Social Media, the changing Newsroom and Electoral Politics in Zimbabwe

Abstract

The rise of social media in Zimbabwe has instigated changes in journalism practice, politics and political communication. This paper examines the nexus between social media, journalism practice and politics in Zimbabwe, focusing on the 2018 general elections. The study is informed by the realisation that past studies on how social media interacts with society have tended to focus on a single dimension. Such single dimensions have included social media and newsroom changes, social media and journalism ethics, together with social media and political communication (Mabweazara 2014). No study, however, has attempted to show the connections between all these dimensions, which is a gap that is observable in social media studies. Using interviews with mainstream journalists in Zimbabwe and content analysis of political social media posts, the study shows that newsroom changes are tied to changes in political communication. The results also show that newsroom changes in Zimbabwe cannot be disconnected from political dynamics because journalism practice itself, even before the rise of social media, is shaped and structured by political dynamics so much that contrary to Marxian theorisation, in Zimbabwe, it is the political-consciousness base that determines the economic and other facets of the superstructure.