Children in the news: An Investigation into the (Mis)representation of children's rights in newspapers

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the Bachelor of Arts, Honours degree in Journalism and Media Studies. Nov 2008

Name: Caroline Wahome Student No: 307466 Level: Honours in Journalism and Media Studies Course: Journalism Research Supervisor: Natalie Ridgard Word Count: 10,686 Date Due: 7 November 2008

Abstract This research sought to find out what key stakeholders think are the main issues in medias coverage of children vis--vis their rights. The study, through what experts think about the media, aimed at investigating the role the media has to play in upholding childrens rights. It also sought to determine how the media promotes or contravenes rights of children through their day to day coverage of childrens issues. It examined the position of the media through the notion of social responsibilitywhat it has done to promote or contravene the best interest of the child through their rights. This was achieved by conducting interviews with journalists working or who have worked with children and child rights experts in various fields. It concluded that the media has not adequately explored children and childrens rights issues.

INTRODUCTION......................................................................................3 Research Questions............................................................................4 Aim......................................................................................................4 Rationale.............................................................................................5 LITERATURE REVIEW...............................................................................6 Legal instruments...............................................................................6 Childrens participation and voices in media....................................10 MEDIA THEORY.....................................................................................14 (i) News values..................................................................................14 (ii) Social responsibility.....................................................................14 METHODOLOGY....................................................................................19 Data collection techniques................................................................19 Data Analysis....................................................................................22 Reliability, validity and credibility of data.........................................22 Limitations........................................................................................23 FINDINGS..............................................................................................25 (i) Representation of children in news...........................................25 (ii)The role of journalists................................................................31 (iii)Images......................................................................................35 (iv) Ethics.......................................................................................37 CONCLUSION........................................................................................42 Recommendations............................................................................42 Areas for future research..................................................................43 BIBLIOGRAPHY......................................................................................44 APPENDIX.............................................................................................46

INTRODUCTION The media plays a pivotal role in ensuring that information of relevance to society is disseminated in various ways. By looking at the media coverage on childrens rights, one gets an impression that there are certain concerns raised by experts in childrens rights which are either covered or not by the media. As such, the way children are depicted by the media is of importance especially considering the manner in which the media portrays and captures their rights. The United Nations (UN), among other bodies globally and in South Africa observes the rights of children, among them being freedom of expression and the right to receive and access information.

In large part, however, the mass media are produced by adults, for adults and about adults. However, that has changed and we are now seeing more publications or sections in main newspapers aimed at children. But even as children are now a target audience by themselves, they are yet to be given the autonomy they deserve. As it is, they are largely lacking as news sources hence are hardly quoted in stories even those related to them.

Adam Linter, editor-in-chief and publisher, Tomorrows Morning, a Los Angeles weekly newspaper for kids notes: theres a lot going on for 814-years. They are sponges. They have a lot of information but not a

lot of knowledge. Kids at this stage are starting to share and interrelate experiences; fully tuned in and wanting to do something to make a difference (Linter, 1994, p. 48). This shows that the lack of inclusion of childrens issues, more so their participation, is a global concern.

This research, therefore, seeks to find out what key stakeholders think are the main issues in medias coverage of children vis--vis their rights. The study, through interviewing experts in children-related fields, aims at investigating the role that the media has to play in upholding childrens rights. The literature review looks at the laws in place which help promote childrens rights and which should be a guiding factor for journalists in their day-to-day tasks. The media theory section explores media theory of news values versus social responsibility in an effort to help understand why children issues are represented the way they are in the newspapers.

Thus, the study answers the following questions. Research Questions

What concerns do a range of stakeholders have over coverage of children in the media?

What is the role of journalists in medias coverage of children?

What does this say about the role of media in promoting or disregarding rights of children?

Aim This study aims to determine how the media promotes or contravenes rights of children through their day-to-day coverage of childrens issues. It examines the position of the media through the notion of social responsibility, what it has done to promote or contravene the best interests of the child. The study endeavours to do this through interviewing journalists working or who have worked with children and child rights experts in various fields.

Research objectives: (a) To find out what key stakeholders think are the main issues in medias coverage of children vis--vis their rights. (b) The study, through what experts think about the media, aims at investigating the role the media has to play in upholding childrens rights.

Rationale Children and childrens rights in the media is a topic, which until recently was ignored for one reason or the other. The coverage of children in the media is an area that is under- researched, based from on the studies reviewed. Studies conducted by the Media Monitoring

Project (MMP) agree that the coverage of children is still inadequate and acknowledge that the media either plays an integral part in upholding rights of children in the manner they cover or they overlook it sometimes. What is missing though is an explanation as to why childrens issues are reported in the given manner. Children, just like adults, have rights but childrens rights are not championed in the media compared to those of adults. Thus, the study attempts to fill this gap through interviewing experts in the field. In addition, the research hopes to add to the existing literature on media coverage of children by shedding light on how childrens rights are reported in the media.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Introduction This study borrows its theoretical and contextual background from the different scholarly writings on media theory, childrens rights,

participation and laws in place. It is evident that there is little scholarly attention given to the subject on childrens rights in the media. However, this proves to be an important aspect in appreciating the role of the media in promoting rights of children. The literature review is in two sections: the laws and childrens participation. The media theory section identifies the role of news values and social responsibility of the media and how they influence coverage of childrens issues.

Legal instruments South Africa is a signatory to a range of international treaties which deal with childrens rights among them the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children (CRC) and the South African Constitution (MMP and United Nation Children's Fund (UNICEF), 2003, p. 6). Despite the existence of these laws, children are still not being given the due attention by the media compared to the adults. The South African Constitution guarantees freedom of expression, including freedom of the press and other media, and access to information. The right to privacy, dignity, and specific rights protecting children are also constitutionally guaranteed (MMP and UNICEF, p. 6). All in all, for the media, the dual task of satisfying the publics right to hear stories concerning and affecting children, while at the same time respecting childrens rights to privacy and dignity, is a delicate and difficult balancing act. It is an everyday affair for journalists to be confronted in all manners of ethical dilemmas when it comes to reporting on children (MMP and UNICEF, p. 6).

CRC was drawn up by member states of the UN in November 1989 and for which South Africa has ratified. It contains 54 articles, of which 41 are about rights of children and 13 about its implementation, and is intended to ensure that universal rights of children are upheld throughout the world (CRC, 1990). Three main sections; Articles 3, 13

and 17 aim at generally giving the best for children and guaranteeing what pertains to freedom of expression. Article 3 states that the best interest of the child is to be observed in all actions concerning children.

Article 13 refers to children and freedom of expression whereby children have the right to freedom to seek, receive and share information in their preferred choice of media. Only when in protection of national security/public order when it interferes with the rights of others may this right be restricted. Amongst its provision are:
1. The child shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of the child's choice (Convention on Rights of Children, 1990).

The choice of media today for children is not so much the issue with the present technological advancement. With the choice of accessing information via the internet, phones, iPods and other related electronic gadgets, accessing and receiving information meant for children or otherwise is slowly becoming a non-issue. However, majority of children in Africa where newspapers are still the leading forms of information is an issue that is not fully addressed. South Africa, though leading in development of other African countries, is not excluded in this dilemma. Children are yet to be included in making news. They are yet to be seen as sources. They only receive very minimal information in relation to them as they are given little attention by the media,

hence their right to freedom of expression can be considered not to being exercised as it is supposed to be (Seaton, 2006, p. 131-135).

Article 17, on the other hand, stipulates that the state shall ensure that a child has access to the mass media for the betterment of him or her. In this regard, the government shall provide information and material of social and cultural benefit, encourage production and dissemination of childrens books, encourage international co-operation in the production, exchange and dissemination of such information and material from a diversity of cultural, national and international sources. It is also the duty of the state to encourage the media to cater for children of minority groups by producing media which they can understand more so linguistically and also see to it that the media set laws so as to protect children from harmful media (CRC, 1990).

While there might be a childrens TV section in the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), the government has not made much effort, if any, to see the production of print related (newspapers) to cater for children. Focus on children in the print is seen in forms of supplement inserts in the main newspapers and this only happens once in a while. The laws in place to protect children against harmful media and maybe help in executing their right to protection against harm, for example, through the media, has also been overridden by

freedom of the press which then results to an issue of who is entitled to what and how a balance is achieved.

The South African constitution, just like in the CRC, provides widely in the best interests of the child. Childrens rights are enshrined in Section 28 of the Bill of Rights of the constitution which states that the childs best interests are of paramount importance in every matter concerning the child.

