Media On The Margins in South Africa

Chapters 1, 2, 4 and 5 are available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

Community media in South Africa plays a crucial role in providing platforms for local voices, fostering community engagement, and addressing issues relevant to specific communities, enabling marginal groups to take up their role as citizens.  They also help to overcome information inequalities that mirror and reinforce wider socio-economic inequalities. The book examines the state of local and community media in South Africa through empirical, analytical, and theoretical inquiry. Using a range of methodological approaches, it addresses print, broadcast, and other media in South Africa while addressing many seldom-asked questions pertaining to the role of the state, local power dynamics, business strategies, content, and human factors. Because of the historical significance of community radio in South Africa, the volume emphasizes this type of community media.