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Our Friend, the Internet: Postcolonial Mediatization in Morocco

Ines Braune

Communications: The European Journal of Communication Research, volume 38, issue 3 (2013), pp. 267-289

"This article investigates the 'discursive notion' of communication technology, as embedded in the discussion of mediatization. Instead of focusing on the technical structure of media and its impact on society, I will alternatively turn my attention to its symbolic dimension. I will look beyond the ... more

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Revisiting the Media Freedom Debate at Uganda's Independence Golden Jubileee

Michael Kakooza

Kampala: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS);Uganda Media Development Foundation (2012), 96 pp.

"The history of Uganda from the days of Colonial Rule, when modern mass media was introduced was revisited. The thesis of this study was that the substance of the political governance model inherited from Uganda’s colonial past continues in the postindependence period to define the relationship be ... more

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Eine Nacht des Glaubens: Eine Meditation über die Anfänge und die historische Rolle von Présence Africaine im Rahmen der afrikanischen Unabhängigkeiten

Valentin Yves Mudimbre

In: 50 Jahre afrikanische Un-Abhängigkeiten: eine (selbst)-kritische Bilanz

AfricAvenir International (ed.)

Bonn: Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (bpb) (2012), pp. 154-168

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Static: Race and Representation in Post-Apartheid Music, Media and Film

Adam Haupt

Cape Town: HSRC Press (2012), xvi, 240 pp.

"Static: Race and Representation in Post-apartheid Music, Media and Film critically examines music, cinema, social media and the politics of change after apartheid. It cuts across academic disciplines, the creative arts and the media and poses two central questions: Is South Africa changing for the ... more

50 Jahre afrikanische Un-Abhängigkeiten: Eine (selbst)-kritische Bilanz

AfricAvenir International

Bonn: Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (bpb), Lizenzausg. (2012), 260 pp.

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Promoting National Unity: The Role of Radio Broadcasting in the Process of Decolonisation in Namibia and Zambia

Robert Heinze

Universität Konstanz, Doctoral Thesis (2012), iv, 313 pp.

"This thesis operates from the observation that "Decolonising the Mind", i.e. a cultural decolonisation process, was needed after the independence of African countries to support and flesh out political decolonisation. Culture, as shown, played a major role in the mobilisation of support for nationa ... list movements, but after independence nationalist culture was just one among many. In both cases presented here, the most pressing issue after political independence was how to deal with the different identities that had previously existed and were onyl partially cushioned by political and cultural nationalism. Now that the political kingdom had been attained, the different language, cultural and political groups started to ask questions about their place in this kingdom. Although many politicians shared the idea that "once you have a national identity, the question of culture becomes something which flows automatically", it soon turned out to be misguided. Media and education were seen to be the major tools in "decolonising the mind". However, a close analysis of the electronic media in the two cases presented here shows that the policies for promoting national unity in programmes were largely ineffective. Instead, radio programmes, both before and after independence, provided a space to negotiate issues of national identity. This space was sometimes more, sometimes less restricted, but listeners used it as much as they could. Colonial media had, for all their focus on political control and censorship, accompanied and mediated social change. As described, this happened specifically in cultural programmes, where broadcasters were much freer in their work. However, Northern Rhodesian media were supposed to work as a catalyst to further the process of modernisation, and to help its listeners come to terms with the transition from being 'traditional' to becoming 'modern' Africans. In the Apartheid broadcasting system, culture was used consciously to construct a specific 'ethnic' identity, emphasising cultural traditions of the different language groups. But while the intentions were different, both broadcasting institutions were at the centre of negotiating ideas of tradition and modernity. Both were also established because there was a need to legitimate the respective political system. Be it the Central African Federation or a 'democratic' "South West Africa/ Namibia", the political models promoted by the authorities could not just be imposed on the people. The radios were established to give reality to these constructs, to make listeners identify with a social, political and cultural space that had been defined by colonial authorities. As shown, colonial ideologies not only surfaced in obvious propaganda programmes but also significantly determined the technical and managerial setup of the stations. While radio infrastructure was formed and reformed to structure that space – by linking three territories with different political and social power structures or, following Apartheid ideology, by assigning each language group their own space according to the homeland system – culturally as well as geographically. As shown, infrastructure mirrored the proposed political models, not just in its technical aspects (i.e., the stations' footprints, transmitting posts and frequencies), but also in management structure. As the Federal Broadcasting Services were subdivided in European and African Services, respectively catering for the whole White or Black population of all three territories, the South West African Broadcasting Corporation separated first Black and White, then subdivided the three Departments in the several language Services, each broadcasting to the designated "homeland". This infrastructure not only formed the whole process of programme production and reception but was also part of it as it imparted ideological considerations. The first order of business for independent countries was therfore to restructure the radio according to the needs of the new nations." (Conclusion, page 274-275) more

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German Colonialism and National Identity

Michael Perraudin, Jürgen Zimmerer (eds.)

New York; London: Routledge (2011), x, 340 pp.

"The German empire that emerges from the volume edited by Michael Perraudin and Jürgen Zimmerer is one very much embedded in a broader European colonial discourse. Just like any other empire, Germany believed itself to be a "better" empire, more benevolent, more efficient, more civilized. Yet we le ... more

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Os Moçambicanos perante o cinema e o audiovisual: Uma historia político-cultural do Moçambique colonial até à República de Moçambique (1896-2010)
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Guido Convents

Maputo; Holsbeek: Dockanema;Afrika Filmfestival (2011), 677 pp.

