Thesis (M. Tech. degree in Journalism) -- Tshwane University of Technology 2009. / Provides a better understanding of the factors contributing to the overall success of the newspaper. A revised version of Machado's marketing mix model was used. The results showed how the elements of the marketing mix model had been successfully implemented.

Thesis (M.A. (Journalism and Media Studies)) - Rhodes University, 2009. / A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (M.A.)

M.A. (Communication) / The daily press in several Western countries is subjected to certain market, psychological and economic inspired changes that threaten its very existence. This assumption is manifested in the fact that the total circulation of daily newspapers in most Western countries does not seem to be keeping pace with the ever increasing growth in population. In fact, in the last ten to fifteen years, there has been a decline in the circulation figures of some daily newspapers in the West resulting in many closures. For example, in South Africa, more daily newspapers were sold in 1975 than in 1985. This study attempts to analyse the crisis facing the present day daily press, with a more pertinent emphasis on the daily press in South Africa. Several factors that gave rise to the said crisis are identified and expounded on. This was done from the supposition that there are certain factors threatening the function, content and structure of the daily press. In the first instance,"the study is based on the uses and gratification theory, and secondly, on the agenda-setting theory. For the purposes of this dissertation these two theories are combined and used as such. The factors identified as having a profound influence on the daily press are inter alia: alienation and resistance, information overload, the emergence of a vibrant local press and free sheets, the electronic media, and the pertinent financial aspects...

This thesis studies print culture in colonial Lagos against the background of the public sphere, and brings together a variety of English-language and Yoruba-language newspapers. Such an approach allows for highlighting the practicalities of newspaper production and foregrounding the work accomplished by newspapermen in a changing 'information environment' and political context. It offers insights into Lagos politics, contributes to the history of the educated elite, and to more global histories of communication. Using newspapers as well as archival records, and focussing on events that strikingly reveal dynamics in the public sphere, this thesis narrates a nuanced history of a discursive field which was, amongst other things, central for Lagos politics. This thesis complicates a Habermasian notion of the public sphere as an open discursive space, and not only highlights that the public sphere was an arena of contested meanings, but also illustrates axes along which the composition of this social structure was negotiated. When newspapers emerged in the late nineteenth-century, discussions in the press were largely restricted to the elite. The economy of recognition that was at play in the public sphere was to change in the 1920s. This thesis highlights how newspapermen and contributors sought to carve out niches for themselves in the public sphere in new ways and how their becoming a speaker in this discursive field was challenged and contested. It highlights the nuanced ways in which newspapermen and contributors convened publics through their papers: how they did so around particular issues, in distinction from each other, and how they adapted the convening of publics to new political dynamics in the 1940s. This thesis gives insight into the complex relationship between English-language and Yoruba-language newspapers, and moreover illustrates how the practicalities of the newspaper business were coming to bear on dynamics in the public sphere.

This study was designed to investigate the representation of gender roles in advertisements in popular South African newspapers, namely, the Sunday Times, Rapport, City Press, Post and Ilanga. The literature reviewed shows that media play a role in agenda setting and reinforcing existing gender role stereotypes through advertising. The study focused on the trend towards equal representation of gender roles in advertisements in popular South African newspapers. The research revealed some stereotypical representations of women in the newspapers. Although women were depicted in a variety of professions in the workplace, the advertisements showed some stereotypical depictions. The research also found out that, to some extent, men were depicted performing roles such as beautification and consumption, which have been stereotypically limited to women. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2004.

This thesis investigates the English language press and its coverage of protest struggles and backlash, border wars and related militarisation of society in the critical years of South African political change between 1976 and 1988. The widespread reputation of Natal liberalism has led researchers to debate the extent to which the independent Natal Witness was a politically oppositional paper and raises interesting questions about the construction ofliberalism itself as a political doctrine. I examine the Natal Witness as a case study - an English language newspaper based in the province that was then called Natal. In this study, I focus on key events related to violent political conflict to determine how this newspaper reported on the apartheid state's police response to protest, its military campaigns, perceived security threats to the nation, the issue of military conscription, and the increasingly violent provincial politics fought between the followers of the United Democratic front (UDF) and Inkatha. I describe the coverage of the Witness at length and show how various mediums (news articles, letters, and opinion pieces) and various sources conveyed events to its readership. I assess the content and its ambiguities to paint a complex and detailed picture of how discourses shifted with events and over time. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

Thesis (M.A. (Journalism & Media Studies)) - Rhodes University, 2009. / A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Arts.

