Includes bibliographical references.

In the early hours of 14 February 2013, the twittersphere erupted with the allegation that Oscar Pistorius, the Olympic and Paralympic athlete, had shot and killed his girlfriend of three months, Reeva Steenkamp. This story first appeared on the Beeld twitter account. This story was only confirmed by local print media such as the Cape Argus the following day, 15 February 2013, after his first court appearance during which he was charged with premeditated murder, a schedule 6 offence, according to South African law. The commencement of the bail application was postponed by Chief Magistrate Desmond Nair on 15 February 2013, so as to consider an application made by the media to be granted leave to broadcast the court proceedings live. In Magistrate Nair‟s judgement, that was handed down at noon the same day, he ruled against the media‟s broadcast application. However, he conceded that only the live audio of the bail application judgement could be broadcast ("Oscar faces murder…", 2013: 1). Additionally, the media was allowed to photograph the accused only in the presence of Magistrate Nair before the commencement of court proceedings, and once it had concluded for the day. This was the first formal assertion, and acknowledgement, of the role the media was to play in the „staging‟ of The Oscar Pistorius Murder Trial, with Pistorius cast as the protagonist and the media contingent as one of the antagonists of the narrative construction of this case. In an attempt to compensate for the lack of direct (live) media access to the proceedings, twitter was co-opted as the primary alternative news media platform. Journalists tweeted the live proceedings to their followers in order to provide mediated access to the proceedings. News24 lead the twitter reports by compiling a transcribed "live report" of the proceedings which would allow members of their audience an opportunity to follow a sequential account of the narrative. This was in addition to their usual journalistic reportage of the trial.

Zimbabwe is among the top diamond-producing countries and is believed to hold a quarter of the world's diamond reserves. Yet it is still one of the poorest countries as the economy is slumped and growth has slackened, and it is expected to further weaken. This study tracks the history of diamond mining at Marange diamond fields, describing what has played out since the discovery of huge diamond deposits in 2006.The study considers potential entry points to try and effect reform in diamond mining in the country. It also explores the governance options and their experience, distinguishing between domestic and global mechanisms and exploring the prospects for each. The study interrogates the strength and ability of various stakeholders to affect reform casting light on the politics and power dynamics at play.

As a fledgling democracy, South Africa has had to contend with a slowing economy that has been accompanied by increasing unemployment. The Industrial Development Zone (IDZ) is one of the policy instruments used by the South African government in an attempt to overcome these challenges. This research study takes a closer look at this policy instrument within the specific context of the Saldanha Bay IDZ. Saldanha Bay is an operating port on the West Coast of South Africa which, after a series of feasibility studies, has been deemed a suitable location to establish a services hub for upstream oil and gas activities. Its competitive advantages are inter alia a naturally deep port and close proximity to Cape Town. This study seeks to construct a rich narrative that unravels key activities that emerged from the project's conceptual phase through to its implementation phase. This is a period of a little less than two decades stretching from around 1999 to 2016. In linking this narrative to a timeline, this dissertation explores three central issues. The first is whether the Saldanha Bay IDZ presents a commercially viable option for investors. Secondly, it explores whether the public sector has been able to establish the necessary enabling environment required for project success. Finally, it seeks to determine the factors that influenced the speed of project delivery. This narrative is built by having conversations with key stakeholders from both the private and public sectors who have had an involvement with the project for a considerable amount of time. The intention is to extract lessons from their journey and use these learnings as a basis to improve stakeholder co-ordination in this and other projects characterised by multiple actor and principal relationships.

