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2013, The Palgrave International Handbook of Women and Journalism
AI
The chapter assesses the occupational status of women in Ghana's news media amidst the backdrop of two decades of democratic change and economic liberalization. It reveals that despite positive trends in education and job opportunities for women, significant gender inequalities persist, with men dominating media ownership and decision-making roles. The analysis highlights systemic barriers such as political culture, religious beliefs, and cultural norms that hinder women's advancement in media leadership.
SciencePG, Journal of Social Sciences. Special Issue: Gender Representation in the Media., 2023
Political participation is the linchpin of democratic governance and development. Women are the majority of the population in many countries, including Ghana. However, their participation at various levels in decision-making processes in democratic governance is generally low. This paper focuses on the media through a desk review of relevant theoretical and empirical literature and examines the representation of women in Ghana's media political landscape. The paper seeks to increase media awareness in Ghana about their role in moulding the public's impressions about women in politics and government, as well as their contribution to the fight for gender equality. The discussion was guided by the theory of representation. The study finds that both men and women receive massive media coverage. However, the media do not focus on women in democratic governance as intelligent individuals who have an impact to make in society; rather, they focus on their appearance, family life, parental status, or marital status. These perspectives create a narrow representation of women to the public. This discourages many women from vying for political positions, as it creates the impression that only men can thrive and succeed in politics. Additionally, the media is a gatekeeper that exposes the ills of government. This motivates politicians to work hard, knowing that they will be held accountable. The study recommends that women be given the same opportunities as men and that they be presented as people with experience and expertise to share. Media practitioners should highlight the positive aspects of women in political leadership.
2014
The sacrifices of my family, both immediate and extended, cannot go without mention, particularly my mother, Caroline. They endured my absence, prayed for my success and kept the family together during those difficult times that I was away. I am equally grateful to great friends and colleagues who in various ways inspired me toward the success of this project. I particularly mention soon-to-be Dr Rose Wangui, whom I will never forget since she has been a pillar of support. I also acknowledge David Wright of the School of English, University of leeds, Joseph Frempong Manso and many others, all of whom I cannot mention here. My colleagues at SMC-Toussaint, Christiaan, Mandy, Yi, Ella and all ICS staffin diverse ways contributed to the success of the study and I say a big thank you. This research could not have succeeded without the help of ten research assistants who devoted their time and energy to help collect primary data. To
Paramita: Historical Studies Journal, 2019
The mass media is a very useful tool to educate , to inform and to entertain. However, recent studies have shown that the media in whatever form has contributed immensely to bring about both social and political change in respective communities across the globe and Africa in particular. The case of Ghana has been presented from the different tangents by different authors. Significantly, this contribution pays attention to the role of the press (media) as well as the digital media in ensuring effective social and political change. In the first instance, this looks at the role of the media from the past to present and juxtaposes that with recent developments in Ghana and other African Countries. Attention is also paid to the role of the media in the respective elections in Ghana. ABSTRAK Media massa adalah alat yang sangat berguna untuk mendidik, menginformasikan, dan menghibur. Namun, penelitian terbaru menun-jukkan bahwa media dalam bentuk apa pun telah berkontribusi besar untuk membawa pe-rubahan sosial dan politik di komunitas mas-ing-masing di seluruh dunia dan Afrika pada khususnya. Kasus Ghana telah disajikan dari berbagai garis singgung oleh penulis yang ber-beda. Secara signifikan, kontribusi ini mem-perhatikan peran pers (media) serta media digital dalam memastikan perubahan sosial dan politik yang efektif. Dalam contoh per-tama, ini terlihat pada peran media dari masa lalu hingga sekarang dan menyandingkan bah-wa dengan perkembangan terakhir di Ghana dan negara-negara Afrika lainnya. Perhatian juga diberikan pada peran media dalam pem-ilihan masing-masing di Ghana.