The Childrens Bill of 2003 is another piece of legislation that has been put in place by the South African government to protect the child. Chapter three of the Bill largely deals with the best interest of the child. Chapter five deals with court issues and part 4 no 74 states that no person may, without the permission of a court, in any manner publish any information relating to the proceedings of a childrens court which reveals or may reveal the name or identity of a child who is a party or a witness in the proceedings (Childrens Bill). Among other things, it states that the identity of the child shall not be revealed, publicity should serve the interest of the child and information provided must be approved by the minister or

commissioner (MMP and UNICEF, 2003, p. 58). However, this has not necessarily been observed by the press. It is not unusual to read stories in court of children with their identities revealed. This is usually

in instances where the identity was revealed before the case was taken to court, maybe as a matter of interest of the public. But even then, journalists continued revealing the identity of the child when it should have stopped after the first instance. This example is one of the many ways in which journalists deny children their right to privacy and also fails to put the best interest of the child first.

It is evident that there are laws that protect and enhance childrens rights. However, it is the laxity of journalists in following some of these laws that is contributing to childrens rights not being promoted as observed throughout this research.

Childrens participation and voices in media While children are considered as the largest consumers of media, they are hardly involved in its production. Rarely are children quoted in articles. Stucky (2006, p. 8) argues that children are regarded as difficult and time consuming interviewees. They tend to reply in monosyllables and do not respond well to coaxing. This perhaps could be one of the excuses journalists keep away from interviewing children. Stucky adds that in most cases where children are interviewed, it is in cases where they are accessories of adults (2006, p. 10). This means that they are interviewed to neutralise a story or add flavour. Thorfinn (2002, p. 15) adds that children are used when a

hard story needs a human angle or if children are doing something crazy or cute and as long as that can draw attention to a boring story.

Research has also shown that children are hardly quoted in stories. In a report by Meintjes and Bray, research found that of 114 news articles reviewed, five directly sourced the children or young people to whom they referred (Meintjes and Bray, 2005, p. 21). In another report, only 6% of all monitored news items contained children (MMP, 2004, p. 16). The average number of sources per article on children was 2.4 %. The majority of these sources, however, were adults and 72% of the items do not access children. Children appeared in images in 15% of the items and they were quoted, either directly or indirectly, in only 13% of the items (MMP, 2004, p. 22). This suggests that children are given a limited opportunity to represent themselves, to exercise their right to participation, and to express their views and opinions in matters that extremely affect them.

Prinsloo (2007, p. 33), writing an opinion piece after attending the fifth World Summit on Media and Children, also expresses disappointment on how lightly the issue of childrens participation in the media has been taken. This was also observed at the conference which was aimed to promote childrens voices. He notes that during the summit,

children were not given a chance to participate in debates although ideally it was meant to be a platform for children in attendance to air their opinions on what they wanted from the media. The young teen delegates were expected to attend plenary sessions The

determination of the organisers to have childrens voices heard resulted in children being nominated daily to say what they wanted in the media (Prinsloo 2007, p. 34). Prinsloo adds that allowing and

encouraging voices does not amount to taking children seriously or empowering them as was observed from the conference. This also happens in the larger society whereby children are given a chance to speak. However, this does not translate to their views being respected, an attitude that is carried out by media practitioners as well.

One can, therefore, deduce that children and childrens issues are not a key element of news agendas of print media. When they do, it is negative stories or those that are dramatic in nature. In a research conducted by MMP, (2004, p. 17) it was noted that 50% or one in every two stories on children is negative. The same report also noted that crime, war, conflict, violence, child abuse and disasters, accidents were the common news.

Journalists code of ethics regarding childrens coverage Because of its sensitive nature, reporting on children requires

journalists to take caution when dealing with children in the media. Besides the universal code of ethics for all journalists, other rules have been set out by the other bodies such as UNICEF, Save the Children and International Federation of Journalist and they act as a guide when sourcing and writing stories on children.

Among the ethical codes is that journalists should avoid the programming and publication of images which intrude upon the media space of children with information which is damaging to them. They should also avoid the use of stereotypes and sensational presentation to promote journalistic material involving children, consider carefully the consequences of publication of any material concerning children and should minimise harm to children by all means (Mediawise and UNICEF, 2005, p. 49). In addition, journalists should not reveal the identity of children not unless it is in their best interest or uttermost for the good of the public. Journalists too should avoid the use of sexualised images of children and that children, where possible, should be given the right of access to media and to express their own opinions without inducement of any kind (Mediawise and UNICEF, 2005, p. 49).

However, journalists do not necessarily follow these laws. This is due to various factors. For example, journalists are always working on short deadlines, hence rush through when interviewing a child .This is not supposed to be the case given the fact that a child

requires more time to interview compared to adults. A dilemma too is inherent given that the issues of childrens rights in the media are not propagated by the children themselves. The conflict may arise, in this form of activism, of adults misrepresenting what they might think are childrens rights. This might amount to what might be termed as epistemic violence, where the children are denied the voice to speak for themselves. Epistemic violence is violence to ones thoughts. So, whenever childrens issues are represented in the media without involving the children themselves, then it constitutes this form of violence. (Mutonya, 2008, p. 54)

MEDIA THEORY (i) News values (ii) Social responsibility

Introduction This study looks at how news values, the guiding factors in newsroom, are used to determine what material/news makes it to the newspaper. It explores how the news values affects how children news and rights are represented in the media. This section also looks at the social responsibility role of the media in representation of childrens rights in the media. This is done through looking at what is expected in the media in their contribution of society building in relation to promoting childrens rights.

News, as defined by Jamieson and Campbell (cited by Harris, 1989, p. 134-135), is any report of an event that happened or was disclosed within the previous 24 hours and treats an issue of ongoing concern. The event itself needs not be recent, but must involve some new revelations or previous unknown connection. Mass medias role among other things is to source and provide information on all spheres of human activities.

Every other minute, there is something happening that is worth to be

known by the larger society but even then, very few make it to the newspapers. The reason is that there are other underlying factors such as the editorial policy and newsworthiness of a given event to the media company whether it will attract advertisements or increase newspaper circulation, among other things. In short, what matters is the value that they bring to the media house. As Hartley (1982, p. 75-76) puts it, events do not get into news simply by happening; they need to be known and recognised, coming from a known and trusted source to win inclusion in any particular news. They must fulfil a certain number of criteria (1982, p. 75-76). For information to be considered newsworthy, Hartley goes on to say, journalists use an informal paradigm of news values, which are (a) frequency: timespan taken by an event; (b) threshold: the size of an event; (c)

unambiguity: clarify of an event; (d) Meaningfulness; (e) consonance: predictability of an event; (f) unexpectedness, composition; (g) reference to elite persons and negativity are the main factors used to weight the newsworthiness of a story (1982, p. 77-79).

Harris (1989, p. 135) also notes that for a story to be considered newsworthy, certain factors are considered. For example, is the story personalised, about individuals? This means that if a story is about, say for example the popularised emotionally story of Nkosi Johnson, it would be allocated space since he was and is known to the public while

the story of an unknown child would easily be done away with.

Dramatic and conflict related stories is another point that Harris argues would determine whether an article will be carried or not. This is justified as an MMP report indicated that when children stories make big news, it is when they were mostly negative and about crime, disasters, accidents, child abuse and war, conflict or violence (MMP, 2004, p. 18).

In todays media world, other major influences of what makes it to the news items are media ownership and advertising as Campbell (2004) notes. The media is now a business and it is about printing news that will attract revenue. However, editors and journalists still play a major role in what goes as news. Even with the advent of twenty four-hour news channels, limitless space on the Internet, it is simply not possible for journalists to report everything that happens (Campbell 2004, p. 105). This being the case, childrens stories rarely qualify as main stories or just stories to fight for that newspaper page as more often, children are not considered a main market, hence will not attract a large audience. Children in their ordinary days activities are not exciting, hence stories on them hardly find space as front page news. This however, is not to mean that stories done on or for children are never sensationalised.

