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“South Africa belongs to all who live in it”: Deconstructing media discourses of migrants during times of xenophobic attacks, from 2008 to 2017

Deconstructing media discourses of migrants during times of xenophobic attacks, from 2008 to 2017

Sarah Helen Chiumbu
University of Johannesburg
Dumisani Moyo
University of Johannesburg
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“South Africa belongs to all who live in it”: Deconstructing media discourses of migrants during times of xenophobic attacks, from 2008 to 2017. (2022). Communicare: Journal for Communication Studies in Africa, 37(1), 136-152. https://doi.org/10.36615/jcsa.v37i1.1586
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  • Submited: October 13, 2022
  • Published: October 13, 2022

Abstract

A growing body of literature on media and xenophobia in South Africa has shown that the depiction
of immigrants by the mainstream print media is overwhelmingly negative, and this in turn enforces
negative stereotypes that contribute to further xenophobic attacks. This paper adds a dimension
that is missing from existing research to focus on media representation of immigrants within
questions around citizenship and identity.. The arguments driving this paper are inspired by the
proclamations in the South African Constitution preamble, which states that “South Africa belongs
to all who live in it, united in our diversity”. This paper analyses how selected print media in the
country construct immigrants in the context of identity and belonging. We start from the premise
that as a social institution, the media play an important role in shaping policies on immigration
that have a bearing on these matters. Using theories of media and national identity, the paper
examines thematic frames used by the selected newspapers to construct the image of immigrants
during three periods of xenophobic violence, in 2008, 2015, and 2017. Our main argument is
that while the media have played a significant role in creating awareness about the scourge of
xenophobia, they have, wittingly or unwittingly, used narrative frames that justify the exclusion of
foreigners, thereby entrenching a perception of insiders and outsiders, citizens and non-citizens.
In the process, they also reinforce fears of a national takeover by the foreign “other”. These
arguments hold significance in the broader debates about the transformation of the print media
and its role in the on-going process of nation-building.

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How to Cite
“South Africa belongs to all who live in it”: Deconstructing media discourses of migrants during times of xenophobic attacks, from 2008 to 2017. (2022). Communicare: Journal for Communication Studies in Africa, 37(1), 136-152. https://doi.org/10.36615/jcsa.v37i1.1586

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