In era of prevalent crime and social problems in South Africa, the National Department of Social Development; the South African Council of Social Service Professions and tertiary institutions are rethinking strategies to respond to these issues. A central strategy behind this is the development of forensic social work practice as a specialist service in order to assist the criminal justice system to deal effectively with offenders and protect victims. The aim of this study was to investigate the specialized skills and knowledge required for forensic social work practice in South Africa. Literature acknowledges that forensic social work is still a developing field of practice in South Africa hence forensic social work practitioners require effective training to competently practice forensic social work. The research design adopted by the study is a combination research design comprising of both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The research empirical data was obtained through the use of questionnaires from a survey conducted in Gauteng Province, South Africa at a forensic social work training workshop in 2013. The study indicated that forensic social work practitioners are familiar with some of the specialized skills such as language used in court, writing skills, communication and engagement skills and professionalism. The study also indicated that forensic social work practitioners are also familiar with some of the knowledge such as the definition of forensic social work, legal aspects, criminal justice system, courtroom procedures and knowledge required to act as an expert witness in court for forensic social work practice. However, despite this, forensic social work practitioners had inadequate training in the specialized skills and knowledge required to competently practice forensic social work in South Africa. In addition, the study showed that there are many challenges faced by forensic social work practitioners. Challenges include lack of resources, undermining of forensic social work practitioners by other professionals, adoption of international standards, registration, role specification and lack of collaboration with other professionals. The author recommended that forensic social work practitioners in South Africa require further training in legislation, policies and the specialized skills and knowledge relevant for forensic social work practice and finding solutions to overcome the challenges faced. Further research should be conducted in other provinces in South Africa for forensic social work.

The aim of this study was to explore the perceptions of service providers on the availability and effectiveness of sexual violence interventions, services and programmes in De Aar. Participants were selected based on the nature of service they rendered to survivors of sexual violence. A qualitative study was conducted, using non-probability purposive sampling and snowball sampling. Data was gathered through a semi-structured interview. The study found protection services, medical and psychological interventions to be easily accessible to all survivors of sexual violence. Additional services were also found to be available to survivors of sexual violence, depending on their needs. Participants were all of the opinion that the needs of survivors were being met in De Aar. The data found the perceptions of service providers on the effectiveness of their interventions to be influenced by their adherence to regulations and training received through their organisations, in addition to personal steps taken to develop professional skills. The attitude of service providers and the co-operation of service users were found to hinder the effectiveness and consistency of prescribed interventions. Gaps found to be inherent in all organisations were lack of human and physical resources such as vehicles. Stakeholders were found to be ineffective in their communication and co-operation between stakeholders was inadequate. Challenges found to hinder help-seeking were the perceptions of the community of the South African Police Service and sexual violence in general. The survivors themselves were also identified as a barrier to intervention, as they might accept, reject or discontinue intervention without warning. Considering the aim and objective of this study, it can be concluded that there are services in place for survivors of sexual violence in De Aar. Immediate services, such as post-rape medical and legal services, are easily accessible. Follow-up and aftercare service are determined by a social worker and most organisations are effective in the services they render, despite organisational challenges and limitations.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 75-80). / This media dissertation researches the cell phone's actual and potential role as a multimedia tool of communication amongst South African youth and looks at how it can be used to platform youth stories for media and advertising. The youth's connection to the cell phone has come to mean so much more than its actual technological functions. This media dissertation investigates the cell phone phenomenon amongst the youth of today, by looking at both local and international trends, with a more intimate focus on the current trends amongst the South African youth. It will look at the sociology of the cell phone and the culture surrounding it. It will then consider new technology and how the cell phone's role may also be a tool for leapfrogging in South Africa. It is also important to consider the negative connotations that arise with the cell phone's infiltration amongst the youth.Through analysis of recent research about the cell phone's impact on the youth here and internationally, two opposing media directions are identified: the cell phone as a tool in marketing and advertising; and the cell phone as a tool in investigative journalism. By analyzing two different areas, this media dissertation creates a broad and holistic understanding of the cell phone's potential functions through a strong literature review. Firstly, the cell phone's function in marketing and advertising will be analyzed. This media dissertation will take into account the youth market in South Africa through a case study of one of South Africa's strategic consultancy companies: Instant Grass. Through a close look at the youth market now, it will be possible to create a greater understanding of the current trends and how to capitalize on these trends. In terms of marketing and advertising, this media dissertation then discusses an advertising exercise with a youth group studying Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town. Secondly, the cell phone in terms of media and investigative journalism will be analysed through fieldwork done with etv's 3rd Degree. This media dissertation looks at how the cell phone could be used as a tool for youth stories by looking at the parameters involved in creating investigative stories. This chapter also takes a look at the issue of citizen journalism in the digital publishing world today and the rate at which cell phone technology is spurring this development on.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-83). / The end-user 'piracy' of television series, particularly of those produced by USA television networks such as HBO, NBC, ABC and FOX, is a growing trend in South Africa. This paper aims to identify why South Africans want to view television series this way and contribute to the research recognising it as a significant trend in media consumption. The key questions that are examined in this paper include: Who are these individuals, what is their viewing behaviour and why? This paper thus examines the literature available surrounding the profile, the motivations, and the viewing patterns of these revolutionary series viewers.

