Sammendrag
The state owned media in Zimbabwe have frequently been described as the government s voicetube. This study explores the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation s News at Eight from democratic and nationbuilding perspectives. It studies how relations of ownership and control of the parastatal institution are established in the actual television text. The national News appears as a stronghold of consensual discourse, subordinating opposition politics to a national master narrative of tribute to status quo and the ruling regime. Nevertheless, financial problems, increased commercialisation and pressure from both inside and outside the ZBC create a situation where the institution s struggle for the control of reality becomes increasingly difficult. This is observed through a case study of ZBC s covering of the ZCTU demonstrations in December 1997. In a situation where the economy is open and requires transparency and good governance and the quest for democracy and political openness is increasing, the ZBC News is described as one of the last convulsions of the forced consensus hegemony in Zimbabwe.
broadcasting.