The construction and negotiation of the notion of the identity in a print sector of the media : a case study of the Sunday Tribune Herald.

Abstract

In post apartheid South Africa, the country's citizens have undergone much change in terms of their identity. No longer are people bound by the disenfranchisement and the constraints that the erstwhile apartheid regime dictated, which placed people in distinct categories of identity. In this regard, South African citizens can now freely explore and exhibit their identities without having to act within the confines of 'specific' identities, which were once imposed upon them. Yet, despite this freedom some people within these groups remain committed to maintaining their cultural identity through certain mediums and practises. The Indian population of South Africa is one such group and the Sunday Tribune Herald is one such newspaper which caters for the Indian South African in this regard. This study examines how a print medium, that is, the Sunday Tribune Herald attempts to validate their target audience's notion of identity. Thus, the main focus of this research project is to explore, through the method of interviews, and a semiotic reading of the text, how the Sunday Tribune Herald and therefore those who are responsible for producing this newspaper, namely, staff members', play a role in constructing and negotiating the notion of identity. The project analyses what the Sunday Tribune Herald staff members' perception of the notion of identity is, and how, in their capacity as editors and journalists, they are able to provide a medium for a particular community, which is representative of, and addresses, the community's needs in terms oftheir identity.