Nonetheless, the media has a responsibility to society. Besides reporting on the days events, it is supposed to play part in educating and informing the public, not just what happened at a given event but analysing deeper and reporting on issues which affect the society. Peterson (1956) describes social responsibility theory of the media as one that goes beyond "objective" reporting to "interpretive" reporting. He explains that a truthful, complete account of the news is not necessarily enough today but one that explores. This would then be argued that it is not enough for the media to just pick and report on a days event. There is a lot that happens in the society that for one reason or the other does not make it to the newspaper. Journalists

have the task to take upon themselves to digging deeper on issues, which if they dont will be left unexplored, hence will never make it to the newspapers. In other words, journalists need to champion for issues. This can be looked at what is today referred to as emancipatory journalism. This is explained by Shah (1996, p. 46) as the journalism that offers a link between mass media and the society. It articulates mechanisms by which journalists can participate in social change. And with the concept of rights increasingly becoming more of a developmental issue than that of democracy, it is absolutely crucial for the media to be keen on reportage of rights, particularly childrens rights. The media should provide the moral compass and

responsibility in ensuring that not only that the rights of children are adhered to, but also

them being in the frontline of children rights activism.

It is along this line then that the media should take up covering children as a social responsibility, that is, the media should not consider and report the conditions of children only as events, but should continuously report the process likely to lead or leading to the occurrence of these events (Mediawise and UNICEF, 2005, p. 49).

All in all, as Seaton (2006, p. 124) notes, it is time that people rethought the perception of children. Children need to be accorded respect and be considered as important members of the society. He argues that as communication gets increasingly personalized, no one in any area, feels secure about the response of those they serve, entertain, sell to or inform. Those who produce content are faced with swift-moving changes in the landscape.
The future has arrived and children like seals in water, are so comfortable in the new technological waters of communication that we need to learn from them, but we also need to get some things right for them-fast (Seaton, 2006, p. 124).

It is upon this premise that the medias coverage of children and childrens rights issues are probed in this study. The redemptive factor however, is that they are legal instruments that provide for the respect and observance of the children rights. Therefore, the media has the social and moral responsibility again, of both highlighting issues of childrens rights abuse, as well as conscietising the children themselves about their rights.

The challenge to the media, therefore, is to rise above the profit motive and inculcate the interests of the children in their agenda. This means that items in the media should be clearly palatable to both the adults and the children. It is only through a collaborative effort that we can ensure that the rights of the children are clearly represented in the media, that they are well understood by all, and that they are not violated in any sense. This becomes the biggest challenge to the media nowadays.

METHODOLOGY

The study is qualitative in nature. A qualitative approach is best for this study because as put forward by John Creswell, qualitative research takes place in the natural setting enabling the researcher to develop some detail about the individual or place, it uses multiple methods that are interactive and humanistic meaning the involvement of the respondent in the data collection thus seeking to build rapport and credibility with the individuals in the study (Creswell, 2003, p. 181). In essence, a qualitative approach will thus enable the researcher to capture all the details that would be crucial to the research, as being there in person will help in understanding the perceptions, beliefs, attitudes of childrens rights activist, journalist and other relevant service providers and in also ascertaining what inspires their position regarding the presentation of children in the media.

Data collection techniques Data was collected using semi-structured key informant interviews in which the researcher used open-ended questions to solicit broader answers that address the issues of concern to the study. The sources of information were professionals in the field.

An in-depth interview is a dialogue between an interviewer and interviewee. Its goal is to elicit rich, detailed material that can be used in analysis (Lofland and Lofland, 1995).

Such interviews are best conducted face to face, which is the method used in this research, although in some situations telephone interviewing can be successful. The interviews were conducted face-to-face on an individual basis, where the subject matter of the interview was explored in detail. The selected respondents for the interviews were all specialists in a specific field, though child-related, and for this reason, the researcher found this qualitative method appropriate. The advantage of an in-depth interview is that it involves speaking with experts in the field who deal with the subjects in question (Berger, 1998, p. 57). Berger also notes that when conducting in-depth interviews, one can often obtain unexpected information that other forms of research might not discover. The more people talk, the more information they give. One-on-one interviews are much easier to schedule than group interviews (Shao, 1999, p. 162). Data can be collected faster than other research methodsusually within a few weeks. It also allows the interviewer to explain or help clarify questions, increasing the likelihood of useful responses, Shao adds.

However, it also has disadvantages; for example, the interviewee may distort information through recall error, selective perceptions or desire to please interviewer. Shao (1999, p. 162-163) identifies disadvantages of in-depth interviews over other research techniques as one where sometimes respondents feel alone. He also adds that the cost of implementation can be quiet expensive if one has to do many interviews as more often than, for example, for the purpose of this research interviewers were advised to chose their preferred venue meaning it was up to the researcher to find her way there.

Patton (1987, p. 150) also argues that another disadvantage of this kind of interviews is that when the volume of information too large it may be difficult to transcribe and reduce data.

Interview data was recorded on tape (with the permission of the participants) and summarised in notes. The researcher did not do a full transcription and instead picked and summarised what she felt was substantial information from the respondents. The interviews took approximately forty-five minutes per person.

Professionals interviewed were: 1. Hasina Kathrada: Executive Producer of Kids News on SABC 2. Thobeka Ndabula: Director of Zanzi Productions. A photojournalist by profession, formely working with The Star and has participated in the MMP journalists training workshops. 3. Journalist X: (The respondent, a journalist, sought anonymity and hereby referred to as Journalist X). Works with Mail & Guardian, has worked with children and has also participated in the MMP journalists training workshops. 4. Ann Skelton: Advocate, Childrens Litigation Project, Centre for child law. 5. Lucy Hillier: Save the Children. She deals with child protection and child rights with an interest in ensuring that children and their rights are protected when speaking to the media 6. George Kalu: project manager and news monitor at MMP.

Data Analysis After collecting the data from the interviews, the researcher

transcribed the interviews into a transcript. In the study, the method of analysis used the data-driven inductive approach of Boyatzis (1998) thematic content analysis.

This approach allowed for themes to emerge directly from the data using inductive coding. The coding process involved recognizing (seeing) an important moment and encoding it (seeing it as something) prior to a process of interpretation (Boyatzis, 1998, p. 41). A good code is one that captures the qualitative richness of the phenomenon (Boyatzis, 1998, p. 1). Encoding the information organizes the data to identify and develop themes from them. Boyatzis defined a theme as a pattern in the information that at minimum describes and organises the process of paraphrasing or summarizing each piece of data enters information into your unconscious, as well as consciously processing the information (Boyatzis, 1998, p. 45). This process involves reading, listening to, and summarizing the raw data. The researcher used this technique as a first step when analyzing each transcript of the interviews.

Reliability, validity and credibility of data Joppe (2000, p. 1) defines reliability as: The extent to which results are consistent over time and an accurate representation of the total population under study. He adds that if the results of a study can be reproduced under a similar methodology, then the research

instrument is considered to be reliable. Validity on the other hand determines whether the research truly measures that which it was intended to measure or how truthful the research results are (Joppe, 2000, p. 1). This research was conducted through interviews. Respondents had the same opinion and also differed on others. If the same set of questions were repeated and asked to the same people by another researcher the results would be similar hence the idea of replicability or repeatability of results or observations, otherwise what has been defined as reliability.

The study through analysing data from the interviews also answers the research questions that the study was set out to. With reliability and validity observed the study can then be considered credible.

Limitations From a list of nine experts, the researcher managed to interview six. As the researcher was working under limited time, some of the hopeful interviewees were out of the country at the time scheduled for interviews and there were no appropriate substitute for them. Some of them, having worked with children for a long time would have been very resourceful for this research, for example, William Bird who was away at the time interviews were conducted.

Another problem experienced is that some respondents tended to

speak in bias towards their employer. For instance, the researcher noted that there was a tendency for respondents to cite good examples of promotion of rights of children mostly in reference to the company they work for. This however, could be because they do not take time to read keenly through other newspapers and only concentrate for the productions they work for. This would then result into biased opinions.

FINDINGS

Six people were interviewed for the purpose of this research. The interviewees are experts in various fields, who in one way or the other deal with children/ children rights. Among them are journalists who work with children or have worked with children and childrens rights advocates. Findings from the interviews have been grouped into four themes; representation of children in news, the role of journalists, images and ethics.

(i) Representation of children in news This theme tackles the general issue of how children are reported in the news. Issues of lack of positivity in childrens news, children being regarded as victims, lack of childrens voices in news and sensationalism of childrens stories are brought out.

The general feeling amongst the respondents was that there is a lack of positivity in the news when it comes to matters concerning children. Generally, the media depicts children as victims of one thing or the other. Skelton, for example pointed out that when referring to poverty-stricken children or children who are victims of neglect or abuse, the media sees them as those needing protection, which to some extent, she reckons, could be true. Children lack editorial space and are often ignored not unless they have done something horrendous, said journalist X. Not very often do we see positive stories but things are getting better, added the journalist. Children are often portrayed in a very negative sense and their power as individual agents and actors is often not acknowledged, said Hillier. Ndabula also concurred with the other respondents and said that journalists are

still portraying children as victims. Most times when we get to read about children is when something bad has happened to them.

