Not just a foreigner: 'Progressive' (self-)representations of African migrants in the media

Abstract

In the light of a scholarly gap, we identify and profile discourses of migration and xenophobia in the media that deconstruct mainstream representations of African migrants who are often perceived and constructed as socio-cultural and economic burdens. In particular, we profile progressive (self)-representations of African migrants on different platforms such as digital, print and social media. The media here doubles as a vehicle for social transformation and conflict. Framing media as a tool for conflict permits an assessment of whether migrants' discourses point at a causal relationship between mainstream or social media reporting and xenophobic violence, while the progressive social transformation aspect grapples with the extent to which different media platforms can either transcend or remedy the 'us' and 'them' tension-ridden divide between South Africans and African migrants.