Kenya print media performance and the social construction of identity: Raila Odinga in the Nation and The Standard newspapers (1997-2017)

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dc.contributor.advisorBotma, Gabriel Johannesen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorOchoti, Fred Orinaen_ZA
dc.contributor.otherStellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Journalism.en_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2024-03-05T14:16:35Z
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-26T15:49:55Z
dc.date.available2024-03-05T14:16:35Z
dc.date.available2024-04-26T15:49:55Z
dc.date.issued2024-03
dc.descriptionThesis (DPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2024.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study examines the discursive construction of Raila Odinga‘s social identity by the Nation and The Standard newspapers between 1997 and 2017 to indicate the performance of Kenya print media in the consolidation of democracy. The study is conducted within the social constructionism paradigm to investigate how ethnicity, political connectedness and media ownership influenced the discursive construction of Raila Odinga‘s social identity by the newspapers as he jostled for political position and power nearly a decade after the restoration of multiparty democracy in the country. By drawing on cultural studies, specifically Laclau and Mouffe‘s (1985) discourse theory, and aspects of critical political economy theory, the study focuses on how the Nation and The Standard discursively positioned themselves in relation to Raila Odinga‘s shifting political stances regarding ethnicity, political connectedness and media ownership in the country‘s heterogeneous discursive field. The argument is that the discursive construction of Raila Odinga‘s social identity contributed to the establishment of dominant and marginalised political positions, and thus structuring the country‘s politics as the discourses about the politician engaged in hegemonic and counter-hegemonic struggles. Based on this theoretical departure point, critical discourse analysis (CDA) is identified as the appropriate research method for textual analysis applying the three-stage model suggested by Fairclough for identifying and analysing discourse, which was supplemented with some aspects from Van Dijk‘s model, whereby analysis was on how the newspapers characterised Raila Odinga when he had different political stances while in different political formations or alliances from 1997 to 2017. Because the study was in the main interested on the shifts and trends in the textual structures of discourses about Raila Odinga during the period under consideration, linguistic analysis was limited and placed in the context of discursive practice, whereby analysis focused on journalistic discursive resources that respective journalists drew from to construct and circulate discourses about the politician. The study also analysed the situational, institutional and societal structures and the hegemonic and counter-hegemonic sociocultural practices that were re-produced in the discourses of the newspapers about Raila Odinga, and how the existing power relations and ideologies were either maintained or changed because of the discourses. In order to triangulate and augment the textual findings, the study used semi-structured in-depth interviews with political journalists at the Nation and The Standard who engaged in practical processes of covering news stories about Raila Odinga, and political commentators who have an established reputation in commenting on the country‘s politics. The study found that as Raila Odinga shifted political formations and held different positions, the newspaper discourses about him by the Nation and The Standard intersected and other times diverged with different interests around ethnicity, political connectedness and media ownership. The editorial positionings of the newspapers on the politician changed depending on the ethnic groups he affiliated with, the political formations he was part of and the views he held in respect to diverse political issues during the period under consideration.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek die diskursiewe konstruksie van Raila Odinga se sosiale identiteit deur die Nation en The Standard tussen 1997 en 2017 om die prestasie van Keniaanse gedrukte media in die konsolidasie van demokrasie aan te dui. Die studie word binne die sosiale konstruksionisme-paradigma uitgevoer om te ondersoek hoe etnisiteit, politieke verbondenheid en media-eienaarskap die diskursiewe konstruksie van Raila Odinga se sosiale identiteit deur die koerante beïnvloed het terwyl hy byna 'n dekade na die herstel van veelparty-demokrasie in die land. Deur te steun op kulturele studies, spesifiek Laclau en Mouffe (1985) se diskoersteorie, en aspekte van kritiese politieke ekonomie-teorie, fokus die studie op hoe die Nation en The Standard hulleself diskursief geposisioneer het in verhouding tot Raila Odinga se verskuiwende politieke standpunte rakende etnisiteit, politieke verbondenheid en media-eienaarskap in die land se heterogene diskursiewe veld. Die argument is dat die diskursiewe konstruksie van Raila Odinga se sosiale identiteit bygedra het tot die vestiging van dominante en gemarginaliseerde politieke posisies, en sodoende die land se politiek gestruktureer het as die diskoerse oor die politikus wat in hegemoniese en kontrahegemoniese stryd betrokke was. Op grond van hierdie teoretiese vertrekpunt word kritiese diskoersanalise (CDA) geïdentifiseer as die toepaslike navorsingsmetode vir teksanalise deur die drie-stadium model wat deur Fairclough voorgestel is vir die identifisering en ontleding van diskoers, wat aangevul is met enkele aspekte uit Van Dijk se model, toe te pas, waardeur ontleding was oor hoe die koerante Raila Odinga gekenmerk het toe hy verskillende politieke standpunte gehad het terwyl hy van 1997 tot 2017 in verskillende politieke formasies of alliansies was. Omdat die studie hoofsaaklik geïnteresseerd was in die verskuiwings en tendense in die tekstuele strukture van diskoerse oor Raila Odinga tydens die tydperk onder beskouing, is linguistiese analise beperk en in die konteks van diskursiewe praktyk geplaas, waar analise gefokus het op joernalistieke diskursiewe hulpbronne waaruit onderskeie joernaliste geput het om diskoerse oor die politikus te konstrueer en te sirkuleer. Die studie het ook die situasionele, institusionele en samelewingstrukture en die hegemoniese en kontra-hegemoniese sosiokulturele praktyke wat in die diskoerse van die koerante oor Raila Odinga herproduseer is ontleed, en hoe die bestaande magsverhoudinge en ideologieë óf gehandhaaf óf verander is a.g.v. die diskoerse. Om die tekstuele bevindinge te trianguleer en aan te vul, het die studie semi-gestruktureerde in-diepte onderhoude gebruik met politieke joernaliste by die Nation en The Standard wat betrokke was by praktiese prosesse om nuusberigte oor Raila Odinga te dek, en politieke kommentators wat 'n gevestigde reputasie het. in kommentaar op die land se politiek. Die studie het bevind dat namate Raila Odinga politieke formasies verskuif het en verskillende posisies beklee het, die koerantdiskoerse oor hom deur die Nation en The Standard gekruis het en ander kere met verskillende belange oor etnisiteit, politieke verbondenheid en media-eienaarskap verskil. Die redaksionele posisies van die koerante oor die politikus het verander na gelang van die etniese groepe met wie hy geaffilieer het, die politieke formasies waarvan hy deel was en die sienings wat hy oor uiteenlopende politieke kwessies gehuldig het gedurende die tydperk onder oorweging. af_ZA
dc.description.versionDoctoralen_ZA
dc.format.extentvii, 301 pages
dc.identifier.urihttps://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/130389
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherStellenbosch : Stellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.rights.holderStellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshKenya -- Newspapersen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshFreedom of the press -- Kenyaen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshMass media -- Political aspects -- Kenyaen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshMass media -- Social aspects -- Kenyaen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshOdinga, Raila Amolo, 1945en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshPresidential candidates -- Kenyaen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshKenya -- Politics and government -- 2002-en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshStandard (Nairobi, Kenya : 2004)en_ZA
dc.subject.lcshDaily nation (Nairobi, Kenya)en_ZA
dc.subject.nameUCTD
dc.titleKenya print media performance and the social construction of identity: Raila Odinga in the Nation and The Standard newspapers (1997-2017)en_ZA
dc.typeThesisen_ZA
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