Thesis (MPhil (Journalism))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / Although reputation management has historically been restricted to companies or other organisational entities, countries are also increasingly concerned with their reputation relative to other countries and have started to actively measure and manage that reputation1. Over the past years, the Republic of South Africa has begun to professionally streamline its own reputation management activities, specifically by establishing the International Marketing Committee (IMC) in August 2000. South African Tourism, the media division of the South African diplomatic sector and even South African Airways are other reputation management vehicles that have been working toward emanating a comprehensive marketing and communication message from South Africa to other countries. The basis of good reputation management is to first measure such reputation2. It is also important to know what aspects are the main drivers of such reputation. Using the content of specific German newspapers as data body, this study determines the drivers of South Africa’s media reputation in Germany. In order to accurately set the scene for an analysis of South Africa’s reputation, a thorough situation analysis on the country is conducted. This situation analysis forms the backbone for the methodology used further on to investigate the drivers of South Africa’s reputation in specific German media. To this end, a large part of the situation analysis looks at South Africa in terms of Germany and a study is conducted on the relationship between Germany and South Africa as well as the potential stakeholders of South Africa’s media reputation in Germany. It is also important to know what current efforts in terms of reputation management are. After studying the history of South Africa’s reputation management activities, members of today’s reputation management vehicles are interviewed and an overview of South African reputation management efforts currently active in Germany is provided. The reputation management activities of other countries are briefly explored and specifically the lessons from other countries’ efforts are highlighted. Subsequently, the reputational dimensions that positively or negatively drive South Africa’s reputation in specific German media are determined. To this end, a content analysis is conducted on the seven German national daily newspapers, Börsen- Zeitung, Die Welt, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Frankfurter Rundschau, Financial Times Deutschland, Handelsblatt and Süddeutsche Zeitung3 over a period of 20 months. The findings made culminate in suggestions for South Africa’s future reputation management activities in Germany.

This thesis is not structured as a conventional empirical study (theoretical background, method, results, discussion), but instead consists of an iterative series of attempts at making sense of same-race prejudice – hopefully systematically homing in on a richer and more acute understanding of the phenomenon. The chapters are grouped together in pairs or triplets – each grouping addressing different but related perspectives on the problem. Chapters 1 and 2 are contextual, setting the scene historically and conceptually. Chapters 3, 4 and 5 introduce three different perspectives on using phenomenology as a means of approaching the issue of same-race prejudice. Chapters 6 and 7 are dedicated to looking at the themes of same-race prejudice, a critical interrogation of the themes from the interview discussions, the literature and how same-race prejudice is experienced, played out and sustained. Chapter 8 links back to Chapter 1 by casting another look at sensitivity and responsiveness to same-race prejudice by organisations whose work is supposedly on prejudice eradication. The chapter further links with both Chapters 3 and 4 by calling upon a phenomenological understanding to humanity as what can bring a liveable change to humanity regarding same-race prejudice. Chapter 9 serves as a summary of all the chapters, what each individually and collectively hoped to achieve, and the general findings and statements about same-race prejudice from the chapters’ theoretical discussions, research interviews, and critical interrogation of both the mundane and theoretical understanding. / Psychology / D. Phil. (Psychology)