| A critical cultural analysis of newspaper articles on HIV/AIDS reveals a variety of discourses associated with HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe. In this thesis, combined methods of qualitative content analysis and critical discourse analysis were used to examine the coverage of HIV/AIDS in four Zimbabwean newspapers between November 1999 and July 2000. Five major themes were identified including political-economic issues, questioning medical science, prevention and behaviour change, access to drug treatment and vulnerable populations. Primary sources of information, news actors, the use of language and metaphors and the description of populations associated with HIV/AIDS were also analysed. Seven major discourses were identified including bio-medical, public health, moral, development, gender, human rights and anti-western. All discourses were found to compete for attention and contribute to the social construction of HIV/AIDS. For health educators, the critical cultural approach to the news media is a useful tool for exploring the meaning attached to HIV/AIDS. |