Sensationalism was another factor that was noted to be paramount in children-related stories. However, respondents noted that there has been some improvement recently in newspaper coverage of children as positive stories are now becoming regular, though not taking a big share as negative coverage. Kathrada notes:
We are beginning to see improvements, there might be infringements on childrens rights but there is more awareness with the journalists.

According to Kalu, sensationalism is a leading factor in many newsrooms. There is the tendency to have a big story even when it doesnt exist, He added that sensationalism can be linked with the nature of newsrooms: Quite often, journalists dont have time to do things properly. They are driven by time which most times is limited hence they will spice up a story from the little facts that they have.

All the respondents agreed that the media does not always follow laws or guidelines that enable them to promote the best interest of the child. Kathrada observed that the media do break the law of what they can do or are supposed to be doing. They sometimes reveal information on a child directly or indirectly, this is not to the best interest of the child. But there has been improvement in the last few years. Two respondents noted that there are journalists who are concerned with the portrayal of children as some will phone to ask what the rule is about one issue or the other. We have journalists who are concerned with the portrayal of children and some will phone to ask what the rule about this or that is, noted Skelton.

Childrens voices are another issue that respondents felt needed to be addressed. Five respondents noted that children are hardly quoted in news. Children rarely speak for themselves even in matters that relate to them. Kathrada argued that childrens voices need to be heard as much as possible and that in cases where they need to be protected (children), they can be anonymously quoted instead of not having them say anything at all. Childrens voices are hardly there. Even in not so positive stories, we need to hear their voices by anonymous quoting them. Kalu said, Children being quoted in stories are almost non-existent. He added that even in positive stories, the voice of an adult maybe the parent or teacher is what is quoted instead of the childs. Hillier, just like the other respondents, also noted that childrens views on issues are not sought, hence they do not get quoted in stories.

Respondents also urged for children stories to be in the mainstream as much as possible and not only when theres something dramatic or huge happening in relation to children. It is not only when children have done something huge we want to read about them, said Kalu. It is sad that most of the time when we see childrens stories make it to the front page is when they have a hard hitting story, said journalist X

Three of the respondents noted that children stories are not given the same respect and seriousness given to adults and argued that journalists should regard childrens views as important. In Kathradas view, once they have that frame of mind, it becomes easier in taking the subject seriously and gives the story the focus it deserves. Ndabula also noted

that if one has the attitude that what does a child know or that it is not important what a child thinks or feels, it definitely affects the way the story is handled. By this, the respondents are suggesting that by journalists having the mentality that childrens opinions hold no value would mean that they will not treat them with the seriousness a story or an issue would deserve.

All six respondents felt that there is a lot more that needs to be done and journalists should try and look for more positive stories on children. Most of the positive stories are usually on education and for the negative ones; they are mostly about violence, abuse and rape. According to Hillier, there are a lot more positive stories that can be done on children if we want to promote the best interest of the child. This is a sentiment shared by Kalu who argued that, journalists need to take time and source for more positive stories because they exist. Respondents argued that because journalists stereotype children as good, bad or vulnerable, this affects the way they report about them. Because of this, they dont try to respect the views of children. Another factor is that newspapers are mainly catering for an adult audience; hence many may feel that adults will not be interested in what children have to say. If a journalist is writing for an adult publication they will tend to write the article for adults whether the piece is meant to interest children or is about children, said journalist X. The nature of newsrooms as well does not allow journalists to do things appropriately. They are driven by time among other factors hence getting consent might then become an issue, noted Kalu and Kathrada.

From the research education and health are the most highlighted rights as observed by most respondents. But the sentiment expressed was that there was need to see more of childrens voices and participation. Kalu, for example, pointed out that there was need to increase stories, particularly on sports on children as they hardly exist. As he has observed, this is what children do most; play, not necessarily for competitions. But we hardly see stories of this nature: He further argues that, even when children stories make it to the main pages or are portrayed in positive light, most journalists do not let the child talk, yet it is about them. Instead they quote the mother or teacher.

From these findings, it is clear that childrens are being portrayed as victims is the pertinent issue of concern that came out from the people interviewed. This goes on to support the findings of reports carried out by the MMP and Media Wise 2004 and 2005 that, it is when a child has committed a crime, is caught up in war situation or famine that they are likely to receive coverage. This is what we read from day-to-day stories on children. This also brings out the issue of news valuesthe determining factor of what becomes news. How dramatic a story is, its uniqueness, size, unexpectedness are some of the characteristics as already highlighted that will be used in weighing the value of a story. In this regard, as MMP noted, it operates under an assumption that the discourse of news is generally negative, where bad news makes good news (or is regarded as newsworthy). This accounts for the overwhelming focus on negative news stories such as crime, disasters and accidents. The media also tends to emphasise unusual or extraordinary events and incidents (MMP, 2004, pg. 6). Newspapers do not hesitate to splash a story on a minor who was gang raped but can easily ignore a story on a child

who has dropped out of school due to lack of school fees because in a newsroom scenario or news values, lacking school fees is nothing unusual especially in struggling economies like in most of Africa, or where theres no free nursery or primary education. But a gang rape story, on the other hand, would be argued as one that is likely to attract more readers, thereby meeting one of the criteria of filters used in selecting news. This corresponds with Harris (1982, p. 77-79), who outlined negativity as one of the factors used in judging newsworthiness of a story. Newsrooms will pick to run a negative story as it is thought to attract wider readership as opposed to a positive one.

The issue of childrens voices is also another factor that was overwhelming brought out by all the respondents. Children are yet to be valued as authorities, even in their own stories. It is for this reason that journalists are still not quoting them and as indicated in the literature review, research has also shown that children are hardly quoted in stories. As earlier discussed, Meintjes and Bray's (2005, p. 21) research showed, children are hardly sourced, citing the example that 114 news articles reviewed, five directly sourced the children or young people to whom they referred. The lack of children sources was also supported by another research done by MMP which noted that only 6% of all monitored news items contained children (MMP, 2004, p. 16). The above sentiments then answer one of the research questions; what concerns do stakeholders in childrens rights have over coverage of children in the media. It is clear they are advocating for more positive news and children being given the right to participate in the

news. It is also evident that they would also like to see children treated with the dignity and humanity that they deserve and not always being portrayed as helpless victims. This study then argues that the media in their pro-social role have a lot to do if the childrens voices and participation are to be achieved. This is in addition to them championing for more positive stories on children something that has been overwhelming noted by this research to be lacking.

(ii)The role of journalists Journalists and the media in general, are a powerful tool in the society. Because of their power to influence, they can succeed or fail to persuade an issue. What came out of this theme is that journalists need to take creative angles in framing of stories and images of stories. Society stereotyping on capabilities of a child is also brought out in this section.

Respondents felt that there should be more creativity in how things are done. For example, getting a picture of a child which clearly tells the reader what the issues is but does not demean the child. For victims such as those of abuse or child-headed

households, Skelton noted that they are always looked at negatively, and this might not necessarily be the case; Child-headed homes, in some instances, might be better off than going to live in a childrens home, but they are often reported in bad light even in cases where they are not necessarily so noted Skelton. This is to mean that journalists have a task to protect the child even in cases when they are on the wrong. If they have to write a negative story, it should be done in a manner not to likely cause further harm to the child.

This can be done by journalists not revealing any identity of the child and in this way; journalists will also be observing code of ethics when interviewing children as outlined by International Federation of Journalists (MediaWise and UNICEF, 2005, p. 49). That childhood is a process and journalists should have this in mind, is another issue that was raised by respondents. They argued that there is need to recognize that as children grow older, they gain autonomy and their views become important. Ndabula, for example, noted that assuming children do not know is a misleading perception. Kalu, having worked frequently with children argued that, you will be shocked at how much children know. I have spent time with them and they are very aware of what goes on in their surrounding, be it socially or politically. Hillier also noted that, coverage of children tends to reinforce and further create stereotypes of how people see children. Skelton, on the other hand, argued that the media might be excused for not seeking views of the very young ones but have no excuse for not seeking views of the older ones. This argument of childhood, as a stage, concurs with Thornfinns (2002) assertion that society has moulded the child to be viewed as how the adults want them to be viewed; little ones who need guidance and protection. This is to say that, the idea that a child does not know, hence the reason they are ignored, is an issue the respondents felt need to be addressed. Journalists should recognise that childhood is a stage with stages in itself. A very young one might not be capable of understanding things around and not very resourceful to themselves and to the larger society. But as they grow, they acquire knowledge and information and should be accorded a channel to air their views. While it might be necessary to protect children, this does not mean they should not be given a chance to air their views or contribute to issues related to them.

