Battling the ’Invisible Nets’
Gender in the fields of journalism in sub-Saharan AfricaMaria Zuiderveld Avhandlingen baseras på följande delstudier:
Roxberg, Z. M. (2010). Rapport från regnbågsredaktionen. En studie om kvinnors erfarenheter av att verka som journalister i Sydafrika. Nordicom Information, 32(1), pp. 61-73 (översatt). Zuiderveld, M. (2011). ‘Hitting the glass ceiling’—gender and media management in sub-Saharan Africa. Journal of African
Media Studies, 3(3), pp. 401-415.
Zuiderveld, M. (2014). Women climbing the ladder: The case of affirmative action in South African media. Global Media
Jour-nal, African Edition, 8(1), pp. 30-62.
Zuiderveld, M. (2016). Gender and leadership divides in sub-Saharan newsrooms. (Submitted)
Zuiderveld, M. (2013). Sex, football and the media: The case of South Africa and the World Cup. Scandinavian Sports Studies
Forum, 4, pp. 25-48.
Akademisk avhandling för filosofie doktorsexamen i journalistik, medier och kommunikation, som med tillstånd från Samhällsvetenskapliga fakulteten
kommer att offentligt försvaras fredagen den 2 juni 2017, kl. 13.15 i Annedalsseminariet, sal 305,
Institutionen för journalistik, medier och kommunikation, Seminariegatan 1A, Göteborg.
Battling the ’Invisible Nets’. Gender in the fields of journalism in sub-Saharan Africa
English text, with a summary in Swedish, 248 pages ISBN: 978-91-88212-61-0 (Print)
ISBN: 978-91-88212-63-4 (PDF)
ISSN: 1101-4652
Maria Zuiderveld (maria.zuiderveld@gu.se)
Department of Journalism, Media and Communication, University of Gothenburg, PO Box 710, SE-40530 Göteborg, Sweden
Doctoral dissertation presented at the Department of Journalism, Media and Communication, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
Abstract
Battling the ‘invisible nets’ studies journalism as a gendered practice in
sub-Saharan Africa. This thesis analyses the gender logic in the field of journal-ism by examining how structures of gender, class and race interact to create barriers and opportunities for black women journalists and media managers. The empirical focus is on South Africa but also includes Zambia, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Uganda. The theoretical framework is inspired by French socio-logist Pierre Bourdieu and the appropriation of his theories by Toril Moi. Inspired by an ethnographic approach, five empirical studies examine the lived experiences of black women journalists. The thesis also examines how gender logic operates in the field of journalism in South Africa on a detailed level by analysing reporting and editorial discussions concerning a specific gender-sensitive topic during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
The results of the thesis show the South African context is unique in the way it shapes opportunities and obstacles for women in the field of journalism, and how black women journalists act in order to navigate the ‘invisible nets’ and succeed in the field.
Keywords: South Africa; Zambia; Uganda; Nigeria; Ethiopia; journalism; gender logic; Bourdieu; intersectionality