The original idea behind Herald was to create a South African Downton Abbey (ITV and PBS, 2010 -2015). Historical television is currently popular and Downton is appealing because it communicates interesting history, finds comedy in the manners and behaviours of the day and indulges in the visual pleasures of opulent aristocratic society. A historical setting is as foreign and exciting as a fantasy realm but it can still provide a platform to explore themes that are relevant and familiar to a contemporary viewer. Members of local government, military officers and other nobles and wealthy Britons at the Cape lived aristocratic lives not unlike the fictional inhabitants of Downton and yet a wholesale pastiche of the structure of Downton or the conventions of the period drama genre is inappropriate. The racial tensions that have defined the colonial and postcolonial periods of South African history and the Eurocentric, androcentric approach to that history necessitate a new approach. It is with this in mind that I have attempted to create a television miniseries inspired by the traditional period drama and by Downton Abbey specifically, but remoulded by the contexts of past and present day South Africa. I had several main goals in mind for this miniseries: to provide South Africans with entertaining television that tells local stories and, in so doing, encourage South Africans to engage with their own history; to grapple with contentious issues of the present such as race, gender and land, by exploring the past; to place strong black, Malay and female characters at the center of history and give them the agency to effect history; to provide a critique of the British and their actions at the Cape.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 82-86). / In this study the researcher aims to explore the child right violations and psychosocial risks experienced by children orphaned primarily as a result of HIV/AIDS in Lesotho. Lesotho ranks in at number three in the world of countries most ravaged by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Of its 2.2million citizens, 17% are orphans, and half of them have been orphaned as a result of HIV/AIDS (United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS, 2004) (UNAIDS). According to the Non-Governmental Coalition on the Rights of the child, (2000), the number of orphans in Lesotho continues to increase on daily basis resulting in the country being under enormous strain and these vulnerable children at increased risk. The research design used in this study is the qualitative research design and research was conducted using face to face in depth interviews. A semi structured interview schedule was constructed and the researcher also used a tape recorder. Purposive sampling technique was used to obtain a sample size of 12 adolescent orphans at a High School in Maseru Lesotho. Data analysis is done according to Tesche’s steps of interview analysis, in which the main themes and categories are drawn from the interviews and discussed. The main findings were that most of the orphans who participated in the study had a poor quality of life but maintained a positive outlook in terms of the future. Most of the orphans were living in child headed households that had no electricity. There was no evidence of physical abuse amongst the respondents. In terms of psycho social risks, most orphans did not suffer from depression or severe anxiety. A small percentage of orphans did experience suicidal ideation in response to the death of their parents and their current circumstances. The main conclusions were that orphans in Lesotho are experiencing child right violations especially poor quality of life and that orphans in this study did not experience severe psycho social risks. From these findings, it is recommended that there is a need for more non-profit organizations that address the child right violations and psycho social risks experienced by orphans in Lesotho as well as a need for awareness campaigns on the plight of orphans to be generated. It is also recommended that the Lesotho government continue to fund the education costs of orphans as well as offer transportation to school.