Larger societal influences were also thought to be a contributing factor as to why and how journalists covered children the way they do. Childrens issues try to identify with what goes on in the society, said Ndabula. When prominent people are heard on TV and radio or even read to be talking openly about killing, children will pick it up and even do it among themselves, she explained. Hillier also gave an example to support the societal stereotyping saying:
Recently I was listening to a debate by radio DJs (think it was radio 2000) about whether girls who get pregnant in school should be thrown out of school. One DJ (a young woman) saw it as perfectly fine that girls should be thrown out as it was their fault and they should have thought of the consequences before having unprotected sex. Apart from taking the punishment approach, this completely ignored the fact that a boy or man played an equal part in the pregnancy so why not throw them out of school too and also very ignorant of the possible circumstances in which the baby was conceived (possible rape, transactional). Although this was radio and DJs, I do think that this kind of thinking would probably be exemplified in the press as well.

The lifestyle we are living is also reflected in children hence the need to address these issues because, if not, negative stories will continue to be read about children. This was noted further in the manner in which girls and boys are portrayed. Three of the respondents noted that girls are more likely to receive negative coverage as compared to boys. Girls are more as victims and less as heroes. In explaining, this Kalu and Ndabula noted that women for the longest time were not given much positive coverage compared to men. Hence, the same trickles down to reportage of the girl child compared to the boy. For the longest time women were not given adequate coverage as compared to the men. The same is happening for the girl-child, noted Ndabula.

Thus, cultural norms and values play a role in shaping the manner in which journalist cover stories on children. This would then be argued that as long as journalist continue to

go with society norms and stereotypes, issues such as portraying girls in a negative manner more frequently in the news while portraying boys more positively, fair coverage of children and childrens rights will not be achieved. This means that journalists should move away from such norms and this is can be looked at as a social responsibility role. Journalists have the capability to influence and shape opinions within the society. Once they move away from reporting these society stereotypes and negative norms, the society will heed their call. This will result in the promotion of childrens rights, as well as doing away with the gender biases in children rights. This once more answers the question of the role of journalist in media coverage of children.

The respondents noted with concern the contemporary news culture. There is the, tendency to have shockers on newspapers. Thus, the only time a child-related story makes it to the front page is when it is dramatic or shocking. You will never see a childrens story on the front page not unless its a dramatic one, said journalist X. This also goes back to the filters of news values (Harris 1989, Hartley 1982) argue that if a story is of unexpected composition, it is bound to make it to the paper. Another news culture is the pressure to deliver news by the minute. This is what has resulted to journalist reporting from location. Even for print purposes, journalists are now wiring stories on location via cell phones. But on a general note, journalists more often than not usually have limited time to pursue up stories. This being the case, it becomes a challenge for them to take necessary steps, like taking time with the child before interviewing them, making them comfortable or even getting their consent.

Respondents noted that journalists also lack knowledge on how children should be approached hence they keep on repeating the same mistakes over and over. If someone has been in the newsroom for 10 years and has no knowledge on how to interview children, this means they have been repeating mistakes and will not change not unless they trained, noted Ndabula. Kalu, Kathrada and Skelton concurred, saying that often journalists do not know how to go about interviewing children. The respondents advocated for more journalists to be trained in this regard if this issue is to be resolved. MMP needs to have more training sessions for journalists as the training has proved to be very helpful for journalists working with children, said Kathrada. Ndabula also said while MMP should be commended for the work they are doing in training journalists there is a lot more that the organisation can do in regards to these kinds of training.

If childrens rights are to be promoted in the newspapers, journalists then have to disregard societys view of what a child can do. They also have to in the frontline in moving away from negative stereotyping which is largely observed in the society and also take time to learn ethics and caution to be observed when interviewing children. This also answers the research question as to the role of journalist in media coverage of childrens rights: they have a duty to protect the rights of the child and promote their best interests too.

(iii)Images Hard-hitting and sad pictures of children are a common sight in the newspaper. Pictures of children are very powerful and for this reason, they are the most abused or inappropriately used.

It was noted by all respondents that in terms of pictures used independently or accompanying stories, more often than not they depict children negatively; People concentrate much on cuteness when it comes to children that can be appropriate. Children are cute and if thats what journalists want to show but again it doesnt show the other side of children, said Skelton. Teenagers, for example, dont want to be depicted as cute, she added. This is in line with what Thorfinn (2002, p. 15) argues in relation to children being used in imagesphotos of children are used when they are doing something cute or crazy. This is also what Seaton (2006, p. 128) brought out in relation to children and images, saying that children are portrayed as sweet, innocent, pretty and cowly to the effect that if one goes against this, it is almost shaming.

Kalu noted that at times journalists use appropriate images but twist things when it comes to the caption as they sometimes indirectly reveal identity of the child even when it is inappropriate to do so. In most cases pictures are used to elicit sympathy. Pitiful pictures of children are a common thing and this is not all in the best interest of child hence it should not be happening said Kathrada.

The Daily Sun was noted by majority of the respondents as the newspaper that mostly carries negative images of children or uses images inappropriately. On the other hand, four respondents acknowledged that The Star mostly uses images appropriately and that they try to be creative in the images they use as they try not to demean the child, they protect their dignity and convey the message at the same time. Hillier in this light observed this on journalists:
These days we have to be very vigilant as to how/if childrens faces and images generally are used in the media as media can be accessed by more and more people and showing childrens faces in the media might lead to stigmatisation, labelling or other damage.

The tendency to put shocking or dramatic images can therefore be linked to the news values argument that pictures that seem unusual or are of unexpected composition will be used as opposed to the ordinary picture. The argument here is that this picture will capture the eye, leading to more readership and in turn, more profits for the media house. Todays media houses being more a commercial enterprise and competition becoming stiffer will do anything to earn them more audience.

(iv) Ethics Journalists generally are guided by a code of ethics in their work. But they do not always put the issue of ethics first as they go about their work. Not being aware, not being educated on rights of children and the damage that is caused by portraying a child in a negative way, were thought to be the main factors influencing journalists to write children stories in the manner that they do. Many journalists have not taken time to learn of the rights of children, noted Kalu. Skelton, in explaining how journalists disregard ethics, gave an example of a story of a child she was representing in

court for alleged murder. She noted that even though the matter was in court, images and stories of the child were run in the newspapers. I approached one of the media houses protesting usage of pictures of my client, but the journalist argued that they run them because the face of the child was hidden, Skelton said. This she noted are some of the arguments journalist use to justify running some stories although ideally they are not in order with the ethics. This also goes against the Childrens Bill (2003) which states that matters in court shall not be published not unless approved so by the judge or is a matter of public interest.

One of the journalists interviewed, however, provided a counter argument saying that it is not that journalists do not know that they are supposed to be guided by certain ethics, it is more of the newsroom culture: When you are expected to deliver a story on a child in an hours time, then one will automatically forgo some ethics like getting the desired consent as one is in a rush to do the story, time to make a child fully understand what the interview is all about might not happen. However, this can also be linked to what Stucky (2006, p.8) argued as a reason why journalists keep away from interviewing childrenthey are regarded as difficult and timeconsuming interviewees and that they tend to reply in monosyllables and do not respond well to coaxing.

The interest of the child should always come first. Their rights too, the majority of respondents said; Journalists should always take into account how the child feels; are they comfortable, ethically, morally is it the right thing to ask or portray them, said

Kathrada. This then links this point to what the NGOs like MMP, Save the Children and international bodies UN and CRC are championing for, the best interest of the child should be the priority and journalists should strive to achieve this all the time, (MMP and UNICEF).

Hillier argued that journalists fail to follow ethical considerations to some certain extent because they do not have a good understanding of childrens rights and the law. She also noted that ethics is not put at the forefront because reporters and/or their editors modify stories to suit the perceived interest of their readership.

It can be concluded that journalist are familiar with ethics but factors such as newsroom culture of wanting news immediately results to journalists not observing ethics.

The findings of this study highlighted a number of important aspects regarding the children and children rights issues, namely; the portrayal of children in South African newspapers; experts concerns with the portrayal of children; the role of journalists in reporting children; imaging; ethics and ethical considerations and other challenges.

