Mass media, social networks and the political socialization of South Africa's white student

Abstract

In this article the effects of either mutual reinforcement, or incongruity, between the mass media and the social networks of political information are analyzed. The political in formation exposure of South Africa's white university students serve as the basis for research. The article illuminates, in terms of political socialization theory, the differential exposure of the English and Afrikaans students. The findings clarify the role of the mass media in relation to other sources of political information in a rapidly changing society. It emphasizes the dependence on the mass media for political information. Yet it also shows how social networks which are more diverse for the English than for the Afrikaans students moderate the political socialization role of the mass media