Call on me : the cell phone : a multi-media tool of communication amongst South African youth and how it can be used to platform youth stories for media and advertising

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 75-80).This media dissertation researches the cell phone's actual and potential role as a multimedia tool of communication amongst South African youth and looks at how it can be used to platform youth stories for media and advertising. The youth's connection to the cell phone has come to mean so much more than its actual technological functions. This media dissertation investigates the cell phone phenomenon amongst the youth of today, by looking at both local and international trends, with a more intimate focus on the current trends amongst the South African youth. It will look at the sociology of the cell phone and the culture surrounding it. It will then consider new technology and how the cell phone's role may also be a tool for leapfrogging in South Africa. It is also important to consider the negative connotations that arise with the cell phone's infiltration amongst the youth.Through analysis of recent research about the cell phone's impact on the youth here and internationally, two opposing media directions are identified: the cell phone as a tool in marketing and advertising; and the cell phone as a tool in investigative journalism. By analyzing two different areas, this media dissertation creates a broad and holistic understanding of the cell phone's potential functions through a strong literature review. Firstly, the cell phone's function in marketing and advertising will be analyzed. This media dissertation will take into account the youth market in South Africa through a case study of one of South Africa's strategic consultancy companies: Instant Grass. Through a close look at the youth market now, it will be possible to create a greater understanding of the current trends and how to capitalize on these trends. In terms of marketing and advertising, this media dissertation then discusses an advertising exercise with a youth group studying Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town. Secondly, the cell phone in terms of media and investigative journalism will be analysed through fieldwork done with etv's 3rd Degree. This media dissertation looks at how the cell phone could be used as a tool for youth stories by looking at the parameters involved in creating investigative stories. This chapter also takes a look at the issue of citizen journalism in the digital publishing world today and the rate at which cell phone technology is spurring this development on

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS EFFECT ON ATTITUDES AMONG MILLENNIALS IN SOUTH AFRICA

Online interpersonal interaction and communication has become an important aspect of social activities, especially among Millennials (young adults). However, the African continent has the lowest Internet access across the globe, but the development and rapid adoption of mobile technology has led to a major increase in the usage of Internet and new online Information and Communications Technology (ICT) channels, which are collectively referred to as social media. Social media platforms have become an integral part of everyday life and marketing communications via these digital channels has become one of the latest trends in South Africa (SA). The most commonly used social medium in the world is Facebook, whereas Mxit is the largest locally established online ICT conduit. However, not much is known about Millennials’ attitudes towards social media as an advertising medium. Therefore, several surveys were used to investigate the effect of social media (Facebook and Mxit) marketing communications have on each of the hierarchy response model attitude stages among Millennials in SA. The results confirm that social media marketing communications have a significant influence on all of the hierarchy response model attitude stages, but on a declining degree as South African Millennials progress to the higher stages. Furthermore, the findings also reveal that several online usage and demographic characteristics have a significant influence on attitudes towards these new interactive ICT conduits

Mediating identity, 'mobile-ising' culture : the social impact of MXIt in the relational lives of teens

The primary aim of the study was to examine the mediating role that MXit plays in the identity formation of 16-18 year old adolescents. Little is known about the social impact of MXit on adolescents’ identities when this usage is so deeply embedded in the relational exchanges of teens’ everyday experiences. Nine focus groups, four group interviews and two one on one interviews were employed across six schools located in four socioeconomically divergent Cape Town suburbs demarcated using middle to upper-income (Milnerton and Newlands) and lower-income (Khayelitsha and Cloetesville) operational definitions

Towards understanding mobile messaging ecologies : an exploration of the meanings young people attach to instant messaging channels

Mobile communications have added an ever present layer to our personal communication through which social dynamics can be reconstructed. In youth culture specifically, instant messaging allows young people to achieve limited autonomy, explore peer groups and an evolving sense of self. This dissertation explores a model for understanding how instant messaging facilitates this. Theories of media ecologies provide useful ways of explaining media environments. Nonetheless ecologies are usually conceptualised in relation to mass media rather than networked media and tend to assume that ecologies are situated in a particular physical space. The theory is nonetheless useful in understanding the everyday experience of young people using media. By extending media ecology theory to account for the personal communicative ecologies of instant messaging, this study extends the notion of ecology to account for a sense of digital social space outside the constructs of physical space. Through taking an interactional epistemological stance, qualitative research was conducted. Two focus groups were conducted to explore how instant messaging channels meet the needs of a group of young people from middle class contexts in Cape Town. The resultant discussions are applied to the framework of a 'layered' communicative ecology, taking technology, social and discursive layers into account and establishing the centrality of social space within a new and expanded model of networked messaging ecologies. The central aim of this research is to explore how relevant the application of media ecologies would be to an exploration of digital spaces of communication and practice

Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights and Information and Communications Technologies: A Policy Review and Case Study from South Africa

This report explores the intersection between sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and technological means of enhancing health. South Africa has a high teenage pregnancy rate. Almost a third of its girl teenagers report having been pregnant. The drivers of teenage pregnancy include uneven gender relations, poor access to health services and a lack of knowledge about sexual reproduction, contraception and poverty. Poverty and place of residence also affect pregnancy and health outcomes. Women and girls living in low-income residential areas have little or no access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services, including sexual, reproductive and maternal health. Women and girls located in rural, peri-urban and informal settlement contexts also experience technology deficits, including low levels of mobile phone ownership, poor network coverage, weak satellite signals and insufficient bandwidth. At present, very little research explores health within peri-urban contexts and the interconnections between poverty, place and health. At the same time, e- and m-health, and the information and communications technologies (ICT) that they rely on are frequently seen as a panacea to struggling health systems and as a means of meeting the health needs of women and girls in hard-to-reach places. Yet many complex factors are required for a successful m-health intervention. These include appropriate policy recognition from both the Department of Health and the Department of Communications; cooperation between the government and the private sector to bring together professional expertise (in health and technology); financial resources; awareness of women’s and girls’ sexual and reproductive health needs and rights; planning and provision of health information; consideration of ethical information and privacy; and awareness of the potential for such systems to generate savings and/or additional revenue. Using ICT (particularly mobile phones) to address the sexual and reproductive health needs of women and girls in hard-to-reach places is in its infancy. However, ICT and health offer enormous business potential and many mobile phone companies are exploring possible business models. This creates potential for the government and commercial companies to cooperate and develop new initiatives. This report is an exploration of this complex and emerging landscape which looks at relevant policies and current practice, asking: how are poor women’s and girls’ needs in rural and peri-urban conditions catered for through technological innovation in health?UK Department for International Developmen

Attitudes and perceptions of mobile advertising among rural youth in the Limpopo Province.

Master of Commerce in Marketing Management. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2017.Mobile advertising, a form of advertising that targets people using mobile devices such as cell phones and tablets, has opened a platform for advertisers to communicate with their target markets at any given time and location. The mobile market continues to multiply in South Africa, and devices are continuously becoming more technologically advanced, resulting in more sophisticated advertising vehicles and mobile users. In addition, mobile advertising has been referred to as one of the best means to communicate with the youth. This study explores the attitudes and perceptions of youth in rural communities towards mobile advertising. As such, it addresses a gap in the literature on youth and mobile advertising, which tends to focus on youth in more urban contexts. The study focuses on the following types of mobile advertising: SMSs, video advertising, mobile web banner advertising and app advertising. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted, involving a sample of 38 participants. Six focus group sessions were conducted in Thohoyandou and Turfloop. The study used the ARF Model (that is, vehicle exposure, advertising attentiveness, advertising communication, advertising persuasion, and advertising response) and the ABC model of attitudes (that is, affect, behaviour, and cognition) to develop the research instrument, and then additionally used the Ducoffe Extended Model (that is, informativeness, entertainment, credibility, and irritation) to guide the analysis of the collected data. The following are the main findings of this study: The majority of participants show low responsiveness towards mobile advertising; however, some welcome mobile advertising. Most participants find mobile advertising ‘annoying’ or ‘irritating’, mainly because they feel that the content advertised to them is not always relevant, has poor timing and invades their privacy. Other participants are happy receiving mobile adverts if the content is relevant, informative, helpful, creative and entertaining. Participants generally appear to have negative overall attitudes towards SMS advertising in particular, again largely due to irrelevant content. Video, mobile web banner and app advertising receive mixed reactions. Implications and recommendations are provided, for marketers and future researchers

Online and digital media usage on cell phones among low-income urban youth in Cape Town