That children are portrayed as victims was arguably the main issue of concern raised by the people interviewed. And this is what we read from day to day stories on children. This lack of positivity in articles related to children and promoting childrens rights in this regard would also be argued as a result of todays media culture whereby time and money are the key issues. Due to this, journalists work on tight deadlines. It is about

getting the big story or the scoop before someone else does and this being the case, time to go through ethical considerations, for example, explaining to a child why one would like to photograph him or her and what the photo will be used for, like during the xenophobic attacks, might be something journalists will not pursue. Not that they do not know that they should do it, but the fact that an editor expects them to report back to the newsroom before deadlines and with a picture that will sell the newspaper.

But the issue is not only with the reporters but also with the editors. If an editor does not recognise that there is need to always have the best interest of the child before running any article on a child, then that becomes a bigger challenge all together. It might be that the reporter got it right when executing a story only for it to be altered, for example, in a headline which s/he had nothing to do with. Ndabula, in this regard noted that it does not matter whether one is a fresh journalist or has been working on the desk for ten years. As long as they do not have the knowledge on how to handle children stories, they will still get it wrong, no matter how experienced one might be on the job.

It was also observed that pro-social responsibility of the media is hardly existent in regards to highlighting childrens rights stories. Journalists and media houses are yet to take up the task of championing the best interest of the child through pursuing stories that would not ordinarily make it to the newspapers but are worth telling for the betterment of the children. This it can be argued is because media houses are overwhelmingly relying on news values as their guiding tool to determine what stories to run and what not to.

Until media houses play their social role in this regard we will continue to have children stories more often than not portrayed negatively.

Sensationalism of news is the other factor that is influencing respect to childrens rights in newspaper coverage. The societys view of the child as not knowing or one in constant need of guidance, is another factor that has led to childrens rights hardly being observed. This is the same point that (Thornfinn 2002) argued above. As observed in the findings, children are not quoted in stories and as one respondent noted, even in positive stories journalist will go ahead to quote the parent or teacher of the child instead of child who is the subject matter. This would then be argued that journalists are still working on the notion that a child does not know, hence their view or views are not worth much consideration.

The other societal effect has been in the way women and men issues have long been viewed. Women, until recently, hardly made it into main news pages not unless it was a negative story, domestic violence or rape, for example. Men then are viewed as perpetrators and women as victims. This is the same that has been observed in childrens stories. Girls are more in the news when it is a negative story while boys receive neutral coverage. As long as newsrooms are guided by time and money factor, promoting childrens rights in news coverage is an issue that will not be resolved soon. Running stories or images that are shocking are of course bound to capture the eye of readers but if a story is represented in this manner, more often than not, is not in the best interest of the child but to woo readers.

CONCLUSION The study has shown that media overlooks the importance of children's rights. The media has the responsibility of tackling the issues around children and their rights in a more positive perspective. As the research has clearly noted, the positive presentation of children in the media is a step towards actualizing the developmental impact of the media in our contemporary society. It is therefore a great challenge to the media to ensure that such issues are clearly adhered to. The research has also noted that in writing up stories around children and their rights, some ethical considerations are crucial in bringing up the plight of children and their rights. It is absolutely crucial for journalists covering children issues, first to be conversant with the rights of their subjects. Secondly, it is important that having children as sources of their stories will push children's rights to the fore front. This is because what we have had before is journalists quoting secondary sources, like parents or teachers when writing about children stories, in situations where the said children can clearly narrate their experiences. With all these observed the best interest of the child will be achieved hence children will live in a better society and will receive the treatment they deserve. This is the challenge that this research poses to the media fraternity. Recommendations The following recommendations are based on the summary of findings: 1. More training for journalists working with children and editors is essential in order to observe the best interest of the child at all times. Editors need the training as well because from the research it was observed that reporters at times get it right only for a story to be altered by the editors.

2. Journalists need to do more in their pro-social role in bringing out more positive stories on children and for there to be more children participation.

Areas for future research Based on the summary of the findings, misrepresentation of childrens rights in the newspaper through their day-to-day coverage of children stories is an issue that needs to be addressed. This study sought views of experts in children-related sectors and it is evident that this is an issue that needs to be addressed. Therefore, further research can be done by getting views from the children themselves in view of their rights and how they are covered and or should be covered in the newspapers.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Berger, A. (1998). Depth Interviews. In Favourite Singers and Recordings in Media Research Techniques (pp. 55-65). Thousand Oaks, London and New Delhi: Sage. Boyatzis, R. (1998). Developing Themes and Codes. In Transforming qualitative information: Thematic analysis and code development. Thousand Oaks, London and New Delhi: Sage. Campbell, V. (2004). Information Age in Journalism: Journalism in an International Context. Oxford: Oxford University Press. United Nations. (1990) Convention on the Rights of Children. Retrieved August 20, 2008, from http://www.unicef.org/crc/index.html Creswell, J.W. (2003) Research design: Qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods approaches. London: Thousand Oaks. Harris, R. J. (1989). A cognitive psychology of mass communication. (pp. 131-150) New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Hartley, J. (1982). Understanding news. London: Methuen.
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Linter, A. (1994). Covering Children. In E. Dennis & E. Pease (Eds.), Children and the Media (pp. 45-50). Columbia University, New York: The Freedom Forum Media Studies Center Lofland, J., and Lofland, L.H. (1995). Analyzing Social Settings: A Guide to Qualitative Observation and Analysis. 3rd Ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Media Monitoring Project (2004). Children: Dying to make the news. Empowering Children & Media. Retrieved September 03, 2008, from www.unicef.org/southafrica/SAF_publications_childrendying.pdf Media Monitoring Project and UNICEF. (2003). All sides of the story: Reporting on children : A Journalists handbook. Johannesburg. Mediawise and Unicef. (2005). The Media and Childrens Rights. London: MediaWise. Meintjes, H and Bray, R. (2005). But where are our moral heroes? An

analysis of South African press reporting on children affected by HIV/AIDS. University of Cape Town: Childrens Institute and Centre for Social Science Research. Mutonya, M. (2008, March), African Images in African Media a Disgrace. Business in Africa, p. 54. Patton, M. Q. (1987). How to Use Qualitative Methods in Evaluation. California: Sage Publications Peterson, T. (1956). Four theories of the press. Urbana: University of Illinois Republic of South Africa. (2003). Childrens Bill. Retrieved August 20, 2008, from childrenfirst.org.za/pdf/childrensbill_04_August_2003.pdf Prinsloo, J. (2007). Giving children a voice. Rhodes Journalism Review, (27), 33-34 Seaton, J. (2006). Little Citizens: Children, the Media and Politics. In Lloyd J and Seaton J (Eds.), What can be done? Making the Media and Politics better (pp. 124-145). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. Stucky, C. (2006). Childs play: Getting childrens voices into the stories. Rhodes Journalism Review, (26), 8-10 Thorfinn, H. (2002). Children and the media-what about it? In Children Ethics Media (pp. 10-35). Stockholm, Sweden: Save the Children.

APPENDIX

The following is a summary of the transcripts from the interviews conducted. The researcher did not do a word to word transcript but instead captured the important information from each interviewee.

Ann Skelton How would you describe portrayal of children in the South African newspapers? There isnt really one answer to that because it depends to which children are being depicted. Generally children are depicted as helpless victims. But poverty stricken children or children who are victims of something like neglect or media abuse-media sees them as those needs protection-which I agree with. But they also do depict them as being not very resourceful-making assumptions about them without getting their point of view. When it comes to others like children offenders, they depict them as those out of control, dangerous from whom the rest of the society needs to be protected. Hence you see a very different language being used by media when talking about children offenders-youll see them being referred not as children but as teens/youths, ones who are irresponsible and dangerous to the society whereas they talk about children who are victims they tend to refer to them as a child i.e. when children do something that the society does not like, they lose their childhood status hence referred to as teens. In your opinion to do you think newspaper promotes or contravenes the best interest of the child? Theres not much positivity in the news when it comes to matters concerning children. Portraying children as vulnerable-which might be true- but to suggest that they are helpless and in constant need of protection is not necessarily true. This might work with the very young ones but as they grow old they want autonomy and want to have a say in what goes on in their world. Childhood is a process and journalists should have this in mind. They cannot afford to have only one approach. There is need to recognize that as children grow older they gain autonomy and their views become important. The media might be excused for not seeking views of the very young ones but have no excuse for not seeking views of the older ones. In your view as an expert what issues does the South African newspapers raise in their coverage of children?

