Why save for a funeral, while you could invest your child's education?

According to Karen Macgregor a shocking 40% of South African students drop-out of university in their first year, a major study has found. Financial difficulties among the country's large pool of poor black students are, unsurprisingly, largely to blame first generation students from low-income, less educated families are the most likely to drop out. While South Africa has a highly successful National Student Financial Aid Scheme, which supports about 120,000 of 735,000 university students, loans and bursaries do not cover the full costs of study, leaving poor students struggling to meet living and other expenses. One could say that a large number of this students drop out due to their parents failing to prioritize. For the purpose of this post, the research that was done shows that black parents focus on other things than on the education of their children. A teacher once asked: why would parents pay for a burial society every month and fail to save for the future of their children? This is a question that needs to be answered! Every weekend in the black communities, women gather in small groups in order to contribute money for funerals that are yet to come, with or without money for children to go to school. Nowadays, families don't have to gather in burial societies anymore. On the South African Broadcast Coorporation alone, advertisements about funeral covers are more than ten in a day. This only goes to show that black parents fail to prioritize, they would rather have a "dignified funeral" than save the money for the education of their loved ones Bishop Makhosi Ngcoza said funerals cost anything between R30 000 and R50 000. Most of the money was used to hire tents, public announcement systems and to buy groceries. Families who cannot afford these extravagant funerals or have no funeral cover ended up borrowing the money, sometimes from loan sharks, in order to meet the high standards that have been set. This only raise a question: if parents invested in the future of their children, rather than funeral covers, won't the children take care of their parents' funerals? REFERENCES Macgregor, K. 2007. 'University World News'. Available: http//www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20071025102245380 Ngcukana, L. 2013. 'City Press. Available: http//www.citypress.co.za/news/bishop-urges-community-not-to-show-off-with-big-funerals/

IS JOURNALISM A PROFESSION OR A CRAFT

JOURNALISM A PROFESSION NOT A CRAFT. 1. INTRODUCTION The Oxford Advanced Learners dictionary (2010; 808) defines journalism as “the work of collecting and writing news stories for newspapers, magazines, radio and television.” There has always been a confusion on whether journalism is a profession of a craft. Journalism has always been viewed as some kind of artwork, as compared to other professions. This is due to the fact that when people think of journalism, they limit it to writing, presenting and gossip. This blog post will discuss in details why Journalism is considered a profession rather than a craft. Journalism just like any other profession, has several elements to it such as the culture of journalism, gatekeeping in media and ethics. These elements will be discussed later in this post. 2.WHY JOURNALISM IS CONSIDERED A PROFESSION The term profession is described as a type of a job that requires special training or skill, especially one that needs a high level of education (The Oxford Advanced Learners dictionary, 2010; 1170). While the term craft is defined as an activity that involves making something in a skillful way by using your hands (Webster, n.d). Journalism as a craft would focus only on the writing aspect because craft is a skillful way of doing something with your hands. Craft can also be seen as an art. In other words, journalism cannot be classified a craft because it is more broad in a way that it is not only about writing articles. There are several categories to be considered when looking at the term journalism- these are the research aspect, the writing skills, interview skills, editing skills and the ability to identify newswothy information and distribute it according to the media’s standards. Looking at what journalism is, there is an argument that it can be seen as a profession rather than a craft because, it is a practice whereby journalists utilise their learnt skills to gather and report news. The purpose of journalism practice/ profession is to keep the public informed about what takes place around the world. Journalists have the responsibility to report the news about what is going on in Politics, Sports, entertainment industry and education to the public. 3. CULTURE OF JOURNALISM When looking at the culture of Journalism it is suggested that for one to be qualified as a journalist, s/he needs to obtain at least a three years BA-Journalism degree. During the time in the University or College, individuals are trained and groomed to be good journalists. Individuals who are qualified as journalists, have an opportunity to pursue different positions in the media; such as becoming an editor, a reporter, a distributor, a news reader and much more. They develop skills to identify, gather and report news which is new, interesting and credible. Stovall (2005; 26) states that a basic cultural requirement of journalism is that those in the profession have a high level skill in using the language. Adding that, “journalistic practices require high levels of skill and intellectual training; journalists must know the language and how to use it, they must master the equipment that it takes to produce and distribute their product. These are not easy skills to acquire; training is a must.” 4. GATEKEEPING In the journalism field, just like any other profession, there are rules and regulations. Usually in different media institutions, ther are different ways in which they present their information or news. This is why journalism institutes have internal and external gatekeepers. These gatekeepers are responsible for selecting which article or information goes through to printing or can be broadcasted. These people act as gates. (University of Twente; n.d) states that The gatekeeper decides which information will go forward, and which will not. In other words a gatekeeper in a social system decides which of a certain commodity – materials, goods, and information – may enter the system. Important to realize is that gatekeepers are able to control the public’s knowledge of the actual events by letting some stories pass through the system but keeping others out. Gatekeepers can also be seen as institutions or organizations. Gatekeepers exist in many jobs, and their choices hold the potential to colour mental pictures that are subsequently created in people’s understanding of what is happening in the world around them. Media gatekeeping showed that decision making is based on principles of news values, organizational routines, input structure and common sense. Gatekeeping is vital in communication planning and almost all communication planning roles include some aspect of gatekeeping. Stovall (2005; 22) says the processes of journalism are ideally governed by journalists themselves; few rules or retrains are imposed on them from outside the profession. This could mean that journalists are sometimes restricted by gatekeepers in the media. Media gatekeepers include the audience, the editors or producers and the owners of that media as it was mentioned before. 5. ETHICS As it was said that every profession has its own rules and regulations, people need to realize that principles from various organisations are also different, which is why there is a section ethics. This section talks about the morals of journalists, which is important in every field of study or profession. . Stovall (2005; 462) gives a key concepts of ethical practices. Honesty is at the heart of the journalistic process; journalists should be honest, journalists should respect their audience. Journalists should give credit all the times that they use other people’s work. Journalists are you usually faced with conflict of interests, where by their loyalty to their profession and outside their profession clash. However, journalists must present news with honesty. 6. CONCLUSION In conclusion, the culture of journalism, gatekeeping and ethics were elements that shows that journalism, just like any other profession, has its rules, style and principles which are different from other fields. Therfore it can be said that journalism is a profession.

