The Hard Edges of Soft Power: The Case of the Dalai Lama’s South African Visa

• In Event: BRICS Building a New World Communication Order?

Abstract

South Africa’s membership of the BRICS constellation has largely been welcomed by its media because of the economic opportunities it may bring. Within this grouping, South Africa’s relationship with China has dominated media coverage. This paper examines media coverage of the recent controversy surrounding the failure of South African authorities to give a visa to the Dalai Lama to attend a Nobel peace prize summit in Cape Town, largely seen as a result of pressure from China. The case is used to discuss how differences between political cultures and media systems among the BRICS countries are being played out in the media terrain and may question the analytical validity of the construct. Through an analysis of press coverage and interviews with government officials, journalists and civil society stakeholders, this paper examines how media respond differently to the economic and cultural dimensions of ‘soft power’ and the exercise of ‘hard’ power.

Author

• Herman Wasserman, U of Cape Town