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Item Open Access Changing notions of political community through subnational communication(University of the Free State, 2004) Hudson, HeidiThis article seeks to address the question whether, in the face of growing dominance of globalisation, political communities will become less nationalistic and state-centric. The focus is on conceptually redefining the traditional notion of political community by looking at how transnational community is formed through social and political communication. After outlining the definitional minefield of concepts three metaphors or images of transnational community-building, namely transactionalism, cosmopolitanism and neo-medievalism are discussed. From there, the dynamics of the subnational external relations of provinces and municipalities are examined. Specific attention is paid to the Free State province and the Local Municipality of Mangaung and the way in which basic political values of citizenship and rights are communicated and inculcated.Item Open Access Mbeki's HIV/AIDS policy communication: the beliefs and behaviours of a South African community(University of the Free State, 2004) Kiwanuka-Tondo, J.; Amico, R.; De Wet, G.; Fisher, J.; Cornman, D.In South Africa by 2002, the number of people living with HIV had risen to 4. 7 million with JI% of the population infected. About 25% of the pregnant women in South Africa are HIV positive, and hundreds of infants are infected at birth every day. Amidst this grave public health emergency, President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa sparked a huge international debate during the 13th International AIDS Conference, when he challenged the prevailing AIDS paradigm that HIV causes AIDS, raised questions about the role of AZT as a treatment, and argued that poverty was responsible for the aggressive spread of AIDS in his country. The theoretical body of research implies that communication of political issues from the media influences public perception about these issues. Residents of Ikageng, a suburb of Potchefstroom in South Africa, were p·urposively sampled because the township was demographically similar to many of the townships in South Africa. Results suggested that President Mbeki's statements may not have played a discernable role in influencing opinion and risk behaviour in this particular sample. This is most likely due to this sample's reliance on other sources for health-related information. The majority of participants reported relying upon medical officials for information about HIV or AIDS. The lack of a direct influence of Mbeki's controversial stance regarding HIV/AIDS on individual risk behaviour, however, may speak to the potential positive and resilient influence of HIV prevention campaignsItem Open Access Communication implications of workers' perceptions in the manufacturing industry regarding condom use(University of the Free State, 2004) Jordaan, ChristinaThe regular use of condoms is one of the most effective ways to prevent infection with HIV. The efficacy of the condom as instrument to combat infection is, however, negatively impacted upon by popular (mis)perceptions. This leads to incorrect use of, or the refusal to use, condoms. Agencies seeking to promote condom use should therefore utilise these perceptions in their communication strategy designs. This article explores perceptions on condom use in a sample group of 20 persons who attended a three-day training workshop on HIV/AIDS prevention in Johannesburg from 29 September to 1 October 2003. The group was constituted of workers in the manufacturing industry who had been selected by their management and peers because they were deemed to have the potential to be trained as peer educators in HIV/AIDS prevention.Item Open Access Poster themes in Bloemfontein during the 2004 general election campaign(University of the Free State, 2004) De Wet, Johann C.This article essentially focuses on the political poster as a medium for political communication and as a propaganda medium during an election campaign. An introductory discussion is followed by an analysis of the thematic content of party political posters which appeared in the city of Bloemfontein during the period 9 February 2004 to 14 April 2004 - the official campaign period for South Africa's third democratic general election. The analysis focuses particularly on the posters constructed by the four parties which gained seats in the Free State Legislature, namely the African National Congress (ANC with 25 seats), the Democratic Alliance (DA with 3 seats), the Freedom Front Plus (FF+ with 1 seat) and the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP with 1 seat). A total of thirteen parties contested the Free Siate Provincial election. The poster themes of two parties, the New National Party (NNP) and National Action (NA), which were exceptionally visible in the poster war in Bloemfontein during the election campaign and which gained no representation in the Free State Legislature, are included in the discussion. The interpretation of poster messages is linked to the specific context in which they appeared. Meanings can only be ascribed within a given context or, in this case, socio-political and economic circumstance.Item Open Access The promotion of neo-conservatism through contemporary Hollywood film with reference to Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (1999)(University of the Free State, 2004) Jordaan, DanieThis article proposes that current mainstream Hollywood film deliberately espouses a kind of neo-conservatism, replacing the apocalyptic pessimism typical of the so-called crisis cinema of the eighties. One might welcome this search for new meaning in life, were it not that one suspects that much of this filmic reaffirmation of the value of sacrificial violence by heroic individuals in order to restore an ailing society is, arguably, a mere media construct that extends the hegemony of supranational corporatism throughout the West. The author presents a brief survey of war films that has had considerable box office success during the last decade or so, arguing that Hollywood cinema has realigned itself with a kind of "Fort America" mentality in spite of the anti-Bush sentiment so vocally expressed by actors at the 2003 Academy Awards ceremony. In conclusion, the author analyses Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (1999) in order to show to what extent the elements of framing and composition reflect, reinforce and comment on the narrative of Saving Private Ryan, creating a sub text that clearly strengthens American neo-patriotism.Item Open Access Reflections on the state of public relations in the South African market-place: a research survey(University of the Free State, 2004) Van der Merwe, Johann; Venter, Ben-PietPublic relations is a discipline finding itself on the metaphorical banks of the Rubicon: It is seeking to position itself as a significant player in the marketing and management field. Endeavours