Interdisciplinarity and Indigenous Language Media: Understanding Language Choices in Zimbabwe’s Media

Indigenous language media research by linguists in Zimbabwe is generally epitomised by animated arguments which disapprove of the dominance of English and marginalisation of indigenous languages in broadcast and print media. Considering the communicative and cultural imperatives for indigenous langu...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Language matters (Pretoria, South Africa) South Africa), 2018-01, Vol.49 (1), p.45-64
Main Authors: Mpofu, Phillip, Salawu, Abiodun
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Comprehension
English as an international language
Indigenous languages
Interdisciplinary aspects
Language attitudes
Language choice
Mass media
Native languages
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Indigenous language media research by linguists in Zimbabwe is generally epitomised by animated arguments which disapprove of the dominance of English and marginalisation of indigenous languages in broadcast and print media. Considering the communicative and cultural imperatives for indigenous language media in post-independence African nation-states, including indigenous languages in the media is paramount. However, whilst the need to protect indigenous languages and the effects of global spread of English hegemony have attracted considerable scholarly attention, leading factors that shape language attitudes and language choices in the media are underspecified, and in some cases not specified. Applying the interdisciplinary research approach, this article maintains that an interdisciplinary approach provides the foundation for developing eclectic theory. This enhances the comprehension of historical, socio-political, economic, technological and other factors which determine language choices in broadcast and print media.
ISSN:1022-8195
1753-5395
DOI:10.1080/10228195.2018.1441321