Poverty Journal is Me Cape

8/4/2019 Poverty Journal is Me Cape

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Reporting our

biggest problem

Guy Berger

Rhodes University


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What is t

his problem?:

Aids?

School crisis? Corruption?

Women/child abuse?

Economy? Race?

Government-media relations?


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SECTIONA:

Introduction

Inyoka nesele? Chalk n cheese?

One of the problems: Govt vs Media


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Should & could it ever be

Umtya nethunga?(milking harness and pail)


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Or is it

acase of

Singamaphuti ahlathi linye?

Media & Govt in the same boat?


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It depends w

hat you look

at:

For me, one problem stands out as

our countrys worst pest,

and we need

combined

Govt-Media work

in order to

tackle it


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Its ugly n

ame is: P

OVERTY

Lets look at:

Why Poverty is Public Enemy no. 1

Learning from elsewhere

The journalism of poverty in SA

The poverty of journalism in SA

Conclusion: whats to be done?


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SECTIONB: Public

Enemy

No 1.

Whose problem is poverty:

the poor?

government?

civil society? business?

individuals?

media?


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The pinc

h

of poverty Whats bad about poverty?

People are cashless, foodless,

homeless, landless, illness, stress,powerless.

Note: jobless does not = poverty

Many indirect effects:

doesnt cause crime & Aids,

but it does contribute.


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The pill

a

rs of poverty An act of God, or

an act of man?

Quiz: Whatarethe underlyingcauses?

A local issue, or

a global issue?

Quiz: UN Millenium Goalfor2015?


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Questions 1:

Whats the delay in ending poverty?

What are the solutions?

Who is part of the problem?


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Questions 2:

Can media help change poverty?

Whats medias role in relation to

other actors: govt, business, civil

society, individuals?

How poor is our journalism in

reflecting & serving poor people?


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I

mpa

ct on policy & pra

ctice?

On govt policy?

On govt practice? Investment strategies?

Conscience of the rich?

Empowerment of the poor?

On local-global compassion?


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SECTIONC:

Looking elsewhere foranswers:

Development journalism

in Africa

Free marketmedia in

USA/India


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Development journ discredited Theory: educate, uplift, nation-build

But:

Poor grasp of causes of poverty

Top-down view of passive poor

Parrot of inappropriate ideologies

Buttressed bad governance.


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Development journ

a

lism effect: Reinforced poverty.

Bad journalism: lies, easy

victories Responsibility, no freedom.

Backlash = community media,

Backlash = watchdog media.


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Lessons:

Community and watchdog media

roles are good for fighting poverty

but

Babythrown out in bathwater: we stillneedto educate, uplift,nation-build.


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Elsewhere: Free market model 1

USA: little journalism on poverty,

Middle-class audiences resent it,

Comfort the afflicted, afflict comfortableversus

Neither publishers or readers clamour

for stories about the poor. Indian media panders to elite.

Freedom, no responsibility


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Free market model 2:

Stereotypes of lazy, failed people.

Disproportionate racialisation:

most US poor are white, but youdnever know from the media

Individual, rather than govt/societal issue.

Deserving poor vs blameworthy. Absence of voices of poor people.

Clearly:

Elitistmodel is wrong forSA media


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SECTIOND:

Journalism of poverty in SA

There is some coverage here.

Overview comments.

Some examples coming up. Analysis and critique.


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Not negative (due to our history).

But its racialised starving or fat cats.

Racialised empowerment gloss-over.

And: poor voices are absent esp. in

policy issues.

Also: poor portrayed as purely victims.

Too little debate about cause & solution.

SA coverage of poverty overview


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SA: journalism of poverty examples:

Business Day: high finance-politics

Generally, wealthy are uninterested

but not in South Africa

Kevin Wakeford: Put poverty on top of

the agenda

Neva Makgetla: Poor pay more forservices


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Sowetan: grassroots poverty.

Stink over bucket system

Lonely, exiled death of woman with Aids

Dispatch: charity angles

Donation of rugby kit to school

Africa wants better aidRejoice R40m to uplift poor

Little too late, G8


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EPH: Implicit, rather than explicit

Grenades used on stone-throwing pupils

Big brother man at Aids-charity dinner

Critique of DD and EPH:

Neither looked at how cold hits the poor.

Housing protests, pensions no poverty info. Very little on how development relates to poor.

Money comes into E Cape but for who?


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Analysing journalism of poverty 1

Comments:

Party-politicisation coverage

players eclipse the ball (BIG, Psam)

Little scrutinisation of stats

unemployment: 30% or40%?

Little debate except in Sowetan

Reliance on external columnists


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Analysing journalism of poverty 2

Comments

Little follow-up (cf. Poverty Hearings)

Absence of poor voices on policy issues.

Dichotomy:

Stories of people who are poor

Stories of poverty

Starvation coverage a charity or govt

issue (no depth)


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SECTIONE:

Poverty of Journalism in SA

Spinning the story:

Our journalism in general needschanging

Why and how.


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Complex coverage:

Poverty has many faces:

Hard to reduce, so therefore singular

stories or broadest concept, and no

connection.

Poverty hidden under other frames

crime, gender, AIDS, strikes,unemployment

Challenge to cover a process vs. event


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Problems in journalism

Poverty does not have to be covered.

Poverty = enterprise reporting

Few press releases! Few lobby actions.

We remember women, race

(sometimes), not class.

Survival not seen as an achievement.

Solutions-oriented journalism is atypical.


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SECTIONF: Conclusion

Whats 2B done?

Conscious editorial strategy:

ProactiveMaking links

Allow new formats: not only events.

Use newspegs (petrol, weather)

Get voices

Build sources (AIDS orphan families)


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Newagenda:

Recognise real achievements

Seek out solutions

Stop conflating race & poverty

Remember gender

Train for debate, depth & think-pieces Demandmoretime, agitate formore

space,revisitthe subject


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Summing up the point:

Areeditors givingleadership?

Is govtplayingball?

Can we construct consensus

about prioritising this problem,

and to transparency, and debate,in tackling it?


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Making impact together:

On policy, practice,

agendas, public opinion,

understanding, attitudes,emotions, skills.

Onlythen willgovt& journalismbecometherichresources

forreconstructingoursociety.


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And one day, perhaps, wewill not have this biggest

problem to report anymore.

Thank you

Documents

Poverty Journal is Me Cape