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Free, Fair or Flattery: Political Participation and the Media - A Case Study of the NGO Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) and the Constitution Making Process in Zambia

Mafuta, Prudence LU (2014) SIMV27 20141
Graduate School
Master of Science in Development Studies
Department of Communication and Media
Abstract
Issues of democracy and the greater debate on development cannot go without an examination of the various agencies that play a role in the larger development agenda and in political participation in particular, including NGOs and the Media. Here media refers to both traditional media of television, radio and press and social media and WEB 2.0. The case of YALI and the constitution making process in Zambia, embedded in Jürgen Habermas’ public sphere theory and Peter Dahlgren’s civic cultures, illuminates how NGOs, when faced with threats, intimidation and censorship, strive to create a platform for civic engagement for citizens. The interaction and coming together of NGOs and the Media is of fundamental importance for a thriving democracy... (More)
Issues of democracy and the greater debate on development cannot go without an examination of the various agencies that play a role in the larger development agenda and in political participation in particular, including NGOs and the Media. Here media refers to both traditional media of television, radio and press and social media and WEB 2.0. The case of YALI and the constitution making process in Zambia, embedded in Jürgen Habermas’ public sphere theory and Peter Dahlgren’s civic cultures, illuminates how NGOs, when faced with threats, intimidation and censorship, strive to create a platform for civic engagement for citizens. The interaction and coming together of NGOs and the Media is of fundamental importance for a thriving democracy and for advancements of political engagement in Zambia. This thesis argues that given the dangers associated with getting involved in politics in Zambia due to threats and harassment by those in power, coupled with unfulfilled political promises and high illiteracy levels, there is a decline in political participation in Zambia. This study further demonstrates that the ideals of the civic culture circuit namely, knowledge, values, trust, spaces, practices and identities; as well as deliberative democracy, political participation, NGOs and the media, are all challenged in the case of YALI in Zambia. (Less)
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author
Mafuta, Prudence LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMV27 20141
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
WEB 2.0, human rights, communication, civic cultures, public sphere, democracy, political participation, media
language
English
id
4459639
date added to LUP
2014-06-16 10:14:59
date last changed
2014-09-08 14:04:12
@misc{4459639,
  abstract     = {{Issues of democracy and the greater debate on development cannot go without an examination of the various agencies that play a role in the larger development agenda and in political participation in particular, including NGOs and the Media. Here media refers to both traditional media of television, radio and press and social media and WEB 2.0. The case of YALI and the constitution making process in Zambia, embedded in Jürgen Habermas’ public sphere theory and Peter Dahlgren’s civic cultures, illuminates how NGOs, when faced with threats, intimidation and censorship, strive to create a platform for civic engagement for citizens. The interaction and coming together of NGOs and the Media is of fundamental importance for a thriving democracy and for advancements of political engagement in Zambia. This thesis argues that given the dangers associated with getting involved in politics in Zambia due to threats and harassment by those in power, coupled with unfulfilled political promises and high illiteracy levels, there is a decline in political participation in Zambia. This study further demonstrates that the ideals of the civic culture circuit namely, knowledge, values, trust, spaces, practices and identities; as well as deliberative democracy, political participation, NGOs and the media, are all challenged in the case of YALI in Zambia.}},
  author       = {{Mafuta, Prudence}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Free, Fair or Flattery: Political Participation and the Media - A Case Study of the NGO Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) and the Constitution Making Process in Zambia}},
  year         = {{2014}},
}