International media conference opens today at Wits University

It is hosted by the Wits Department of Media studies, of the Faculty of Humanities, with its international partners, the Department of Communication Studies and the African Studies Center at the University of Michigan, with support from the University of Westminster in the UK.

Conference papers will address the everyday lived experiences of Africans in their interaction with different kinds of media: old and new, state and private, elite and popular, global and national.

"Sub-topics and questions will include how we can research and theorise media cultures in today's Africa and exploring what roles different forms of media play in the everyday lives of Africans," says Dr Wendy Willems, a senior lecturer in the department and member of the organising committee.

Knowledge production

The conference will also contribute towards knowledge production on the continent. "Research and discussions help to shape our understanding and practice and allow academics to remain abreast of current issues, which feed into our teaching and output," she says.

Prof. Tawana Kupe, dean of the Faculty of Humanities will give the keynote address entitled, 'Betwixt the normative and the emergent critical in understanding African media cultures'. Day two of the conference will see the launch of the book 'Radio in Africa: Publics, Cultures, Communities', a collaboration of Wits academics published by Wits University Press.

The final session on 29 February includes a discussion by a prolific scholar whose work has been read by nearly every South African media student at some stage of his or her academic career. Keyan Tomaselli from the University of KwaZulu-Natal joins in a panel discussion with scholars Gado Alzouma from the American University of Nigeria and Winston Mano from the University of Westminster in the United Kingdom.

To view the programme, go to www.wits.ac.za/files/7o8p8_004094001329913514.pdf.