There are lots of articles that talk about children in the homes and schools mostly. And there are dramatic stories about things that happen to children; children who are harmed or whove become victims of crime. Some are good because they get parents thinking if their parental approaches are correct. What concerns did you as an expert have with the portrayal of children in these instances? There is a lot of stereotyping when it comes to children and children issues. The media do break the law of what they can do or are supposed to be doing. They sometimes reveal information on a child directly or indirectly but there has been improvement in the last few years. We got journalists who are concerned with the portrayal of children and some will phone to ask what the rule about this etc is. In your view what accounts for this type of coverage in the South African newspapers. What would you say is the reason(s) journalist report on children in the manner that they do? Maybe because they abide to stereotypes that children are good or bad, vulnerable, so they dont stop to think about this. And because of this they dont try respect the views of children. Another factor is that newspapers are mainly catering for an adult audience hence many may feel that adults will not be interested in what children have to say. Which might not be necessarily true as I think adults are quite interested in what children have to say? In your opinion how should the South African newspapers cover children stories? They would need to themselves to children participation. Find out what children issues are from them. We make lots of assumptions of what children like, want etc. They need to start building a way of connecting with the children to get their views. There should be more creativity in how things are done eg one can do a pic of a child which clearly depicts to the reader what the issue is without demeaning the child. I have seen a couple of this in The Star. Journalists also need to break the stereotype of what children are, engage more with them and let the media become a tool for children. For victims eg abuse, child headed homes for example are assumed to be a bad thing when at times they are not they actually might be better off than going to live in a childrens home. Journalists should also know that childhood is a stage and that children gain autonomy as they grow. How would you describe the portrayal of children through images/pictures used independently or to accompany stories? People concentrate much on cuteness when it comes to children; that can be appropriate; children are cute and if thats what one wants to show but again it doesnt show the other side of children. Teenagers for example dont want to depicted as cute. The media at times also uses images careless in the manner of how they describe children in captions. There need to be consent from adults when taking pictures of children as they might not be aware of the implications.

However newspapers have been making efforts in proper usage of photos but we still have some like Daily Sun who are not (Gave example of the pornographic pictures the newspaper run of children). In your view has the SA media regulatory body addressed concerns in relation to how children are covered? Yes, they have dealt with complaints. MMP has issued guidelines which have the support of the Editorial board. So I would say theres recognition of children reportage and the regulatory bodies have endorsed and supported this act.

George Kalu How would you describe portrayal of children in the South African newspapers? In most cases they are depicted as victims of a particular crime or abuse but there has been improvement. We are getting more positive stories. In your opinion to do you think newspaper promotes or contravenes the best interest of the child? In most times they try to protect the child but most ties they get it wrong. Eg if a child is involved in a criminal case, being named is not in the best interest of child but we see it being done often. In your view as an expert what issues does the South African newspapers raise in their coverage of children? Most of the positive ones are usually on education and health but we would like to see more participation, right to environment and play. Lately there has been coverage of school violence and nutrition. We hardly see any stories on children and sports yet this is what they do most, play. What concerns did you as an expert have with the portrayal of children in these instances? I would like to see childrens voices-children speaking for themselves more in issues that relate to then. In cases where they need to be protected one can anonymously quote them. We would also like to have children stories in the mainstream and not only when something has gone wrong or when something important or big is happening concerning tem. Journalists also dont get it right even in positive stories-they speak for them, not getting their views. They dont to the child yet its about them; instead they quote the mother or teacher. In your view what accounts for this type of coverage in the South African newspapers. What would you say is the reason(s) journalist report on children in the manner that they do?

Sensationalism is a leading factor. Nature of newsroom as well. Quite often journalists dont have time to do things properly. They are driven by time which most times is limited In your opinion how should the South African newspapers cover children stories? Not to rush to do childrens stories. Take all ethical consideration into account before interviewing children, get their consent too. In your view has the SA media regulatory body addressed these concerns? Im not sure. In your view what do you think of the biological-social regard of the child (the manner in which the society regards/treats a child) in relation to the way journalists view and cover them. Yes, it contributes greatly. We underestimate how much children know and understand things. They are so much interested in the news and want to be involved in it as well. By working with children I have come to know how much they know and re aware of their surroundings. They are very much interested in the news and want to be involved in the news as well. Its wrong to assume their (in) capability. How would you describe the portrayal of children through images/pictures used independently or to accompany stories? Most times their pictures are used to elicit sympathy; pitiful pictures. Journalists feel that with this people will take interest to read a story but this is not at all in the best interest of the child Children dont like it all. But weve seen creative ways being done for example The Sowetan which pass on the message without harming the child. In your opinion do you think there is fair coverage of childrens issues in terms of gender? That is, are girls and boys given the same treatment? There has been a bias. The trend in the years has been boys shown as active and girls as passive and victims as well. This is not any different when it comes to images, there tends to be pictures of boys jumping around while those of girls sitting. Anything else you would like to add? Children should be seen in the media as important people who can bring change and the media should stop portraying children as victims. The media though has improved greatly in recent times they are still struggling but they generally are getting there. Hasina Kathrada How would you describe portrayal of children in the South African newspapers?

We are beginning to see improvements, there might be infringements on childrens rights but theres more awareness with the journalists. When we have journalists going through training for example those offered by MMP we definitely seeing improvements. In your opinion to do you think newspaper promotes or contravenes the best interest of the child? Not always. Its worrying that the only time or when we see children in the newspapers its when something bad has happened to them, theres need to move away from this. In your view as an expert what issues does the South African newspapers raise in their coverage of children? Crime and violence dominate the stories. Generally theres lack of positive stories on children. In your view what accounts for this type of coverage in the South African newspapers. What would you say is the reason(s) journalist report on children in the manner that they do? Not being aware, not being educated on rights children have and the damage that is caused by portraying a child in a negative way. Theres need to educate and make journalists aware in this regard. Another factor is that children are not taken seriously enough most of the times. In your opinion how should the South African newspapers cover children stories? The childs interest should always come first, their rights too. Journalists should always take into account how the child feels, are they comfortable, ethically, morally is it the right thing to ask, portray the. Journalists should make themselves familiar with the rights of children and laws too. In your view what do you think of the biological-social regard of the child (the manner in which the society regards/treats a child) in relation to the way journalists view and cover them. It does and that the mistake. They need to treat children as subjects and seriousness that would be given to adults. They should regard childrens views as important once journalists have that frame of mind then it becomes easier in taking them as subjects seriously and give the story the focus it deserves. But if they have the attitude what does a child know or thats its not important what a child thinks , feel, then obviously it will affect the end product of the story. How would you describe the portrayal of children through images/pictures used independently or to accompany stories? Lots of pictures are used to sensationalize a story or draw attention to a story. We see children in most vulnerable positions; hungry looking, in crime, generally in sad situations. Theres no balance in how frequent we put pictures of children in a positive way.

In your opinion do you think there is fairness in coverage of childrens issues in terms of gender? That is, are girls and boys given the same treatment? I wouldnt know. Its not something I have taken time to note. In your view has the SA media regulatory body addressed concerns in relation to how children are covered? For Kids News when there is a complaint we take it up ourselves. I dont how the rest do it. Journalist X How would you describe portrayal of children in the South African newspapers? Children lack editorial space and are often ignored not unless they have done something horrendous. Not very frequently do we see positive stories but things are getting better In your opinion to do you think newspaper promotes or contravenes the best interest of the child? They try. Through children issues they identify with whats going on in the society. Its not that they want to harm the children. If someone grew up in a hostile family they often take up to be so. For journalist these are broader issues which should be raised and this will be for the interest of all children because then people can understand such underlying issues and try tackling them. In your view as an expert what issues does the South African newspapers raise in their coverage of children Education, violence and crime are the chief ones. Once in a while we see some on young entrepreneurs. What concerns did you as an expert have with the portrayal of children in these instances? Can be exploitative but if done properly we can be able to communicate with the child. When we cover children issues we do it in a manner to suit the adult specifically. In your view what accounts for this type of coverage in the South African newspapers. What would you say is the reason(s) journalist report on children in the manner that they do? Habit/news culture. The shocker effect-getting a hitting story. Newsrooms culture-a childs story takes time. For example while it might take an hour to interview an adult one needs about three hours for a child this might not be practical for the journalist due to limited time to carry out a story. In your view what do you think of the biological-social regard of the child (the manner in which the society regards/treats a child) in relation to the way journalists view and cover them.

