This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. / Thesis: S.M. in Comparative Media Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, 2019 / Cataloged from student-submitted PDF of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 162-174). / by Libby Falck. / S.M. in Comparative Media Studies / S.M.inComparativeMediaStudies Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing

Thesis: S.M. in Comparative Media Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, May, 2020 / Cataloged from the official PDF of thesis. / Includes bibliographical references (pages 72-75). / The furry fandom is a loose-knit online subculture of fans devoted to anthropomorphic animal characters. Furries are not necessarily fans of specific media properties, but instead often create their own media, including the "fursona," an anthropomorphic animal character to represent oneself in the community. Conducting empirical research through interviews, participant observation, auto ethnography, and virtual ethnography, I have sought to understand this aspect of furry identity and sociality through a number of disciplinary lenses. In this thesis, I argue that furry queers fandom through several interrelated processes: severing fandom from textual objects; developing queer sex publics; paving new pathways to queer becoming; and displacing online identity through stylized, affective modes of embodiment. These fan practices, as articulated through the fursona, cohere into a queer worlding of virtual spaces. / by Ben Silverman. / S.M. in Comparative Media Studies / S.M.inComparativeMediaStudies Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / This paper explores the mobile social networking patterns of a sample of Black, White and Coloured adolescents attending three different schools in Cape Town, South Africa. The researcher utilises the Uses and Gratifications theory and qualitative research methodology in the form of focus groups and one-on-one semi-structured interviews to explore what gratifications this sample of students, aged 14-7 years, derive from three mobile social networking brands - MXit, Facebook and Twitter.

Background: As more people are using mobile phones to receive and read news, Twitter has become a popular communication tool, particularly for commercial brands in South Africa. This thesis investigates twelve South African organisations’ use of Twitter. It portrays Twitter as an informational network that allows conversational communication. It seeks to identify how commercial brands in South Africa use Twitter as a public relations/communication tool. Aim and Objective: In attempt to learn whether current South African tweets among certain organisations follow Western practices of public relations, the study aims to understand and identify how commercial brands in South Africa communicate with their publics through Twitter. Revealing the content of these organisations’ tweets facilitated the fulfilment of this objective.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 73-75). / Much of the developed world operates under what is referred to as liberal democratic capitalism. This implies government by the people, operating in a free and profit driven market, which in theory suggests an equality of voice and access to markets for personal profit. However the 'powerful movements of acceleration and excess' which Auge refers to above are less to do with the intentions of a liberal democratic capita list system and more accidental effects of it. This dissertation explores the constant push of commerce and the digital communication revolution as contributory factors to this hypermodern or globalised state.

Globally mental health is widely regarded by scholars as a neglected public health issue. Documentary film is recognised as an appropriate medium for addressing social and political issues, and mental health is both of these. Country comparative documentary films on mental health, set in low and middle-income countries, appear to be lacking. Prorgramme for Improving Mental health carE (PRIME) works in five low and middle income countries, two of which were selected for the film (Nepal and South Africa). This was motivated by across continent comparisons, financial and logistical viability within a one year timeframe, global interest and appeal and the support of PRIME colleagues and local country partners. Based on qualitative research including a literature review and 40 indepth interviews with stakeholders, this essay reports on, and critically assesses the ethical and production processes involved in making the documentary film. The essay includes several elements. Firstly, it considers the power relationship between the filmmaker and the subject. Whilst Nichols, Aufderheide and colleagues present useful ethical considerations for making a documentary film, both from the subject and audience perspectives, more care is required when making a film with persons living with mental illness. This is particularly because the subject may not have the mental capacity to consent, and if they do, participating in the media production process could potentially exacerbate their condition. Having weighed these risks up with the benefits of representing persons living with mental illness, and giving them a voice, the decision was made to give persons living with mental illness the opportunity to represent themselves. Secondly, and having made the decision to allow for representation, the various documentary modes (expository, performative, poetic, observational, reflexive, participatory) conceived by Nichols were explored, in an attempt to identify a conceptual framework for the film. The performative mode was most appropriate for telling deeply personal stories, and providing patients with an opportunity to be represented. However, this mode was ideally complemented with elements of the expository (verbal commentary of experts), poetic (use of rhythm, emotion and music), observational (footage of patients in their daily routines, and of their environment for cutaways) and participatory (through direct engagement between filmmaker and subject) modes. 2 Having identified a conceptual framework, the third element involved the institutional research ethics processes. These processes contributed to a more ethically sensitive film production. This included a check for mental health service users to ensure that they do have the capacity to consent. The process of developing a research protocol highlighted the synergistic benefits of integrating a qualitative research method in the form of in-depth interviews into the film production process (and vice versa), whilst remaining cognisant of not compromising research findings for more visually appealing footage. Following a research process for the production also contributed to a more robust discussion guide after translating communication objectives into research objectives. Finally, the process of implementing the film's production, and post-production, was assessed. A host of steps were identified, which included securing the funding for the filmmaking, establishing stakeholders support, briefing the crew on the vision and purpose of the documentary and having access to equipment and translators. During the post production process, a systematic approach to editing using a script outline was helpful in identifying main themes, and to ensure the narrative flow. Despite its typical use in fictional filmmaking, the three-act structure was fitting as a framework for the narrative. Timecoding during translation and transcription was found to be particularly expedient for inserting English sub-titles. The country comparative approach revealed similaries and differences, and developing and implementing stakeholder specific distribution strategies (including conferences, symposia, film festivals and broadcasters) was identified as critical to the public dissemination and reach of the film. Documentary film, and the performative mode complemented by other modes, has shown to be an advantageous means of representing persons living with mental illness, and their families. However, the paper calls for more evaluation research regarding the impact of the film on the main patient characters, amongst other stakeholders such as health workers and policy makers. The paper also proposes the integration of media production into a research process for researchers interested in using this medium to visually communicate their research findings, emphasising the value of systematically using the research findings to develop a narrative script in the context of a typical three act structure. A distribution strategy was also identified as necessary to maximise the research and stakeholder impact of the film.

