Political Dis-Empowerment of Women by ICTs

Abstract

This chapter explores how bloggers in two Zambia online publications represent women politicians and how interlopers ‘frame' such politicians so as to exclude them from the public spaces. It argues that although ICTs are generally thought to be facilitators of women's empowerment, they can also be used to dis-empower the women with the full utilisation of cultural or religious frames and practices. It is further said that ICTs have both a positive and negative edge to them and thus should be used much more carefully.