2015
The media is often referred to as the fourth estate with the objective of making it autonomous of some society players whose activities seem to sway it from its traditional role of advancing the course of public interest. These dominant forces have intertwined internally or remotely into the very environment within which media institutions operates and seem to stifle their functions and independence. The general objective of this study was to explore the relationship between media independence and the legal, economic and political environments within present-day Ghana. Economically, this study investigated the impact of media funding on the independence of both government and private print media outlets in Ghana tagging advertising as it revenue generation source to determine agenda-setting and framing patterns. Furthermore, it explored whether the media has diversified its operations for revenue generation purpose and to what extent ownership tendencies impacts on editorial independence. Legally, it investigated the impact of media laws and the fourth republican Constitutional provisions on media independence and lastly, assessed the independence of the Ghanaian print media from the perspective of standards and professionalism. The study used an exploratory mixed-research method that combined semi-structured interviews and content analysis. Fifteen participants were drawn from the Ghanaian print media landscape composed of experienced newspaper editors, senior journalists, regulatory bodies, media associations, African sub-regional media organisation and media activists from academia. Twenty newspapers were selected equally from two government and private print houses respectively to conduct a manifest and latent content analysis of adverts placed in Ghanaian newspapers. This work was embedded in the theory of political economy. Transcribed data was organised thematically for analysis and presented in a narrative, tabular and graphical formats. Overall, the study indicated that Ghana"s corporate community together funds media more than that of government. Funding through advertising impinges on editorial independence and influences agenda-setting and framing of news patterns. Furthermore, small sections of the Ghanaian media have diversified into other businesses to raise revenue to mitigate some of the pressures of that comes with reliance on a lone income. Moreover, ownership influences are evident in the landscape. The study also showed that though the Ghanaian constitution has made some positive impacts, some shortfalls were identified such
The official aim of the US Peace Corps established in 1961 was to introduce the United States to other countries and to provide a workforce for underdeveloped countries. However, they were used as an unarmed force during the Cold War period against the Soviet Union. Ghana is the first country to which United States Peace Corps, volunteers were sent. Undoubtedly, it has got something to do with the fact that Ghana is the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to gain independence from colonial domination in 1957, and that its future looked promising. Ghana is one of the important countries of Africa, but it is difficult to be a woman in a place where the belief in witchcraft is widespread, and there are “witch camps.” This study examines the position of women in the social, economic and political histories of Ghana, through a period of cultural and political changes, from colonialism to date. Ghanaian women made a significant contribution to the politics of pre- and post-independent Ghana, and they were actively involved in building the nation’s nationalistic sentiments from the 1950’s through to independence. Although the Fourth Republic is witnessing an increase in women’s participation in the socio-economic development of the country, their numbers and substance remain low. The study, thus, examines how the gender dynamics of culture and political forces have shaped women’s identities, ambitions, interests, and self-determination within the Ghanaian society. Also, the study seeks the affinity between the marginalizing role of women in national affairs, and later how the transition to democratic governance in 1993, with a promise of equality and inclusiveness, has shaped the voices of women’s ambitions and identities.
African Identities, 2021
Generally, the assessment of Africa’s development has been engulfed with blame-game narratives. To some; Africa’s sluggish development is masterminded by foreign developed nations while to others, answers to the continent’s development trends lie in its own decisions. Within this broad continuum is a trajectory in media discourse that labels advanced nations, particularly the Western press, as mouthpieces of portraying Africa negatively. This seems to kick-start Serwornoo to explore the Afro-pessimism discourse from the lens of Africa’s own media to the rest of the world. By this, the book specifically aims at exploring how the Ghanaian media has portrayed the continent of Africa in their foreign news pages in an attempt to put forward new trends in the patterns of Afro-pessimism. The book fills a significant gap in news gathering and selection in relation to dominant themes which tends to be a product of ideological issues, organisational conditions and behaviour of journalists in the running of media establishments. The book is presented in simple language, well organised and researched with strong theoretical basis to benefit academia and industry. This reviewer argues that colonial bonding is becoming a weaker argument in the process of news gathering and selection.
A review of Jennifer Hasty's book, The Press and Political Culture in Ghana (Indiana University Press, 2005)
International Journal of Public Administration, 2013
2016
This thesis tells the story of an African, national broadcaster, the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, GBC, and its efforts to transition into a public service organization. Since its inception in 1935, GBC has morphed through many forms: from a small, regional radio station, to a "giant media organization" with national footprint broadcasting across several platforms. Having lost its "privileged," state-sponsored, monopoly status after Ghana's fourth Republic, GBC is forced to chart a new course as competitive market forces and new communication technologies combine to exert new and unfamiliar pressures on its operations and editorial practices. This thesis focuses on how GBC has fared within this multi-party, competitive market environment, by focusing on the legislative regime that establish and guide its operations, and how through its institutional practice and "culture," it has responded to the new media ecology. Within such a liberal regime where "public interest" is often technology, and the newspapers who saw the "program monopoly" status of the British Broadcasting Company as harmful to their circulation. Thus, right from the beginning, the operators who also manufactured the radio receiving sets became important players for the control of broadcasting at the time
Africa Media Review, 1987
The African e-Journals Project has digitized full text of articles of eleven social science and humanities journals. This item is from the digital archive maintained by Michigan State University Library.
