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The Media on Africa:
A Public Access of Indianapolis, Inc. Special Video Project Supported by Africa Celebration '98 and the Arts Council of Indianapolis Judging from media coverage, one would determine that all the nations of Africa can be summed up by famine, ethnic conflict, and an AIDS epidemic. In this day of instant access to newsworthy stories all over the globe, the information and images conveyed by the media about this vast continent are limited, at best.
Public Access of Indianapolis received a special purpose grant, administered by the Arts Council of Indianapolis, to produce this video on the media coverage of Africa for the citywide Africa Celebration '98 project. The goals of our video, which focuses on the country of Ghana, are to:- Demonstrate the limited news coverage and images of Africa.
- Examine the ways that major media coverage influences the perspectives on Africa.
- Highlight the consequences of such coverage on development, foreign policy, etc.
- Suggest alternatives for broader, more comprehensive news
This project also features input by Dr. Kwadwo Anokwa, Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Journalism, Butler University and former broadcast journalist in Accra, Ghana; and the Pan African Pen Pals Association. In the spirit of community media, Ghanaian media consultant, Robinson Aryee, and Ghana TV (GTV) producer, George Crentsil, also volunteered in the production of this video.
Alternative information sources and additional information:
Africa in the Media: Electronic Information Sources Africa Intelligence Africa News Online Africa News Service, "Special Reports: Media Coverage of Africa" Africa Online Africa Policy Information Center (APIC) "Africa on the Internet: Starting Points for Policy Information," APIC "Talking About 'Tribe': Moving from Stereotypes to Analysis," APIC Background paper AllAfrica Global Media news service The Black World Today: News Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR): Africa coverage Freedom Forum: "Press, Power and Politics: Africa Media Forum" "Ghana: Press, Power and Politics" (2000) "Reporter Offers Tips on Covering Africa" Panafrican News Agency (PANA) UC Berkley Media Resources Center: African audio and video University of Pennsylvania African Studies, Media and Mass Communications USAfrica Online "Using 'Tribe' and 'Tribalism' Categories to Misunderstand African Societies," by David Wiley, African Studies Center, Michigan State University |