women should not be limited to the kitchen

Should women’s role be limited to the kitchen? In the past women were believed to belong to the kitchen, there were seen as the helper to their husbands and children. (Scott, 2012) states that women always have been known to be caretakers of the family. They were to stay at home and care for the children and their husbands were out earning the income. In today’s society, however, women are out in the job market earning a steady income along with their husbands. They may even hold title such as CEO or run in politics. This blog will discuss in details why women’s role should not be limited to the kitchen. Women in today’s society have been opened eyes to the rights they have, such as gender equality which is defined by (Du Plessis & Corder, 1994: 139) as the concept that implies that men and women should receive equal treatment. Women have the right to make a choice as to whether or not do they want to cook or clean the house. Although it could be seen as a duty of a woman to cook for her household, there is also a possibility that an “expected cooker” does not like cooking or cannot cook. Being in the kitchen or taking care of the house and the people in it should be one’s free will and not forced. Free will is defined by the (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2010) as “the power to make your own decisions without being controlled by God, men or fate.” So it can be said that women who go to work and come back to do the house chores, chooses to live in that way while there are others who chooses not to. As it was mentioned in the previous paragraph, women have right and forcing women to stay in the kitchen simply means violation of their rights. With that being said, Fisk (2011) still says that Gender inequality continues to exist in advanced industrial societies, such as the US, despite a plethora of changes that work against gender discrimination. Agassi (1989) says the private family households condemns women to do household work and child care and thus to inequality. Although gender inequality continues, more women still continues to exercise their rights. In conclusion, it can be said that women should not be limited to the kitchen but use their talents and gifts in other areas. Bibliography Agassi, B.J. 1989. Theories of Gender Equality Lessons from the Israeli Kibbutz. Vol (3) 6 Du Plessis, L. & Corder, H. 1994. Understanding South Africa’s Transitional Bill of Rights. Cape Town: Juta &Co Fisk, S. 2011. Gender News: How Does Gender Inequality Persist?. Available: http://gender.standford.edu/news/2011/now-does-gender-inequality-persist [accessed 22 August 2013] Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. 2010. International Student’s Edition. Cape Town: Oxford University Press Scott, G. 2012. Women’s role in today’s society. Available: http://www.studymode.com/essays/women-s-role-in-today-s-society-954953.html [accessed 22 August 2013]