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 69-76).Cell phones introduce a range of new possibilities for the use and production of media, for social networking and communication, political activism, and social development. For this study, 441 grade 11 students at nine schools in low-income areas in Cape Town, South Africa were surveyed about their use of cell phones. These young South Africans have adopted a number of ways to use the Web and mobile Instant Messaging. They also commonly access, produce, and share digital media via their phones and the Internet. Internet access has, until recently, only been accessible to the wealthiest fraction of South African society (about 10% of the population) and so this is a highly significant development. Until now, little quantitative data has been available to describe exactly to what extent and how this cohort is beginning to access and use the Internet and digital media on cell phones. The students reported intensive use of cell phones to access mobile Internet applications, at a far greater level than they report using desktop computers to access the Web. Mobile Internet is considerably more accessible to these students than computer-based Internet access and they are choosing to use the Internet primarily for mobile instant messaging and other characteristic forms of mobile media use. This suggests that these students encounter a distinct, mobile version of the Internet. Their experience of Internet access and digital media may consequently be quite different to that of their computer-using peers. An exploratory media and technology usage approach was chosen to determine first, the availability of cell phones and specific features to the students, and, second, the extent to which online and digital media are being accessed, produced, or shared. A detailed questionnaire was distributed to all students from thirteen grade 11 classes at nine schools (n=441). The schools were chosen as random cluster samples from all public secondary schools located in the city's 50% most deprived areas in order to provide a detailed assessment of cell phone usage in an environment similar to that which prevails in many urban South African schools. Activity-based questions indicate that a majority of respondents (68%) have used a cell phone on the previous day to access the Internet, while half of all respondents (49%) used the mobile Internet to access the Web on the previous day. Interpersonal communication was still the most common use of phones, with 87% of respondents making calls or sending SMS messages on a typical day. A significant minority (23%) of students did not own their own personal handset, despite the near universal use of cell phones among all respondents (96% use one on a typical day). While phone ownership correlated strongly with a sense of economic deprivation as well as lower academic performance, there was no significant difference between both groups in terms of their mobile Internet usage. Thus the fact that some students do not own a phone does not seem to create a 'mobile divide' or automatically lead to exclusion from the possibilities of mobile Internet access. Online media were found to be less frequently used than broadcast and print sources. Nonetheless, the fact that 28% of low-income urban youth access online news about once every day, or more often, may have significant implications for South Africa's news media, particularly in the future. Despite the geographical limitations of this study, the results provide an illuminating snapshot of mobile media use by low-income school-going youth in urban Cape Town

The National Health Insurance (NHI) in South Africa : scaling up health care provision: the consumers' perspectives.

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references.Globally, there are major shifts taking place in health care provision to achieve universal health coverage. In 2011, the South African Department of Health released a Green Paper outlining its vision for implementing a National Health Insurance (NHI). The NHI wants to improve the service provision and promote equity and efficiency to ensure that all South Africans have access to affordable quality health care services. Public participation is important to raise public awareness, consult the public and promote major programs of change. This research aims to analyze the gaps between the everyday lived reality of publicly provided health care consumers and intended health policy reform

#Democracy : a case study of social media use amongst members of the public sphere during the 2014 South African general election.

Master of Arts in English, Media and Performance Studies. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2016.At present social media is used by 28% of the world’s population. The use has naturally penetrated the political sphere where social media presence in election periods is a global growing phenomenon. However, limited research has been conducted examining political social media use in South Africa despite calls for social media research in developing contexts and the pervasiveness of social media use amongst the country’s netizens. In addressing this the dissertation defines the uses of social media during election periods and illustrates how social media was used during the 2014 South African general election. Finally, the study also determines whether social media contributed to the democracy of the country. The researcher used Jϋrgen Habermas’s theory of the public sphere as the theoretical underpinning of the study. An exploratory case study method was employed as the main research method with web archiving, a thematic analysis of Twitter trends and observation adopted as sub-methods. Research was limited to the most popular social media sites in the country: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Mxit. The findings demonstrate that social media was used by the country’s public, the traditional mass media, politicians and political parties, civil society actors and the IEC as part of their undertakings during the election period. The study also found that during the election period an online public sphere was realised in the country and, as a result, facilitated the creation of public opinion by creating communication channels between the electorate and other electoral actors. The dialogues that took place online showed signs of deliberation and was given consideration by the relevant authorities. Finally, the online public sphere regulated the state by enlightening them on public concerns and holding them accountable for their actions