Discourses on Public Violence and the Reproduction of Racism

Abstract

This article is based on an analysis of 186 articles on public violence that appeared in a local newspaper, The Star, between 15 February and 15 April 1993. Written within a discourse analytical framework, the article aims at illustrating how media discourses on public violene in South Africa can be seen as aiding in the reproduction of the ideology of racism. Six dominant themes are identified in the corpus of texts analysed, all of which, it can be argued, contribute to the perpetuation of this ideology.