Includes bibliographical references. / This study is located between the contradiction that youth is politically disinterested and that youth is very much politically engaged. Some scholars have argued that youth political disinterest is a threat to the life of the traditional public sphere and democracy. Against the notion of the youth's disinterest and disaffection from politics, this study points out the deficit in exploratory studies that examine and explore the relationship between young people and their political participation both in the on/offline context. In light of the contradiction as well, this current study asked the following question: how does a group of South African youth use social media to participate in the virtual public sphere? Also, what are the views of a group of South African youth about political participation (via their use of traditional and new/social media)?

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 87-92). / The introduction explicates the nature of narrative literary journalism and situates the four stories within this edifice. This body of work experiments with the classical form of narrative literary journalism. The Soul Searcher tells the story of the ethnomusicologist John Turest-Swartz who wants to promote the little known rural musician Louisa Steenkamp. It traces the development of an indigenous South African band over a period of one year. Thumeka in the Dunes is a career portrait in the context of urban nature conservation. The protagonist Thumeka Mdlazi is both part of the obstacle - the community threatening the nature reserve - and its solution, as a protector of the dunes. A Place to Live under the Rainbow deals with the repeated attacks against Somali refugees in South Africa portraying victims and perpetrators alike. On a meta-level, the story also reflects on the topic of xenophobia in a more discursive style. A Runner's Mind is a first-person creative non-fiction narrative. The core of the story is the motivation for ultra-marathon runner Randall Turner to keep running. This account is framed by my own personal reflections on running and non-running. All stories are anchored in a South African social setting and reflect people's struggles and small achievements in overcoming seemingly hopeless situations.

Includes bibliographical references. / The city of Johannesburg is globally identified with issues of inequality, prejudice and transformation. This identification is reinforced by the city's representation in film, in particular those of the post-apartheid era, which tend to emphasize the city's problems. The transformative power of living in Johannesburg, in particular how this experience impacts and shifts the personalities and experiences of the city's inhabitants, is often ignored. This thesis sets out to explore and analyse the consequences of engagement with Johannesburg by exploring the impact of the city on the protagonists in four post-apartheid Johannesburg films. The films that will be analysed - Jump the Gun (1996), Hijack Stories (2000), Tsotsi (2005), and District 9 (2009) - portray life in post-apartheid Johannesburg. These films were chosen because they have narratives that illustrate character transformation through exposure to the city of Johannesburg. The decision to focus on films that depict this era is deliberate, and I have done this in order to identify a new way of living in Johannesburg that is unique to this time period. In addition, the spread of years highlights how the experience of living in Johannesburg has changed over time.

This dissertation examines the ways in which violence and trauma are represented in two novels - Lídia Jorge’s A Costa dos Murmúrios (1988) and Mia Couto’s Terra Sonâmbula (1992) - and the cinematic adaptations of those novels - Margarida Cardoso’s A Costa dos Murmúrios (2004) and Teresa Prata’s Terra Sonâmbula (2007). All four works take place in Mozambique and actively engage with the two primary conflicts that occurred in that country - the Mozambican War of Independence (also known as the Anti-Colonial War), fought between 1964 and 1974, and the Mozambican Civil War, fought between 1977 and 1992. In order to provide suitable context for the textual and theoretical analysis found in the body of the dissertation, the study begins by providing a brief review of the history of cinema in Mozambique, focussing primarily on the period stretching from the start of the Anti-Colonial War in 1964 to the present day. It also examines the concept of national cinema, and whether such an idea is justifiable in a Mozambican context. The study continues by considering, in Chapter 2, the concept of adaptation and its limits. This chapter also provides an historical background for some of the atrocities committed during the Mozambican Civil War. Chapter 3 consists of close textual analysis of the two versions of A Costa dos Murmúrios. The chapter identifies two main themes running through both works - the question of subjectivity and a postmodern presentation of history, and the tense, erotic relationship that exists between the two main female protagonists of the narrative, both of whom end up the victims of severe trauma. Chapter 4 looks at the literary and cinematic incarnations of Terra Sonâmbula, with special attention paid to the function of magical realism in both works. This chapter argues that Couto uses magical realism as a sort of coping mechanism which allows his characters to remain hopeful, while the relative absence of magical realism in Prata’s film results in an entirely different representation of both the Mozambican Civil War and the experience of those who lived through it. This work concludes by arguing against too essentialist an understanding of how we define and categorise works of art, regardless of medium. Finally, it calls for further English-language scholarship in the field of Lusophone African cinema.