The ethics of reporting on HIV/AIDS in three major South African newspapers
| dc.contributor.advisor | Pepler, Elsabe | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Marais, Willemien | |
| dc.contributor.author | Ajibola, Oluwatoyin Adeola | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2018-05-28T07:04:18Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2018-05-28T07:04:18Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2009-05 | |
| dc.description.abstract | English: In the study, the researcher explores the issue of ethics of reporting on HIV/Aids in three major South African newspapers, namely Mail & Guardian, The Star and Daily Sun. The researcher argues that deontological and social responsibility ethical approaches are the necessary foundation upon which ethical decisions ought to be based, regarding the coverage of the pandemic in the media. The researcher establishes that journalists have to be bound by duty, which is a key concept within the ethical paradigms which are being proposed. The position that the researcher maintains is premised on the fact that journalists have a responsibility to society, especially because HIV/Aids is killing millions of Africans. And since there is no known cure for the disease, the media have a powerful role to play in ensuring that issues relating to the disease are reported consistently and regularly, since the media have an enormous influence (Retief 2002: 5). Using quantitative and qualitative content analysis as a research design, the researcher examined specifically four main ethical violations levelled against the media. It was found that in the newspapers studied, they had, on average, one story per issue; there is a gross dearth of stories which weré humanised; the language of reporting, especially the use of some metaphors, had negative connotations, some positive, and one was political. Regarding sensationalist headlines and text, very few examples were found. One of the major recommendations is that stories on HIV/Aids ought to be humanised, and the narrative genre of news writing offers a solution. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | Afrikaans: In hierdie studie ondersoek die navorser die kwessie van die etiek rakende verslaggewing oor MIV/Vigs in drie groot Suid-Afrikaanse koerante, naamlik Mail & Guardian, The Star en Daily Sun. Die navorser argumenteer dat die etiese benaderings van die deontologie en sosiale verantwoordelikheid die noodsaaklike grondslag bied waarop etiese besluite rakende die nuusdekking van die pandemie in die media gebaseer moet word. Die navorser stel dit dat joernaliste 'n verpligting het, wat 'n sleutelkonsep is binne die etiese paradigma wat voorgestel word. Die posisie wat die navorser inneem, berus op die feit dat joernaliste 'n verantwoordelikheid teenoor die samelewing het, veral aangesien MIV/Vigs reeds tot die dood van miljoene mense in Afrika gelei het en aangesien daar geen kuur vir die siekte is nie. Die media vervul 'n kragtige rol om toe te sien dat daar voortdurend en konsekwent berig word oor kwessies wat met die siekte verband hou aangesien die media 'n enorme invloed het (Retief 2002: 5). Deur middel van kwantitatiewe en kwalitatiewe inhoudsanalise het die navorser ondersoek ingestel na die vier belangrikste etiese oortredings wat voor die deur van die media gelê word. In die koerante wat bestudeer is, was daar gemiddeld een berig per uitgawe; daar is 'n oormaat stories wat verpersoonlik is; die taal van die beriggewing, veral die gebruik van sommige metafore, het negatiewe konnotasies, sommige positief, en een was polities van aard. Min voorbeelde van hoofopskrifte en teks is gevind waar sensasie 'n rol gespeel het. Een van die belangrikste aanbevelings is dat stories oor MIV/Vigs 'n menslike gesig gegee moet word, en dat die narratiewe genre van nuus 'n oplossing bied. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.sponsorship | Olabisi Onabanjo University | en_ZA |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11660/8330 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Ethics | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | HIV/Aids | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Newspaper reporting | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Deontology | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Normative ethics | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Social responsibility | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Metaphors | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Discourse analysis | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Content analysis | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | South African journalists | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Mass media -- Moral and ethical aspects | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Journalistic ethics -- South Africa | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Dissertation (M.A. (Communication Science))--University of the Free State, 2009 | en_ZA |
| dc.title | The ethics of reporting on HIV/AIDS in three major South African newspapers | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Dissertation | en_ZA |