Visual Representation of Black Women’s Empowerment in Online Political Advertisements: A Case Study of South Africa

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

This is an interesting and timely paper that explores an important topic. It is generally well written, with clear language and a coherent structure. The methodology is sound, and the study is supported by a reasonably sized and appropriately selected sample. While the manuscript has several strengths, there are areas—particularly in the theoretical and analytical sections—where further depth and critical engagement would enhance the overall contribution of the paper. I have suggested several improvements below that I believe will help strengthen the manuscript further. As these revisions may require substantial reworking, I would recommend the paper be considered for major corrections.

1. The current title, “A Visual Representation of Women Empowerment in Online Political Advertisements,” is too broad and could benefit from greater specificity regarding the case or context under study. I recommend revising the title to reflect the specific country, campaign, or time period being analyzed.
2. The manuscript uses general phrases such as “a significant contribution” (see abstract) to describe its findings. I recommend avoiding such broad evaluative terms and instead articulating the study’s contribution more concretely. For example, rather than stating that the research makes a “significant contribution,” the authors could specify how the study advances knowledge within a particular political or cultural context. This approach would help clarify the original contribution of the research more effectively, which is currently insufficiently emphasized in the abstract and introduction sections.
3. I recommend expanding the introduction to include more background information on South Africa’s political context and the role of Black women within it. Additionally, the transitions between sentences could be strengthened to enhance the overall coherence and fluidity of the text. I also suggest breaking down the main research question presented at the end into sub-questions to provide greater clarity and structure.
4. I'm not certain whether the journal has specific structural requirements, but if it does not strictly require conventional headings, I would recommend avoiding generic titles such as "Literature Review" or "Theoretical Framework." Instead, using more reflective and content-specific heading could enhance the clarity and engagement of the text. For example, a title like "African Womanist Theory as a Framework" would be more descriptive and aligned with the paper’s focus than the generic label "Theoretical Framework."
5. The author already makes use of the theoretical framework effectively; however, I suggest engaging with it more critically. Further elaboration on key concepts, tensions, or debates within the framework—particularly in relation to the study's context—would strengthen the conceptual grounding of the paper and enhance its scholarly contribution.
6. The author provides a useful overview of the key principles of Africana Womanist methodology; however, the section would benefit from a more in-depth discussion of how this methodological approach applies to the specific case under study. In particular, I suggest further reflection on how the framework aligns with the research questions and contextual setting, as well as how it facilitates a critical engagement with Western feminist assumptions. Strengthening this connection would enhance the methodological clarity and overall relevance of the study.
7. The author notes that Visual Discourse Analysis (VDA) is employed; however, the analysis currently appears somewhat underdeveloped. In many cases, the discussion is limited to a brief and surface-level description of the images under examination. I recommend deepening the analysis by engaging more critically with the visual elements and their interplay. For instance, instead of simply identifying a figure as a Black woman in higher education (as in the first image), it would be helpful to consider where she is positioned, how she is visually framed, and what symbolic meanings are conveyed through elements such as setting, posture, clothing, or accompanying text. Similarly, in the image of a mother or grandmother assisting with homework, more attention could be paid to how she is represented and what kinds of narratives or ideologies are constructed through that depiction. Exploring these intersections would enrich the analysis and offer a more robust interpretation of the meanings produced through visual discourse. Overall, I recommend revisiting the analysis sections and deepening them by incorporating more detailed visual interpretations, as outlined above. This would help move beyond surface-level descriptions and toward a more critical and nuanced reading of the images.

Author Response

Dear The Reviewer 

Kindly find the attached review comments. 

Regards 

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Can representation across online media be proxied through representation in youtube? 

Is 1980's work of Clenora Hudson-Weems still applicable in 2025? The fundamental research foundation seems to be quite outdated. Why are only African, Western and Black feminism considered? Why not others? The authors have not explained how the 5 areas for classification of advertising were selected. Additionally, there was no total number of advertisements analysed within each group.

Lastly literature review seems to be outdated. The authors must include the recent studies.

Author Response

Dear Reviewer 

Kindly find the attached feedback. 

Regards 

 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Strengths of the paper: 

 

• This paper is timely considering the current digital environment coupled with the fact that race-gender inequities continue to persist for Black women
• The paper is also important in that it examines Black women (who are often understudied) in political communication and on global scholarship that is not U.S. focused- so, analyzing Black women within the context of South Africa presents an important case study
• Good discussion on African womanist theory

 

Suggestions for improvement:

 

• The introduction to the paper is really short. Can you elaborate more on why you choose to focus on South Africa in this particular article? Can you also provide information on why you chose this specific method in terms of analyzing these online political ads? Also, why the focus on youtube as opposed to other platforms?- this seems to be very specific. You do include this information in the discussion of your data and methods, but it would be useful to include that info earlier on as well. I’d also like a brief synopsis of your major findings within the intro to the paper as well. On the whole, there seems to be much more information that should be included in the introduction that seems to be missing here.

 

• In terms of the section on the representation of women in online political ads, it would also be useful to refer to some of the literature on Black women political figures/candidates as a way to highlight some of the obstacles and challenges they faced. Even if you refer to American Politics literature here, it would still provide a useful framework for your lit review. This is a critical body of literature that is currently missing from your discussion and it would be important to include this work to strengthen your overall argument

 

• In the discussion of your results, it would also be helpful to include information on how exactly you went about analyzing/coding to map on the themes that you discuss. What was your process for data analysis here? Because this study doesn't employ a straightforward quantitative method, more specificity is needed on that front.

 

• In the literature review, you should speak more to what the broader implications of these findings are for South Africa’s political environment. You might also want to theorize more about what effects these ads might have on public attitudes among South Africans. In other words, what are the consequences of political advertisements that choose to depict Black women in a specific way?
• On the whole, I think this paper presents an interesting case study and a novel approach to testing these hypotheses. After some changes are made, I would recommend it for publication.

Author Response

Dear The Reviewer 

 

Kindly the attached reviewed manuscript. 

Regards 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

I have reviewed the revised version of the manuscript and find that the author(s) have thoroughly addressed all previous comments and suggestions. The revisions have improved the clarity and overall quality of the paper. I believe the manuscript is now suitable for publication in its current form. However, a final full check by the author(s) for formatting, language, and overall consistency may be helpful.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The paper has now significantly improved and can go to the next stage.