"This is the first monograph on the history of film culture ever for lusophone Africa. It consists of three parts: the colonial period (1896-1974), the first years of independence (1975-1991) and the years of the liberalization of the media (1992-2010). In these three periods attention is given to t ... more

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New Developments in Central Asian Mass Media Research

Eric Freedman, Richard Shafer

Central Asia and the Caucasus, volume 12, issue 4 (2011), pp. 128-143

"This wide range of contemporary mass media research illustrates how Central Asia press outlets remain tightly controlled and manipulated, first under the czars, then under the Soviets, and now under authoritarian regimes. Over the past two decades, the press systems have not achieved even minimal d ... emocratization and independence by international standards. Perhaps the Internet and other technologies will have a better chance of circumventing censors and the economic obstacles that deny the great mass of Central Asians the ability to participate in a useful dialog leading to more transparent and participatory governance. Several overarching observations emerge from this synthesized examination of recent research. The five separate press systems that replaced the single Soviet system share many commonalities, although significant differences also exist. These studies indicate varying but not decisive degrees of external influences from multi-governmental entities, media-building foundations, and promoters of civil society; such influences on Central Asian media development originate with mostly Western-based journalism and mass media trainers. Another observation concerns regimes’ use and abuse of laws to control information about public affairs and public issues. That pattern evident from several studies reflects a disconnect between constitutional and statutory guarantees of press freedom on one side and actual threats to those guarantees on the other side due to libel and “honor and dignity” suits, criminal prosecutions, and tightening regulation of the Internet. Examined collectively, these studies suggest the following obstacles to democratic and independent media development in Central Asia: strict governmental and extra-governmental restraints on the press, regardless of the type of medium—print, broadcast, or Internet; inadequate professional training, leadership, resources, financial incentives, and ethical standards for journalists and prospective journalists; limitations on the ability of domestic and international press and human rights defenders to compel changes in policies and laws; insufficient market resources to create and sustain independent news organizations; and a resulting lack of credibility and public trust in the press." (Summary and conclusions, page 142) more

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Völkerschauen – Kolonialschauen – Schaustellungen: Ein Literaturverzeichnis

Ina Wulff

Hamburg: Universität Hamburg, Institut für Germanistik 2010 (2010), 9 pp.

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La production des représentations coloniales et postcoloniales

Gisèle Sapiro, George Steinmetz, Claire Ducournau

Actes de la Recherche en Sciences Sociales, issue 185 (2010), pp. 4-11

"Entreprise de domination par excellence, la colonisation s’est accompagnée et nourrie de représentations savantes, littéraires et artistiques, des sociétés colonisées, qui ont servi à la légitimer, au nom d’une prétendue mission civilisatrice de l’Occident, ou encore d’une soi-disa ... more

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Der Kolonialismus und seine Folgen: 125 Jahre nach der Berliner Afrika-Konferenz

Berlin: INKOTA-Netzwerk (2009), 28 pp.

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Towards an African Journalism Model: A Critical Historical Perspective

Ibrahim Seaga Shaw

International Communication Gazette, volume 71, issue 6 (2009), pp. 491-510

"Much of the scholarly literature regarding theories of journalism practice is premised on the tenets of the western model of liberal democracy. To the extent that this model is held to be universal, it hinders the analytical theorization of journalistic precepts that have evolved locally in most co ... more

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Politics and Book Publishing in the Pacific Islands

Linda S. Crowl

Wollongong: University of Wollongong, Doctoral Thesis (2008), xii, 407 pp.

"This dissertation discusses interactions between politics and book publishing by missions and colonial governments in areas of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia over approximately 200 years [...] From its inception, book publishing in the Pacific Islands has been a significant instrument of ideo ... more

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Images et paix: Les Rwandais et les Burundais face au cinéma et à l'audiovisuel
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Guido Convents

Leuven: Afrika Filmfestival (2008), 605 pp.

"Les Rwandais et les Burundais ont une culture cinématographique et audiovisuelle captivante et centenaire. Elle a été introduite pendant l’époque coloniale allemande et est ensuite tombée dans les mains des Belges qui l’ont développée après. Au Rwanda/Burundi, ils produisaient des films ... more

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Media and the British Empire

Chandrika Kaul (ed.)

Basingstoke; New York: Palgrave Macmillan (2006), 266 pp.

"'The only true history of a country', wrote Thomas Macaulay, 'is to be found in its newspapers'. This book explores how the media shaped and defined the economic, social, political and cultural dynamics of the British Empire by viewing it from the perspective of the colonised as well as the colonis ... more

Centuries of Silence: The Story of Latin American Journalism

Leonardo Ferreira

Westport: Praeger (2006), xii, 332 pp.

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Images et démocratie: Les Congolais face au cinéma et à l'audiovisuel. Une histoire politico-culturelle du Congo des Belges jusqu'á la République démocratique du Congo (1896-2006)
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Guido Convents

Kessel-Lo: Afrika Filmfestival (2006), 487 pp.

"Les Congolais ont une histoire et une culture cinématographique et audiovisuelle fascinante. Dès la naissance du cinéma, ils ont été confrontés à cette invention qui était à la fois un art et un instrument de propagande. La politique du gouvernement colonial, dans un premier temps, puis ce ... more

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