"What has been the state-of-play for African media in the 20 years since the historic Windhoek Declaration of 1991 which gave rise to World Press Freedom Day every 3 May? And what can be expected over the next decade? More than 70 commentators illuminate the trajectory in a range of contributions in
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this book - covering the issues of media freedom, pluralism, independence and access to information. Journalists’ safety, gendersensitive reporting, and the role of the Internet are amongst the topics covered. In a nutshell, progress has been made since 1991, but much remains to be achieved. There’s a grave danger that the momentum of media freedom is slowing and even reversing in many countries. Meanwhile, the rise of new communications technologies puts pressure on African journalists to live up to their ideals more than ever." (Back cover)
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"A closer analysis of the long and arduous journey traversed by African nationalism often shows ethnicity marching along as an invisible ‘matrimonial’ partner. It is on that note that this article seeks to present South Africa’s project of managing ethnic diversity using public radio broadcast
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ing as new form of cultural ‘holy matrimony’, with its consummation evinced through the implementation of policies that encourage ethnic diversity. The article acknowledges that the re-appropriation of meaning for ethnicity in South Africa now denotes the politically correct and constructed descriptor of ‘culture’, and is characterized by the continued conflation of ethnicity and race relations. Unlike in some parts of Africa, where ethnicity is criminalized as ‘tribalism’ – thus emphasizing its instrumentalized destructive element – in South Africa cultural diversity is seen as the panacea for a stable democratic arrangement. This article proposes to discuss cultural pluralism as a democratic imperative within the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), which is a public service broadcaster (PSB). Two case studies of ethnic minority radio stations will be presented as empirical evidence: Munghana Lonene FM and Phalaphala FM." (Abstract)
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"Over the last five years, Mozambique has achieved significant improvements in the supporting infrastructure for developing and expanding media and ICTs. The expansion of the optical fibre services, and of access to fixed and mobile telephony and broadband Internet, have been instrumental in helping
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broadcasters extend coverage throughout the country. Mobile phone penetration currently covers 86.7 per cent of the population, including more isolated rural areas. The radio broadcasting subsector (public and community) is the most extensive in terms of both territorial and population coverage, while commercial television stations are also beginning to expand through the country and move beyond the urban centers. However, important constraints remain in this area, in particular: obsolete and insufficient transmission and production equipment in the public radio and television sector; poor quality electricity supply, especially in the districts; unreliable connectivity; shortage of technical capacity for maintenance and repairs to radio transmitters and studios; limited use and mastery of ICTs for producing and disseminating information; high costs for the air transport of newspapers; and poor distribution networks." (Conclusions, page 81)
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"Serbia has a strategy for switching over from analog to digital broadcasting, prepared with broad public consultation. The basic legal framework is in place, but implementation is not yet underway. Moreover, if fair access to digital licenses is to be ensured, a new media law—harmonized with the
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EU’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive—is still needed. Broadband internet has had by far the most significant growth among the available distribution platforms over the past five years. More than 23 percent of Serbian households had an internet connection at the end of 2009—more than doubling the number of such connections just four years earlier. The internet as a platform for activism is rapidly expanding, with the number of petitions, initiatives, and debates online growing considerably. The internet has also led to more diversity and to a plurality of voices in political life. All that said, Serbia remains a television nation, with almost all households owning a TV set and three quarters of the population still using television as their main source of information. Serbia’s private media sector continues to be plagued by opaque ownership structures, with the owners of various media hiding behind off shore–registered businesses. Additionally, there is no publicly available register of media owners. Without mechanisms to render media ownership transparent, Serbia’s media sector will not achieve its potential for independence and diversity." (Website Open Society Foundation, 19.12.2011)
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"The explosion of digital media and their impact on journalism and democracy in Lithuania coincided with the country's second decade of independence and with the economic crisis of 2009-2010. With the rapid growth of internet penetration, websites dedicated to news appeared and traditional media wen
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t online. The near-doubling of internet subscriptions from 34.3 percent of the population in 2005 to 60.5 percent in 2010 was accompanied by dynamic growth in ownership of PCs, laptops, mobile phones, and later smart phones. The internet took on an increasing role as a news source for the public, especially younger audiences. Formerly marginalized groups, such as ethnic and sexual minorities, have gained a platform on the internet which they were almost entirely denied in mainstream media. Also, politicians have taken up communicating through new media; some have begun blogging, while others are active on social networks. Government transparency and civic engagement in politics have been enhanced by a range of online tools and initiatives by civil society groups which let voters access and analyze government data, and occasionally generate mainstream media coverage. However, there are no separate regulations or legal liability provisions concerning internet content that differ from those which apply to other media. Media regulation is in practice independent from government, but the regulators are lax in exercising their powers, e.g. to enforce ownership transparency rules. A weakness of the regulatory system is its dispersion among several bodies which don’t always coordinate among themselves. Their composition raises questions about competence and impartiality. This report calls for the creation of a single regulatory body with robust appointment criteria as well as for clear and transparent rules for allocating EU funds to the media. It recommends that the government introduce legislation restricting media concentration and intensify efforts to ensure universal public access to media after switch-over." (Open Society website)
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"In Moldova, the combination of digitization and political change has increased the diversity of media outlets and their news, the plurality of opinions, and the transparency of public institutions, while it has diminished political interference in the media. Yet the lack of independence of regulato
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ry institutions, the nontransparent media ownership structure, and the slow pace of digital switch-over continue to undermine these achievements. In order to reinforce positive change, this report proposes four kinds of reform. Firstly, the legal framework for digital switch-over must be completed in the near future if the country is to be ready for the transition before the switch-off date. The provisions for public interest, access, and affordability should be given priority and, for this purpose, participation of civil society groups in the drafting process is vital. This framework will also speed up the adoption of the new Broadcasting Code, a historic document that will end the era of non-transparent media ownership, the second area that needs urgent reform. Thirdly, with public awareness of the purpose and implications of switch-over virtually nonexistent, an information campaign and public debate on the issue need to start without delay. Finally, the independence of two key institutions, the Broadcasting Coordinating Council and the PSB, needs to be strengthened. In both cases, this can be done by changing funding models and adopting clearer regulatory safeguards against government interference." (Publisher description)
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