Abstract
Post-apartheid South Africa has been rocked by frequent xenophobic attacks of Black African refugees by South African citizens. Particularly in 2008, 2015 and 2019, xenophobic attacks have resulted in the killing and internal displacement of African refugees and migrants in the country. The media establishment, particularly the print media however deployed exaggerated characterizations and representations of the xenophobic events. The print media tended to use terms of phrases that give the impression that xenophobia in South Africa is pervasive across the country. To the contrary, recent academic findings have shown that xenophobic violence in South Africa tends to be localized and perpetrated by predominantly low-income and previously disadvantaged segments of the society. By employing discourse analysis as a methodological lens, this paper teases out language use by the print media in characterizing the nature and extend of xenophobia in South Africa and reveals the hyperbolic and unrealistic description of the phenomenon.
Presenters
Dr Amanuel Isak TewoldeSenior Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Centre for Social Development in Africa, University of Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
KEYWORDS
MEDIA REPRESENTATION, SOUTH AFRICA, XENOPHOBIA, REFUGEES
