TY - JOUR
T1 - "Tapanduka Zvamuchese"
T2 - Facebook, unruly publics and Zimbabwean politics
AU - Karekwaivanane, George
PY - 2019/2
Y1 - 2019/2
N2 - This paper examines the role that a Facebook account operating under the name Baba Jukwa played in the run up to the Zimbabwean 2013 election. It argues that Baba Jukwa was able to convoke an ‘unruly public’ that was situated in opposition to the state-controlled public sphere, and one that was transnational in its reach. Through a close examination of the posts by Baba Jukwa and the debates they generated, it uncovers the key features of this public, namely, the use of symbolically laden pseudonyms, the emergence of a vernacular discourse that was articulated in multiple registers, and the prevalence of conspiracy theorizing. The paper also highlights the way that these publics are inflected by older socio-cultural and political practices, and the efforts of participants in the public to creatively fused the past and the present.
AB - This paper examines the role that a Facebook account operating under the name Baba Jukwa played in the run up to the Zimbabwean 2013 election. It argues that Baba Jukwa was able to convoke an ‘unruly public’ that was situated in opposition to the state-controlled public sphere, and one that was transnational in its reach. Through a close examination of the posts by Baba Jukwa and the debates they generated, it uncovers the key features of this public, namely, the use of symbolically laden pseudonyms, the emergence of a vernacular discourse that was articulated in multiple registers, and the prevalence of conspiracy theorizing. The paper also highlights the way that these publics are inflected by older socio-cultural and political practices, and the efforts of participants in the public to creatively fused the past and the present.
KW - unruly publics
KW - conspiracy theory
KW - speech registers
KW - Zimbabwe
KW - pseudonyms
U2 - 10.1080/17531055.2018.1547257
DO - 10.1080/17531055.2018.1547257
M3 - Article
SN - 1753-1055
VL - 13
SP - 54
EP - 71
JO - Journal of Eastern African Studies
JF - Journal of Eastern African Studies
IS - 1
ER -