A struggle for representation : the international media treatment of South Africa, 1972-1979
Between 1972 and 1979, the politicians and officials of South Africa's Department of Information attempted to manipulate and neutralise the international media's treatment of South Africa. This programme of activity was exposed at the end of the decade in what became known as the Information scandal. Meanwhile, in Europe and North America, South African exiles and British and American citizens opposed to apartheid, campaigned under the banner of 'anti-apartheid'. Foreign correspondents in South Africa numbered little more than a dozen in 1972. By the end of the 1970s, they had become a formidable force. This expansion was directly related to events on the ground, most notably the South African invasion of Angola (1975) and the Soweto uprising (1976). The introduction of the Cold War to the southern African sub-continent transformed the nature of the international media's coverage, leading, eventually, to a greater American media presence in South Africa. The increased number of American journalists, resident in the Republic, served to expand the scope of the debate regarding the intertwining of colonialism and racism in apartheid. In general, Americans tended to represent South Africa as a metaphor for the
Sanders, James
Information scandal; Apartheid
A struggle for representation : the international media treatment of South Africa, 1972-1979. Between 1972 and 1979, the politicians and officials of South Africa's Department of Information attempted to manipulate and neutralise the international media's treatment of South Africa. This programme of activity was exposed at the end of the decade in what became known as the Information scandal. Meanwhile, in Europe and North America, South African exiles and British and American citizens opposed to apartheid, campaigned under the banner of 'anti-apartheid'. Foreign correspondents in South Africa numbered little more than a dozen in 1972. By the end of the 1970s, they had become a formidable force. This expansion was directly related to events on the ground, most notably the South African invasion of Angola (1975) and the Soweto uprising (1976). The introduction of the Cold War to the southern African sub-continent transformed the nature of the international media's coverage, leading, eventually, to a greater American media presence in South Africa. The increased number of American journalists, resident in the Republic, served to expand the scope of the debate regarding the intertwining of colonialism and racism in apartheid. In general, Americans tended to represent South Africa as a metaphor for the
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