VAVI'S RAPE SAGA

A 26 year old woman has accused Zwelizima Vavi, the general secretary of Cosatu with rape. The fireband trade unionist has admitted to having a consensual sex with the woman on the 25th of January of 2013 in her office but he denies raping her. Vavi said in a statement to Cosatu that he went to her office and they started to kiss on the day of the alleged rape occurred (Kimberly, 2013). According to Vavi the accusations are not true and they had a relationship. (Macmillan English Dictionary, 2002: 470) describes ethics as set of principles that people use to decide what is right or wrong, the general principle or belief that affects the way people behave. However this is a general definition of ethics, when looking at ethics in a workplace especially concerning sexual relationships, other companies do not have policies about it. Although there are no much policies concerning sexual relationships, the Daily Mail Reporter (2013) there is a believe that there is nothing wrong with a consensual sex between employees who work in the same company, there is however, less approval when the relationship is between a manager and a junior colleague. Kramer (2000) also states that office romance between supervisors and subordinates who are in a direct reporting relationship or are otherwise on different hierarchical levels are particularly troublesome for the employees involved, their co-workers, and the employer. Supervisor-subordinate relationships often trigger negative reaction among employees, including perceptions of sexual favouritism and sexual harassment that damage morale and the company by the participants or third parties. Sexual harassment can be defined as the offensive or threatening behaviour of a person who regularly makes sexual comments or touches someone in a sexual way (Macmillan English Dictionary, 2002: 1301). In other words, it was wrong of Vavi to have a sexual relationship with his junior colleague. Whether rape or consensual sex, this act was wrong and a suspension was fairly rewarded. In conclusion, Cosatu general secretary had not handled his personal matters with ethics in the workplace. BIBLIOGRAPHY Daily Mail Reporter, 2013. Mail Online: The truth about sex at work. Available: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2331250/the-truth-about-sex-work// [16 August 2013] Kimberly, K & Kimberly, M. 2013. The Herald: Cosatu Boss Vavi raped me, claims woman. Available: http://www.peherald.com/news/article/17455. [16 August 2013] Kramer, G. M. 2000. Lexis Nexis. Available: http://intigation-essentials.lexisnexis.com . [16 August 2013] Macmillan English Dictionary. 2002. For advanced learners. Malaysia: A&C Black Publishers LTD

Difficulities of dealing with pregnancy as a result of rape

The South African rape statistics show that in every four minutes a person is raped in the country. Sexual abuse has become a lifestyle among South African men. The issue of rape not only does it leave women feeling dirty, depressed and afraid but they suffer a lot of trauma. This could include unwanted pregnancies, infections of HIV or STIs, hatred of men, victims blaming themselves or people blaming them for being raped. This blog, however, will explore the difficulties of dealing with pregnancy as a result of rape. Being pregnant after being raped is a difficult situation to deal with; it remains a reminder of what had happened. Victims are always faced with difficult challenges; some women could see their children as a permanent scar and might not be able to love them, others might think that their children will end up like their fathers. Apart from challenges which victims are expected to face, they might also face rejection from family and friends or even their partners who do not want children of rape. This could help or force victims to make decisions concerning the lives of their unborn babies. Usually there are three options which are; abortion, adoption and raising the child. These three options have both advantages and disadvantages: abortion can be a short term solution especially when the victim is experiencing rejection within her family and from her partner but it could also be a long term problem if not dealt with mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Adoption could be a good solution to both the mother and the child in a way that as a mother she can move on with her life and the child will be raised by those who will love him/her. However, this option could also cause problems in the future, perhaps when the child wants to know his roots. Raising the child would also be a good solution for both the mother and child if the mother has healed and has forgiven the rapist but it could also be a challenge if the mother is single or lives in disadvantaged situations. Therefore pregnancy as a result of rape is hard to deal with, but it could heal with the support of family and friends, medical assistance, counselling and spiritual guidance.

THE IMPACT OF DIGITAL DIVIDE ON DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNMENT OF SOUTH AFRICA

The digital divide can be seen as a condition that can be caused by the factors that can deprive certain citizens in a country. Some of these factors are race, age, class and geography. The purpose of this blog post is to discuss the impact of the digital divide on democracy and government of South Africa. According to (Mariscal, 2001) the digital divide refers to the gap between individuals, households, businesses and geographic areas at different socio-economic levels with regard to their opportunities to access information and communication technologies (ICTs) an to their use of the internet for a wide variety of activities The Digital Divide Network (2004) defines the concept as the gap between those who have access to communication tools, such as the Internet and those who cannot. This means that digital divide can be seen as the between citizens who can afford access to the internet and those who cannot afford it. According to (Walsh, 2004) E-democracy is defined by the use of electronic information and communications technologies (ICT) to extend or improve access to information and make possible participation in democratic communities, processes and institutions. This means to use the internet in order to avail information and get the citizens participate in democratic issues. E-government is the use of technology to improve the access to and delivery of government services to benefit citizens, business partners and employees. It has the power to create a new form of public service where all public organizations deliver a modernized, integrated and seamless service for their citizen (Silcock, 2001). The benefits of e-government can be to reduce cost in rendering services, allowing citizens to access the public sector information and improving the service delivery (Kumar & Best, 2006). Looking at South African statistics of internet usage, only 2 million of South Africans are actively using the internet. Amongst these users 1, 2 million have access from their homes, an estimated 500 000 households are connected and 300 000 people are connected through public facilities. The infrastructure and the necessary hardware and software required for universal access is not available to the majority of South Africans. De Villiers (2001, 88). This shortage of resources has an effect on the government and democracy of South Africa. Meaning the implementation of e-democracy and e-government is affected badly because of lack of resources/ poverty. If the majority of South African citizens do not have access to the internet, then they will not participate to the democratic communities and they will not access the public sectors information. For example when there is elections campaign that requires South African citizens to participate, on the internet, then they would be a small amount of participation. Or for example if there is information about the government, published on the internet, it will not reach a large amount of citizens. Therefore in conclusion, the gap between those who can afford and those who can’t afford in South Africa is huge. This is a disadvantage to the South African government and democracy.   Bibliography De Villiers, S. 2001. Foreground: In A People’s Government. Cape Town: IDASA Kumar, R & Best, M. 2006. Impact and sustainability of e-government services in developing countries. Talil Nadu: Information society. Mariscal, . 2005. Digital divide in developing country. Telecommunication Silcock, R. 2001. What is E-government. Available: http://catedras.fsoc.uba.ar/rusailh/unidad%202/Silcock%202001,%20what%is20is%20E-gov.pdf [accessed 21 April 2013] Walsh, L. 2004. What is E-democracy: an introduction. Available: http://www.dev.internet-thinking.com.au/anzca-walsh.pdf. [Accessed 21april 2013]

