Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe

Peace Mukwara

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

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Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe

Peace Mukwara

Published in Advances in Sciences and Humanities (Volume 9, Issue 3)

Received: 23 April 2023 Accepted: 17 May 2023 Published: 5 August 2023

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Abstract

Zimbabwe has over the years experienced a surge in internet usage for political discourse. This has disrupted the governments’ monopolistic hold on public sphere discourses. The increase in the use of social media for political communication has necessitated the need for critical reflections on the use of new media. This paper investigates the emergence of an alternative digital public sphere (DPS) in Zimbabwe, which has subsequently proven to be counterhegemonic. It analyses how democratic forces conspire and contest official state propaganda and assert themselves as viable counter publics. The study examines animation texts, its form and its use of covert and overt aesthetics as tools that helped critique and navigate a chaotic terrain during the ‘crisis period’ in which the state censored critical or oppositional art and elite interests hijacked other forms of critical art and alternative media. The study argues that the DPS has promoted alternative discourses to those of the official public sphere. While the Subaltern counter publics have used alternative digital public spaces to question the official consensus, they have instead emerged as undemocratic platforms promoting and perpetuating the same hate and binary narratives that it accuses the state of proliferating.

Published in	Advances in Sciences and Humanities (Volume 9, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
Page(s)	114-120
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Animation, Digital, Cartoon, Propaganda, Democracy, Media

References

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[6]	Curran, J. 1996. “Media Democracy: The Third Route.” In Media and Democracy, edited by M. B. Andersen, 53–75. Oslo: University of Oslo Press.
[7]	Curtice, J., & Norris, P. (2004). E-politics? The impact of the Internet in political trust and participation. In A. Park, J. Curtice, K. Thomson, C. Bromley, & M. Phillips (Eds.), British social attitudes: The 21st report (pp. 99–116). London, UK: SAGE Publications.
[8]	Elliott, R. (2004), "The nature of satire" in Encyclopædia Britannica.
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[10]	Fuchs, C. (2014). Social media and the public sphere. TripleC, 12 (1), 57–101.
[11]	Gambiza, G. 2020 Fake News and Social Media Regulation in Zimbabwe: A Case Study of the 2019 National #Shutdown. Unpublished MA Dissertation University of Johannesburg.
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[17]	Mare, A. (2018). Politics unusual? Facebook and political campaigning during the 2013 harmonized elections in Zimbabwe. African Journalism Studies, 38 (2), 1–22.
[18]	Matsilele, T., 2019. Social media dissidence in Zimbabwe, Unpublished Doctoral dissertation, University of Johannesburg.
[19]	Mbembe, A. 1992. “The Banality of Power and the Aesthetics of Vulgarity in the Postcolony”. Public Culture 4 (2): 1–30.
[20]	Mbembe, A. (2001). On the post-colony. Berkeley: University of California Press.
[21]	McAdam, D., McCarthy, J. D., & Zald, M. N. (Eds.). (1996). Comparative perspectives on social movements. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
[22]	Mhiripiri, N. A. and Mutsvairo, B. (2013). “Social Media, New ICTs and the Challenges Facing the Zimbabwe Democratic Process.” In New Media Influence on Social and Political Change in Africa. Co-edited by Anthony A. Olorunnisola and Aziz Douai. Hershey: IGI Global, pp. 402–422.

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Peace Mukwara. (2023). Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe. Advances in Sciences and Humanities, 9(3), 114-120. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

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Peace Mukwara. Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe. Adv. Sci. Humanit. 2023, 9(3), 114-120. doi: 10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

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Peace Mukwara. Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe. Adv Sci Humanit. 2023;9(3):114-120. doi: 10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