Thesis (M.A. (Media Studies)) --University of Limpopo, 2014 / There is a conspicuous importance of having newspapers that publish in the indigenous African languages for the indigenous population in a democratic dispensation. The indigenous African languages are key components of their respective cultures. The survival of the language is, in some way, dependent on the print media (newspapers) (Salawu, 2004:8). In addition, the indigenous language newspapers have cardinal roles of promoting previously marginalised languages, preserving indigenous cultures and upholding democracy. Nevertheless, these newspapers are struggling to sustain themselves in the print media industry. It is, therefore, critically important to examine the factors that adversely affect the sustainability of these newspapers.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Engineering, 2017 / The images from the African articles dataset presented challenges to the Optical Character Recognition (OCR) tool. Despite successful binerisation in the Image Processing step of the pipeline, noise remained in the foreground of the images. This noise caused the OCR tool to misinterpret the text from the images and thus needed removal from the foreground. The technique involved the application of the Maximally Stable Extremal Region (MSER) algorithm, borrowed from Scene-Text Detection, and supervised machine learning classifiers. The algorithm creates regions from the foreground elements. Regions are classifiable into noise and characters based on the characteristics of their shapes. Classifiers were trained to recognise noise and characters. The technique is useful for a researcher wanting to process and analyse the large dataset. They could semi-automate the foreground noise-removal process using this technique. This would allow for better quality OCR output, for use in the Text Analysis step of the pipeline. Better OCR quality means less compromises would be required at the Text Analysis step. These concessions can lead to false results when searching noisy text. Fewer compromises means simpler, less error-prone analysis and more trustworthy results. The technique was tested against specifically selected images from the dataset which exhibited noise. It involved a number of steps. Training regions were selected and manually classified. After training and running many classifiers, the highest performing classifier was selected. The classifier categorised regions from all images. New images were created by removing noise regions from the original images. To discover whether an improvement in the OCR output was achieved, a text comparison was conducted. OCR text was generated from both the original and processed images. The two outputs of each image were compared for similarity against the test text. The test text was a manually created version of the expected OCR output per image. The similarity test for both original and processed images produced a score. A change in the similarity score indicated whether the technique had successfully removed noise or not. The test results showed that blotches in the foreground could be removed, and OCR output improved. Bleed-through and page fold noise was not removable. For images affected by noise blotches, this technique can be applied and hence less concessions will be needed when processing the text generated from those images. / CK2018

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2000. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The economic viability and continuity of any publication is determined by two critical factors, being: • The circulation of the publication, thus the readership, as well as • the advertising volumes of the publication. This particular study started by the realisation by management of the publication, Paarl Post, that these two critical factors had in real terms actually been declining since 1996, albeit marginally. The theme of continuous improvement was identified as critical in the process of eliminating "highs and lows", thus certain key areas had to be addressed. Furthermore these areas had to be continously evaluated and monitored. The process of change started with a process of gathering of information by means of questionnaires and personal interviews with certain key personnel by external consultants. A two-day session was scheduled where this information was processed with the help of the consultants and key personnel and the conclusion was made that the growth in circulation and advertising volumes and ultimately the growth in the publication was a function of certain key areas to be managed in the following way: • Cost efficient • Initiatives that lead to product growth • Optimizing of service • Continuous improvement of processes • Optimal use of manpower. The key areas of Marketing, Product, Communication, Processes and Information Technology were identified as key projects, which led to certain recommendations by these project teams based on abovementioned criteria. The "final" phase in the formal process, essentially a phase which never ends, is the implementation of the recommendations, and the continuous monitoring and following-up of the initiatives which ultimately develop to a continuous process of improvement, with the result: • Continuous circulation growth and • continous growth in advertising volumes, and ultimately continuous real growth in the community publication, Paarl Post. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Enige publikasie se ekonomiese lewensvatbaarheid en kontinuïteit word deur twee kritieke faktore bepaal, naamlik: • Sirkulasie, m.a.w. die lesergetalle van die publikasie en • advertensievolumes Hierdie studie is gebore in die bestuur van die publikasie se waarneming dat hierdie twee aspekte van die gemeenskapskoerant, Paarl Post, sedert 1996 afneem in reële terme en dus die ekonomiese kontinuïteit van die publikasie bedreig. Die tema van voordurende verbetering is geïdentifiseer as krities in die totale proses ten einde "highs and lows" uit te skakel. Dus moes sekere sleutel-areas aangespreek word, maar hierdie areas moes verder ook deurlopend geëvalueer en gemonitor word. Die proses van verandering is begin deur 'n proses waarby eksterne konsultante betrek is om die eerste fase van die proses te fasiliteer in terme van die inwin van inligting deur middel van vraelyste en persoonlike onderhoude met sleutelpersoneel soos deur bestuur geïdentifiseer. 'n Tweedag sessie is geskeduleer waarby hierdie inligting met die hulp van die konsultante en die sleutelpersoneel deurgewerk is en die slotsom bereik is, dat groei in sirkulasie en advertensievolumes en dus uiteindelik die groei van die publikasie 'n funksie is van die mate waartoe sleutelareas van die Paarl Post as volg bestuur word: • Koste--effektief • Inisiatiewe wat tot produk-groei lei • Dienslewering optimaliseer • Voortdurende verbetering van prosesse • Optimale benutting van mannekrag. Die sleutelareas van Bemarking, Produk, Kommunikasie, Prosesse en Inligtingstegnologie is as projekte geïdentifiseer, waarvan die uiteinde is dat elke projekspan sekere aanbevelings moes doen aan die hand van bogenoemde kriteria. Die "laaste" stap in die formele proses, wat uiteindelik 'n stap is wat nooit eindig nie, is die implementering van die aanbevelings, asook die voordurende monitering en opvolging van die inisiatiewe wat uiteindelik ontwikkel in 'n deurlopende proses van verbetering, met die resultaat: • Volgehoue sirkulasiegroei, asook • volgehoue groei in advertensievolumes en uiteindelik voordurende reële groei van die gemeenskapspublikasie, Paarl Post.