. She eventually realizes that she tends to base her actions on premises of power and justice and that it may be helpful to base new ventures on information flow and creativity instead. Her new approach to group facilitation elicits creative inputs from others. She finds that deliberate debate of the assumptions on which collective undertakings are based releases an awareness of alternative approaches to addressing unequal resource utilization in the commons. A review of the local Network's development over six years draws attention to networking resources, and its uses, structuring and management. The author's experiences continuously demonstrate that the assumptions of independence and freedom of choice may provide a more satisfactory basis upon which to manage community participation. / Social Work / D.Litt. et Phil. (Psychology)