the network society

INTRODUCTION “Mobile and wireless technology will spread the network society to the most remote places and the deepest pores of the world” (Van Dijk 2006: 59). This blog will give reasons why it is believed that the mobile technology spread all over the world. Important elements such as the definition and characteristics of the network society, the roles of the mobile technology will be discussed. Real life examples will be provided as well. THE ROLES OF MOBILE TECHNOLOGY (CIO council, 2012) stated that ‘mobile technology has become a key driver throughout information technology. The use of mobile technology provides opportunities for innovation, agility and flexibility in workplace.’ In other words, mobile technology introduces new things or new ways of doing things; it provides effectiveness and quick way of working in the workplaces. This means that it is easier for companies to consider mobile technology because it would make it easier for employers and employees to communicate (send and receive) or even research information in a short period of time. Mobile technology makes it possible to access all the market data required, using a mobile phone. It has also made it more effective to conduct business by the introduction to 3G technologies, which allows the capabilities of handling video calls, browsing the internet and sharing large files. Mobile technology enables one to get breaking news as it happens. This technology also plays a great role in the education sector by enabling people to get access the internet, even in remote locations using mobile broadband. This enables students and researchers in far areas to carry out their researches using mobile technology (Mobile Phone & Broadband news, 2008). This means that mobile technology has come to make life easier for companies, students and researchers; communication and information gathering has been made more effective. Mobile technology however focuses more on individuals which is the main component of the network society’s characteristics. DEFINITION AND CHARACTERISTICS OF NETWORK SOCIETY The network society, according to Van Dijk (2006; 20), can be defined a social formation with an infrastructure of social and media network enabling its prime mode of organisation at all levels (individual, group/ organisational and societal). Increasingly network links all units or parts of this formation. The characteristics of the network society are as follows; the main components are individuals, which are heterogeneous. The scale of this society is both extended and reduced and the main type of communication is increasingly mediated. The phrase network applies to the societies that exhibit two fundamental characteristics. The first is the presence in those two societies of sophistication almost exclusively digital- technologies of networked communication and information management distribution, technologies which form the basic infrastructure mediating and increasing array of social, political and economic practices. The second characteristic of network society is the reproduction and institutionalization throughout those societies of network as a basic form of human organization and relationship across a wide range of social, political and economic configurations (Barney, 2004). REAL LIFE EXAMPLES For example Midrand Graduate institute (MGI) uses Facebook to communicate and provide information to students, in which students are able to access with their mobile phones. This makes it easier for MGI to pass important messages quickly and for students to stay informed. Other examples may be when lectures and students communicate with each other through emails concerning any module information or material; and when students or researchers use their mobile phones to conduct their researches. CONCLUSION Therefore mobile and wireless technology will indeed spread the network society to the most remote places and the deepest pores of the world. With technology improving and making communication fast and easier, mobile technology will continue to grow and spread all over the world. BIBLIOGRAPHY Barney, D.D. 2004. The network society. United Kingdom: Polity Press LTD CIO Council. 2012. Government Use Of Mobile Technology. Available: http://co.gov/wp-content/upload/downloads/2012/government_mobile_technology_barriers_opportunities_and_gaps.pdf [Accessed 05 April 2012] Mobile Phone & Broadband news. 2008. Advantages of mobile technology. Available: http://www.wapalize.co.uk/advantages-of-mobile-technology/ [Accessed 05 April 2012] Van Dijk, J. 2006. The network society. London: SAGE Publications LTD