Yes and this has negatively affect coverage of children stories. Children are not economically and socially relevant. The attitude is when their time will come theyll have a say. How would you describe the portrayal of children through images/pictures used independently or to accompany stories? Used to elicit emotions. When something is sad you will see really sad faces same case as a happy one yet images are more problematic than words. There are better ways to portray a child; using hands, feet, toys and the message will be put across. But again if you want to punch a story to show intensity of how serious something is then hard hitting images are best for this. In your opinion do you think there is fairness in coverage of childrens issues in terms of gender? That is, are girls and boys given the same treatment? Its so unmistakable. You rarely get to see girls as heroes. Girls are victims, sex objects but this has to do with the overall culture. Its a broader gender issue which is then reflected in how we cover children. In your view has the SA media regulatory body addressed these concerns? They try to promote ethical journalism across the board. Of course they do take up issues of children. They do impose subject matter-media houses to be ethical in news reporting for children. Anything else you would like to add? We need to start looking at the broader issue-society. We have to start respecting rights of children right from homes and this will obviously change attitudes in the newsrooms. Thobeka Ndabula How would you describe portrayal of children in the South African newspapers? MMP has made journalists and photographers to be more aware and sensitive when reporting children. However we still have some journalists who are getting it wrong-who still portray children as victims. Personally as a photographer having benefitted from MMP training I now think twice before taking pictures of children. In your opinion to do you think newspaper promotes or contravenes the best interest of the child? Depends with the story but generally the best interest is being promoted but not fully, I would give it 35%. Positive stories are more to do with learning. But it is rare to see positive stories on children in your day to day stories. They are often portrayed as victims. In your view what accounts for this type of coverage in the South African newspapers. What would you say is the reason(s) journalist report on children in the manner that they do?

Ignorance and arrogance which goes further to disrespecting and taking a child for granted. The young journalists come with an attitude of they know as for those who have in newsrooms longer when you do something even for over10 years but you are not getting it right you are not better off than the fresh journalist in the filed. MMP should do more to educate journalists. When you speak (leaders and adults) openly about killing each other, our children are likely to pick it up. Hence they do it among themselves thats why we see this kind of behavior. It has to do with societys influence. Basically its the lifestyle we are living. In your opinion how should the South African newspapers cover children stories? Journalists should try and look for more positive stories on children. When kids see a newspaper they should see something motivating. The Star does put an effort in this. How would you describe the portrayal of children through images/pictures used independently or to accompany stories? Pictures tell the story. A picture takes you there then from there you decide what is this saying to me? You dont need to explain a picture, let the picture say this is a child who has been raped without saying it. However many journalists are not following the ethics hence negative images are used quite often. It upsets me. MMP should train more journalists in this reportage. In your view what do you think of the biological-social regard of the child (the manner in which the society regards/treats a child) in relation to the way journalists view and cover them. If they can still use them anyhow they obviously do not respect them. Children are children and theres nothing they can say. But this is a mentality which starts from the homes and reflects on how journalist view and treat children. What concerns did you as an expert have with the portrayal of children in these instances? Children will start viewing themselves as important members of the society when they have a say. We need to know their ideas, experiences by giving them a chance to say so. In your opinion do you think there is fairness in coverage of childrens issues in terms of gender? That is, are girls and boys given the same treatment? Its not like boys are covered more positively and girls negatively, it is how the society has molded things. Hence girls become victims and boys perpetrators. Boys and girls are following footsteps of their elders. We never hear of 12 year old girls running around boys and raping them but we see vice versa. In your view has the SA media regulatory body addressed these concerns? Regulatory bodies at times take long to implement issues so one would think they are not working. And when this happens the matter at hand is long over debated in the society and people have moved to another issue.

Anything else you would like to add? We need to teach our children to respect each other and this has to start from our homes. When theres respect there is love and peace. If everyone took up what once Thabo Mbeki once said, Every child is my child we would see a better society and country.

Lucy Hillier How would you describe portrayal of children in the South African newspapers? Children are portrayed differently depending on which media house is reporting on them. For instance children are generally well portrayed by publications such as the M&G whilst there is a strong focus on sensationalising of reporting on anything involving children from many of the tabloids. At times it seems that the laws to protect these children are not always respected either, (the recent case of a child who was allegedly abused by his/her famous parent and the picture of this child and name was published in the paper (think it was the Sun). In your opinion to do you think newspaper promotes or contravenes the best interest of the child? To my knowledge I would say that children are not widely reported on in the papers unless it is sensational. At Save the Children we think that children are faced with so many challenges and deserve more attention generally, including from the media. In your view as an expert what issues does the South African newspapers raise in their coverage of children? There are issues of child protection and respect for childrens rights which are very important to us as child rights organisation. As a child rights organisation that works with many partners, we are often faced with requests for assistance from organisations which do not know how to handle the media and ensure that the children who are the subject of reporting are protected .At times we are all faced with dilemmas in relation to allowing children and their stories to be reported in the media as we have to decide if this is really in the childs best interest. What concerns did you as an expert in your field have with the portrayal of children in these instances? Children are often portrayed in a very negative sense and their power as individual agents and actors is often not acknowledged. Therefore you will often see images of flies on the eyelids and distended stomachs of children in the African context, as opposed to images of children who have overcome diversity and are managing to make a life for themselves despite many challenges. You might only see these sorts of more positive stories in publications which like to publish human interest stories, so in my opinion this would probably not be the majority of South African publications (or perhaps the most widely read publications.) which like to report on sensationalist news.

To a certain extent I do believe that we have to accept that there will always be an innate conflict between what child rights organisations would like to see portrayed and what the media will want to report on and show. As we know, good news and success stories (although of course there are exceptions) are not considered as newsworthy as bad news and stories which can be sensationalised. Therefore I believe that organisations working with children need to understand the laws and other procedures which can protect a child from being harmed by any media reporting and ensure that when the children are involved in the media it is in the childs best interest. In your view why do you think journalist cover children the way they do? To a certain extent because they do not have a good understanding of childrens rights and the law, also because them and/or their editors modify stores to suit the perceived interest of their readership, also because crimes against children, or even by children, are considered particularly horrific and therefore very newsworthy. Possibly there are also not enough NGOs with positive but interesting messages who know how to or want to work with the media. In your view has the SA media regulatory body (s) addressed these concerns? I dont really know. In your opinion how should the South African newspapers cover children stories? Child participation is something which Save the Children is actively promoting. We want to ensure that childrens voices are heard and that they can influence how decisions are made regarding them. This is certainly something which we would like to see more of in the mediagiving a real voice to children as opposed to just reporting on them as children with no opinions or power. What is reported in the media does contribute to how policies and laws are developed and if reporting does not reflect childrens true interests, policies and laws might also fall short of what they should be focusing on as a result. In your view what do you think of the biological-social regard of the child (the manner in which the society regards/treats a child) in relation to the way journalists view and cover them. Coverage of children tends to reinforce and further create stereotypes of how people see children. This might be especially so to a European reader who might think of starving poverty stricken images of children when they think of African children. Im not sure as much how this works out in a domestic setting such as South Africa. How would you describe the portrayal of children through images/pictures used independently or to accompany stories? It is my belief that these days we have to be very vigilant as to how/if childrens faces and images generally are used in the media. Media can be accessed by more and more people and showing childrens faces in the media might lead to stigmatisation, labelling or other damage. In your opinion do you think there is fairness in coverage of childrens issues in terms of gender? That is, are girls and boys given the same treatment?

I really dont know, but I am sure that if I spent some time investigating there would probably be a gender issue in how children are reported on. Recently I was listening to a debate by radio DJs (think it was radio 2000) about whether girls who get pregnant in school should be thrown out of school. One DJ (a young woman) saw it as perfectly fine that girls should be thrown out as it was their fault and they should have thought of the consequences before having unprotected sex. Apart from taking the punishment approach, this completely ignored the fact that a boy or man played an equal part in the pregnancy so why not throw them out of school too?)And also very ignorant of the possible circumstances in which the baby was conceived (possible rape, transactional sex etc). Although this was radio and DJs, I do think that this kind of thinking would probably be exemplified in the press as well. Anything else you would like to add? We are writing a guide (out by the end of this year) for NGOs and other agencies which will help them deal with the media when they request an interview with children who are part of one of their organisations projects. It will equip NGO workers with an understanding of what should and shouldnt be acceptable for children, as well as what the law says , how to get children to be able to tell their own stories, and how to ensure that children understand what they are doing and potential consequences.