to achieve a higher state of strategic significance are already underway under the auspices of the official body for public relations: PRISA. However, the question needs to be asked whether public relations practitioners are themselves ready to become strategically significant players, and whether they understand the contribution that their function can make to organisational success. This debate in the communication community, and perceptions of public relations practitioners, form the focus of a research survey recently carried out. This survey investigates the relationship between the function of public relations and other management functions, including marketing, marketing communication, and strategic management, and establishes what public relations practitioners' views are regarding their role vis-a-vis these management functions.Item Open Access Creating and sustaining loyalty in the recruitment industry by means of integrated marketing communication(University of the Free State, 2004) Du Toit, Narita; Mulder, DalmeThe highly competitive market-place of today has made relationship-building pivotal in the quest for marketing success. To have a relationship with a client an integrated approach incorporating the product/service, the packaging, the distribution, the price and all communication, are needed. Integrated marketing communication has become increasingly imponant as marketers (read: communicators) seek to enhance long-term relationships with clients, rather than concentrating on once-off transactions. Communicators need to regard each point of contact with a client as an opponunity to build and to create loyalty. (Relationships are based upon value-added, reciprocal exchanges of information.) This anicle's primary objective is to ground what, within the IMC perspective, creates and maintains client loyalty and how one could optimally understand why and how clients become and stay loyal in the recruitment industry. Through the combination of grounded theory and discourse analysis, this study indicates that a communicator in the recruitment industry should attempt to integrate the totality of his/her communication to guarantee a "one voice, one-look" strategy and a holistic approach.Item Open Access Communication challenges facing RSFM (Radio Shimla)(University of the Free State, 2004) Meyer, PatrickAbstract not availableItem Open Access The market paradigm and the loss of public service broadcasting (television) for development and nation building(University of the Free State, 2004) Fourie, Pieter J.Can public service broadcasting (PSB) under the pressure of the market approach be saved for development and nation building purposes? Within the context of the ongoing local and international debate about the future of PSB and how to justify it, this article seeks answers to the above question by first of all describing what the market paradigm or approach to the regulation and management of broadcasting entails. Thereafter the approach 's impact on PSB is briefly discussed, followed by an analysis of the impact of the market approach on broadcasting in South Africa. The article concludes by arguing that the dilemma of PSB lies in the inherent paradoxes that arise in the process of trying to merge the cultural and market paradigms in/to broadcasting.Item Open Access The information landscape: political democracy versus epistemic games with specific reference to South African communities(University of the Free State, 2004) Witbooi, S. L.The South African government and professions are taking stock of the transformation of the last decade. Municipalities still face serious problems such as urban population growth, poverty, housing shortages, environmental and health problems. The professions are fighting battles of curriculum and practice reforms and experience Cinderella treatment from government. This article focuses on the information landscape in the public sector of South Africa from political democracy and epistemic games perspectives. The links between information and politics, education, the economy and development as epistemic games are investigated. The practical reality of the South African information landscape of public and school libraries are examined against the background of political democracy. This landscape is constantly changing and very uncertain due to the transformation of local government. The author argues for active on-going debate between the two opposing groups of democracy (elected government officials and the electorate) and epistemic games (academics, researchers and philosophers) to find joint, informed solutions to critical issues.Item Open Access Women voices in the media of the Afrikaans language commumity - an historical perspective(University of the Free State, 2004) Rabe, LizetteHow were the voices of women journalists in the Afrikaans speaking community in South Africa heard over the past century? Who were these women, and who pioneered the way before them? This article investigates the origin and development of Afrikaans women journalists against the background of the socio-political climate as manifested after the Anglo-Boer War. Discrimination against women was widespread, as in other cultures. However, after the Anglo-Boer War, it seems women relinquished their rights in favour of the Afrikaner Nationalist movement. This impacted even more on the rights of women as citizens who could contribute as equals on all levels of society. Individuals who pleaded for equality were silenced. Afrikaans women were not allowed - it was deemed as "the will of God" - to play a public role. In the Afrikaans journalism world, this manifested itself in the fact that women had to be content to play a secondary role for many decades. Those individuals who can be regarded as the pioneers in Afrikaans journalism are highlighted in this article. The need for more research in media historiography - not only with the focus on women, but also on those voices that were not heard because of class or race - is also articulated.Item Open Access Community and communication(University of the Free State, 2004) Strauss, D. F. M.Amongst several other characteristic features human beings are known to live in communities and to have the ability to communicate with each other. But although this statement may receive almost universal consent, the ways soon divide when a closer account is sought of the nature of community and of communication. We commence our discussion by first developing a brief perspective on the nature of communication in its relation to the uniqueness of human language, and then proceed with an analysis of the interconnections between communicative actions and the complexity of human societal endeavours - also taking into account the nature of traditional African societies. The analysis is concluded with a brief sketch of the correlation of co-ordinational and communal relationships within society and with an indication of the mediating role of communication media within a differentiated society.