Monitoring the media

The Media Monitoring Project (MMP) was the leading organisation monitoring the total output of news in radio, television and print before and during South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994. The main objective of the MMP was to monitor the vertical top-down distribution of infor...

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Main Author: John van Zyl
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Johannesburg 2022-11-01
Series:Communicare
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/jcsa/article/view/1994
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author John van Zyl
author_facet John van Zyl
author_sort John van Zyl
collection DOAJ
description The Media Monitoring Project (MMP) was the leading organisation monitoring the total output of news in radio, television and print before and during South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994. The main objective of the MMP was to monitor the vertical top-down distribution of information from powerful media institutions to citizens many of whom were first-time voters, the majority illiterate, unfamiliar with the concept of human rights and not accustomed to the language of democracy. After the elections the MMP has had to change its role from vertical to horizontal monitoring and to observe the equal distribution of Information TO all citizens, and FROM all citizens, and ensure that channels of access are available to all citizens. As Hamelink states: "Conventional human rights thinking focuses the vertical state-citizen on relation. This ignores the possibility that concentration of power in the hands of Individuals can be as threatening as state power Whenever citizens pursue different economic interests, individual human rights will be under serious threat. Citizens also need to be protected from each other" 
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spelling doaj-art-ed4098a5382c4c98adf2d4827f39bcb72025-01-20T08:46:45ZengUniversity of JohannesburgCommunicare0259-00692957-79502022-11-0113210.36615/jcsa.v13i2.1994Monitoring the mediaJohn van Zyl0University of Witwatersrand The Media Monitoring Project (MMP) was the leading organisation monitoring the total output of news in radio, television and print before and during South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994. The main objective of the MMP was to monitor the vertical top-down distribution of information from powerful media institutions to citizens many of whom were first-time voters, the majority illiterate, unfamiliar with the concept of human rights and not accustomed to the language of democracy. After the elections the MMP has had to change its role from vertical to horizontal monitoring and to observe the equal distribution of Information TO all citizens, and FROM all citizens, and ensure that channels of access are available to all citizens. As Hamelink states: "Conventional human rights thinking focuses the vertical state-citizen on relation. This ignores the possibility that concentration of power in the hands of Individuals can be as threatening as state power Whenever citizens pursue different economic interests, individual human rights will be under serious threat. Citizens also need to be protected from each other"  https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/jcsa/article/view/1994Media Monitoring Project (MMP)South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994human rightslanguage of democracy
spellingShingle John van Zyl
Monitoring the media
Communicare
Media Monitoring Project (MMP)
South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994
human rights
language of democracy
title Monitoring the media
title_full Monitoring the media
title_fullStr Monitoring the media
title_full_unstemmed Monitoring the media
title_short Monitoring the media
title_sort monitoring the media
topic Media Monitoring Project (MMP)
South Africa's first democratic elections in April 1994
human rights
language of democracy
url https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/jcsa/article/view/1994
work_keys_str_mv AT johnvanzyl monitoringthemedia