New media use among young Batswana – on concerns, consequences and the educational factor

Bibliographic Data

ID15554156
AuthorsArdis Storm‐Mathisen (0000-0002-9619-7340, University of Oslo, corresponding author)
Year2019
Volume11
Issue2
Pages163-182
Publication date2019-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of African Media Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1751-7974 • E-ISSN: 2040-199X
PublisherIntellect (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1386/jams.11.2.163_1
OpenAlexW2969639299
LanguageEN
Citations received3

Based on a multi-methodological fieldwork, conducted in Gaborone and a village in Botswana in 2015/16, this article discusses how new media is used as part of young people’s everyday practices and with what consequences. The findings show that Batswana attach high significance to personal media but use it more for social than direct income-generating activities, with little effect on their core life concerns. People’s uses of personal media have, however, significantly changed the practical processes around how concerns can be handled, and on their socio-economic consequences. The dynamics by which personal media uses indirectly generate new outcomes are discussed using four cases that exemplify variations within the most ardent new media user group in Botswana, the young adults in the capital. The analysis highlights how mobility, social capital and – not least – education are important and interlinked factors in the social mechanisms that produce different outcomes of media use

Capital (architecture · Economic growth · Economics · Everyday life · Geography · Media use · Personal income · Political science · Public relations · Social capital · Social media · Social science · Sociology · Psychology · Social Media and Politics · Social Psychology

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Open DOISci-HubOpen Access