2008
The study critically examines the role played by the news media in a modern African democracy. The issues of democracy and the theories that drive them are mostly either Euro-centric or Anglo-American. The perspective offered by this thesis showed that Africa has a unique system which calls for a hybridised approach to the study of media and democracy. The functioning of a state-owned media, insulated from governmental control by the 1992 Ghana Constitution alongside privately-owned media is a phenomenon worth the undertaking. What the study has done was an engagement with normative theories of media and democracy to determine whether or not the news media and more particularly, the newspaper media contribute to democratic development of Ghana. In this context, a comparative analytical study of the Daily Graphic and the Ghanaian Chronicle, state and private entities respectively, underpinned the enquiry into the possible influences on elections, checks on democratic accountability a...
Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue Canadienne des Études Africaines, 1987
CDD West Africa, 2018
A Liberian researcher, political analyst, blogger and columnist.
Transition: An International Review, 2008
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Ghana Studies, 2018
This essay identifies some divergences in understandings and applications of the terms “women” and “gender” since the 1980s. It suggests how these divergences might help us to analyze the Ghana-focused scholarship in relation to broader trends in African studies, women’s history, and gender history. Gender has permeated Ghana Studies in articles and special issues on contemporary migration, work, households, health, sexualities, and politics; but comparatively few articles have aimed to complement this thematic breadth with historical depth. The essay concludes with some reflections on the chronological distribution of research interests, the dissemination strategies of historians, and the place of country-specific journals within the broader publication landscape.
African Journalism Studies , 2021
Although there is scant audience research in media studies, audiences continue to be key drivers in the political economy of media in Africa and elsewhere. The study explores the dynamics of indigenous language news audiences’ listening habits, how their information-seeking habits are shaped by personal values and the ways in which their participation in civic engagement reinforces their media consumption habits. The study focuses on Dagbanli and Gonja news audiences living in Ghana’s Northern and Savannah Regions. The objective of the study is to explore the way that Dagbanli and Gonja news audiences use the news they receive by parsing out these uses within this sociocultural context. Through in-depth interviews, the listening habits and civic engagements of news audiences are brought to the fore. Through a uses and gratifications approach, I argue that indigenous language news audiences are active agentive consumers whose habits are shaped by contextual factors, personal and social values. The findings of the study demonstrate that the news shapes the political behaviour and voting decisions of audiences. The study also finds that many audiences use the news as an avenue for learning more about education, agriculture, the environment and pervading conversations in the public sphere.
Since 1988, Ghana has implemented comprehensive reforms to promote grassroots and citizen participation in government. This article examined women's participation in local governance. Through an interview of 353 women in Ejisu, it was found out that the women performed almost all household chores, 62.3% of whom partly financed their households while 17% solely financed their households. About 27% of the women were members of CBOs, and 25% were assembly members. The women were restrained in local government participation by marriage, perceived superiority of men, and illiteracy. Encouragement of women and girls' education are contingent to promoting women's participation in local governance.
American Journal of Educational Research, 2021
This paper interrogates the efficacy of women in authority and how it impacts the lives of underprivileged women in society. The hypothesis suggests that women in authority better represent the interest of vulnerable women and children if given opportunity at the decision-making levels in a country's body politic. Feminist groups who champion this supposition argue, that the story of women has long been told by men and hence, there is the need for women to tell their own story. But how have women in leadership demonstrated their capacity to issues that reflect the interest of women? Using primary and secondary data, the authors analyzed the extent to which the interest of women has been represented by the women who have increasingly held very influential political and administrative positions in Ghana. The paper conceptualized the interest of women minimally to include alleged sexual demands as a quid pro quo for employment or positions, accusation of witchcraft, maternity leave with pay and inheritance. The findings suggest that, women in leadership have demonstrated a great zeal for women's emancipation. However, there is more room for improvement to convince the ordinary Ghanaian woman that women in authority adequately represent the interest of all women especially the poor and vulnerable in society. The authors recommend a united front among women in academia, CSOs and the media to mount 'pressure' on women occupying influential positions to prioritize resolving politico-socioeconomic challenges that confront vulnerable women in the Ghanaian society.
Abstract This study examines the influence of politics and the media on policy making from the perspective of political system theory and rational theory. The role of politics and media in policy making in Ghana can be defined in two stages. The study identified that, from the 1960s where the system of government was one-party, through the military regimes. Policy making was the right of the ruling elite and few bureaucrats. The media coverage was limited to the state media. In 1992, when Ghana adopted the multi-party democracy, public policy making process expanded to include civil societies, individuals, political parties and all interest group. Politics influence on policy becomes dominant during electioneering year where the two major political parties NDC and NPP trade policy ideas in exchange for votes. The media also has played a major role in policy making by providing platform and setting agenda for policy discussion. The media also serve as a source of policy information to the citizens. The study concluded by suggesting to constitutional bodies to develop, a comprehensive national development plane binding on all political parties, regulating media ownership and employment of experts and media professionals to work in the media sector. Keywords: public policy, politics, media
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