The end of apartheid brought South Africa into the global media environment. Outside companies invested in the nation's newspapers while South African conglomerates pursued lucrative tech ventures and communication markets around the world. Many observers viewed the rapid development of South African media as a roadmap from authoritarianism to global modernity.

Herman Wasserman analyzes the debates surrounding South Africa's new media presence against the backdrop of rapidly changing geopolitics. His exploration reveals how South African disputes regarding access to, and representation in, the media reflect the domination and inequality in the global communication sphere. Optimists see post-apartheid media as providing a vital space that encourages exchanges of opinion in a young democracy. Critics argue the public sphere mirrors South Africa's past divisions and privileges the viewpoints of the elite. Wasserman delves into the ways these simplistic narratives obscure the country's internal tensions, conflicts, and paradoxes even as he charts the diverse nature of South African entry into the global arena.

| Cover Title Copyright Contents Acknowledgments Introduction PART 1: TRANSITIONS 1. From Apartheid to a New Democracy: Areas of Shift 2. "This Time for Africa"? Global Media Studies and the View from the South 3. A Changing Media Culture: Professional Ideologies between Past and Present PART II: LOCAL CONTESTATIONS 4. Is This Freedom? Media Ethics, "African Culture," and Universal Values 5. Global Genres and Local Context: What Controversies around Tabloidization Tell Us about South Afri 6. Rethinking Global and Local: South African Perspectives on the "Future of Journalism" PART III: GLOBAL SHIFTS 7. BRICS and Beyond: Mediating New Geopolitical Relationships 8. New Pressures and Opportunities: Technology, Geopolitics, and Social Change Conclusion Notes References Index | Book of the Year, Global Communication and Social Change Division of the International Communication Association (ICA), 2019
UCT Book Award (University of Cape Town), 2020 — International Communication Association (ICA)
Book of the Year, Global Communication and Social Change Division of the International Communication Association (ICA), 2019
UCT Book Award (University of Cape Town), 2020 — University of Cape Town
|Herman Wasserman is a professor of media studies and director of the Centre for Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town. He is the author of Tabloid Journalism in South Africa: True Story!. He is editor of Taking It to the Streets: Popular Media, Democracy and Development in Africa and coeditor of Media Ethics Beyond Borders.