African media is surrogate opposition - Prof Tawana Kupe

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] Due to the lack of a strong and united political opposition, the media in Africa, at least those that are critical of government policies, becomes a powerful force called a surrogate opposition, Prof Tawana Kupe, dean of faculty of humanities at Wits University, said this week in Johannesburg. 11 Mar 2011 10:29

Media freedom, self-regulation: the Ghanaian experience

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] Until 1992, journalists and editors in Ghana, and the independent media in general, have suffered a lot at the hands of undemocratic regimes, which cracked down on critical reporting and imposed strict restrictions limiting media freedom. As a new, liberal constitution was being written in 1992, media activists came out guns blazing, demanding that media suffering end and reporting become free. [view twitterfall] 10 Mar 2011 10:06

Applications invited for UN journalism fellowships

[Carole Kimutai] The Dag Hammarskjöld Scholarship Fund for Journalists is now accepting applications from professional journalists from developing countries for its 2011 Fellowship Program. The application deadline is 6 April 2011. 10 Mar 2011 08:19

African media and the self-regulation dilemma

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] As the independent media in Africa is engaged in a fierce battle against repressive and not-so-democratic governments keen to sweep their corrupt wrongdoings under the carpet, the issue of self-regulation has become almost like a daily bread in many parts of the continent. [view twitterfall] 10 Mar 2011 08:07

Right of access to information hampered by govts - media conference

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] The right of access to information is being hampered in many parts of the world, especially in Africa, by government officials wary of journalists' desire to 'embarrass' them, and the state's 'insincere' reason of hiding behind the issue of national security. This emerged today, Wednesday, 9 March 2011, at the Regulations and Rights media conference at Wits University in Johannesburg. [view twitterfall] 9 Mar 2011 13:17

Regulations, rights media conference kicks off at Wits

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] The press is powerful, and as judges we are aware of the power of the press, and when you are in a position of power, self-reflection is very important, former Constitutional Court judge Kate O'Regan said today, Wednesday, 9 March 2011, at the Regulations and Rights media conference currently taking place at Wits University in Johannesburg. [view twitterfall] 9 Mar 2011 12:05

Report back: Free African Media panel discussion

[Theresa Mallinson] Did you know they have "press rallies" in Malawi? That the media in Senegal is relatively free, but doesn't always report the news responsibly? That most of Kenya's media is owned by politicians? These are just a few of the many interesting - and chilling - facts and opinions that came to light at a panel discussion in Johannesburg last week. 7 Mar 2011 10:53

EU, Save the Children plead for children's rights respect in SA, Zambia media

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] The European Union (EU), Save the Children, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) , South Africa's Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) and Zambia's Media Network on Child's Rights and Development (MNCRD) last week jointly launched a daring project, 'Children and Media: Championing Best Practice', which aims to work with 570 children and 500 journalists to ensure children's rights are respected in the media, and a more representative and ethical journalism is practised in both countries. 25 Feb 2011 12:24

Women journalists receive entrepreneurship grants

[Carole Kimutai] The International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF) has announced the winners of the inaugural Women Entrepreneurs in the Global Digital News Frontier grants. Each grantee will receive US$20,000 to launch innovative new media enterprises. 21 Feb 2011 10:34

Free African Media: A dream we should all work to fulfil

[Branko Brkic: @brankobrkic] As we chronicle how the brave people of Egypt and Tunisia fight to win their basic freedoms for the first time, the rest of Africa looks to be sliding back into the ever-tightening rule of Big Men. The question is, what will we do about it? What will we do to make sure Free African Media is a reality? 8 Feb 2011 12:43

[2011 trends] It's a Wild. Wired. Wellthy. World!

[Gisele Wertheim Aymes] The recent global recession has changed our world forever. In a new digital age, characterised by oversupply and too many product types in almost every market, the challenge for companies will be to locate and capture pools of high-profit demand and be able to move with speed and flexibility to take advantage of them. Here are 11 trends for 2011. 18 Jan 2011 14:17

Media killings' impunity outrage

[Issa Sikiti da Silva] Despite the slight decrease last year in the number of journalists killed across the globe, a heated debate continues to rage on about the massive impunity surrounding these killings, as analysts decry governments' lack of action, and more journalists flee their homelands and threaten to quit the profession. 17 Jan 2011 09:35

CNN enlists top journalism students for iReport initiative

ATLANTA, US: CNN has announced the launch of a new initiative for journalism students, called CNN iReport University, linked to iReport, the network's user-generated news community. 16 Sep 2010 10:35

'Don't assume that print, TV and radio are things of the past'

LONDON, UK: Mark St Andrew, creamglobal.com, interviews Tony Granger, global chief creative officer at Young & Rubicam on the subject of the "golden era" of innovation. 16 Aug 2010 10:44