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This research explores how music serves as a platform for ideological resistance against poor governance in Zimbabwe.

June 18, 2026

Ideological noise and resistance in the musical public sphere in Zimbabwe

Key Points

This research explores how music serves as a platform for ideological resistance against poor governance in Zimbabwe.
Qualitative methodological approach with descriptive analysis
Use of interpretive semiotics and content analysis for data interpretation
Music represents a site for negotiating ideological concerns among various intellectuals
Protest music reflects struggles related to land issues in post-2000 Zimbabwe
The study illustrates the symbolic role of songs in public discourse about governance

Abstract

Abstract This paper illuminates music as a public space where ideological struggle and resistance against poor governance are played out. The assertion is that songs are both phenomenological and epistemological and that they convey the inherent struggles of everyday life. The public sphere theory complements the representation theory in projecting the symbolic function of protest music in reflecting contestations over the land issue in the post 2000 Zimbabwe. A qualitative methodological approach that is rich in description of the phenomenon under study was used. Data analysis is through both interpretive semiotics and content analysis. Findings reveal that popular music can be a site to negotiate ideological concerns among the nationalist public intellectuals, the public intellectuals critical of power and the organic intellectuals that musicians can be. Key Words: Ideology, Public Sphere, Representation, Semiotics, Song JCMR Journal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 14, No. 1, April 2022, pp. 99-110 © Association of Media and Communication Researchers of Nigeria (AMCRON). About the authors * Gift Gwindingwe, Ph.D., is a Lecturer in the Department of Media and Cultural Studies, Great Zimbabwe University, Mashava Campus, Masvingo, Zimbabwe and also a member of the International Relations Committee of the University. His areas of research interests are Cultural Studies, Post-colonialism, Politics and the pervasive nature of digital media in shaping today’s communication terrain. ** Oluyinka Oludolapo Osunkunle, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and Head of Communication Department, University of Fort Hare, Alice, South Africa. His research interests include community media and development, new media efficacies, stakeholders’ relations and intercultural and organisational communication. Article Citation Gwindingwe, G. & Osunkunle, O.O. (2022). Ideological noise and resistance in the musical public sphere in Zimbabwe. Journal of Communication and Media Research, 14 (1): 99 – 110. Full Article Words: 7,404 Pages: 12 To access full article, click on download.

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