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@article{10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14,
  author = {Peace Mukwara},
  title = {Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe},
  journal = {Advances in Sciences and Humanities},
  volume = {9},
  number = {3},
  pages = {114-120},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ash.20230903.14},
  abstract = {Zimbabwe has over the years experienced a surge in internet usage for political discourse. This has disrupted the governments’ monopolistic hold on public sphere discourses. The increase in the use of social media for political communication has necessitated the need for critical reflections on the use of new media. This paper investigates the emergence of an alternative digital public sphere (DPS) in Zimbabwe, which has subsequently proven to be counterhegemonic. It analyses how democratic forces conspire and contest official state propaganda and assert themselves as viable counter publics. The study examines animation texts, its form and its use of covert and overt aesthetics as tools that helped critique and navigate a chaotic terrain during the ‘crisis period’ in which the state censored critical or oppositional art and elite interests hijacked other forms of critical art and alternative media. The study argues that the DPS has promoted alternative discourses to those of the official public sphere. While the Subaltern counter publics have used alternative digital public spaces to question the official consensus, they have instead emerged as undemocratic platforms promoting and perpetuating the same hate and binary narratives that it accuses the state of proliferating.},
 year = {2023}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe
AU  - Peace Mukwara
Y1  - 2023/08/05
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
DO  - 10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
T2  - Advances in Sciences and Humanities
JF  - Advances in Sciences and Humanities
JO  - Advances in Sciences and Humanities
SP  - 114
EP  - 120
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2472-0984
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
AB  - Zimbabwe has over the years experienced a surge in internet usage for political discourse. This has disrupted the governments’ monopolistic hold on public sphere discourses. The increase in the use of social media for political communication has necessitated the need for critical reflections on the use of new media. This paper investigates the emergence of an alternative digital public sphere (DPS) in Zimbabwe, which has subsequently proven to be counterhegemonic. It analyses how democratic forces conspire and contest official state propaganda and assert themselves as viable counter publics. The study examines animation texts, its form and its use of covert and overt aesthetics as tools that helped critique and navigate a chaotic terrain during the ‘crisis period’ in which the state censored critical or oppositional art and elite interests hijacked other forms of critical art and alternative media. The study argues that the DPS has promoted alternative discourses to those of the official public sphere. While the Subaltern counter publics have used alternative digital public spaces to question the official consensus, they have instead emerged as undemocratic platforms promoting and perpetuating the same hate and binary narratives that it accuses the state of proliferating.
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
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Author Information

Peace Mukwara

Faculty of Arts and Humanities Department of Media, Communication, Film and Theatre Arts, Midlands State University, Gweru, Zimbabwe

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Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Peace Mukwara. (2023). Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe. Advances in Sciences and Humanities, 9(3), 114-120. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

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ACS Style

Peace Mukwara. Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe. Adv. Sci. Humanit. 2023, 9(3), 114-120. doi: 10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

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AMA Style

Peace Mukwara. Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe. Adv Sci Humanit. 2023;9(3):114-120. doi: 10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14,
  author = {Peace Mukwara},
  title = {Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe},
  journal = {Advances in Sciences and Humanities},
  volume = {9},
  number = {3},
  pages = {114-120},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ash.20230903.14},
  abstract = {Zimbabwe has over the years experienced a surge in internet usage for political discourse. This has disrupted the governments’ monopolistic hold on public sphere discourses. The increase in the use of social media for political communication has necessitated the need for critical reflections on the use of new media. This paper investigates the emergence of an alternative digital public sphere (DPS) in Zimbabwe, which has subsequently proven to be counterhegemonic. It analyses how democratic forces conspire and contest official state propaganda and assert themselves as viable counter publics. The study examines animation texts, its form and its use of covert and overt aesthetics as tools that helped critique and navigate a chaotic terrain during the ‘crisis period’ in which the state censored critical or oppositional art and elite interests hijacked other forms of critical art and alternative media. The study argues that the DPS has promoted alternative discourses to those of the official public sphere. While the Subaltern counter publics have used alternative digital public spaces to question the official consensus, they have instead emerged as undemocratic platforms promoting and perpetuating the same hate and binary narratives that it accuses the state of proliferating.},
 year = {2023}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Animation and YouTube as Alternative and Counterhegemonic Digital Public Sphere in Zimbabwe
AU  - Peace Mukwara
Y1  - 2023/08/05
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
DO  - 10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
T2  - Advances in Sciences and Humanities
JF  - Advances in Sciences and Humanities
JO  - Advances in Sciences and Humanities
SP  - 114
EP  - 120
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2472-0984
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20230903.14
AB  - Zimbabwe has over the years experienced a surge in internet usage for political discourse. This has disrupted the governments’ monopolistic hold on public sphere discourses. The increase in the use of social media for political communication has necessitated the need for critical reflections on the use of new media. This paper investigates the emergence of an alternative digital public sphere (DPS) in Zimbabwe, which has subsequently proven to be counterhegemonic. It analyses how democratic forces conspire and contest official state propaganda and assert themselves as viable counter publics. The study examines animation texts, its form and its use of covert and overt aesthetics as tools that helped critique and navigate a chaotic terrain during the ‘crisis period’ in which the state censored critical or oppositional art and elite interests hijacked other forms of critical art and alternative media. The study argues that the DPS has promoted alternative discourses to those of the official public sphere. While the Subaltern counter publics have used alternative digital public spaces to question the official consensus, they have instead emerged as undemocratic platforms promoting and perpetuating the same hate and binary narratives that it accuses the state of proliferating.
VL  - 9
IS  - 3
ER  -

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