For the better... - 19 Mar 2012

Last week I mentioned that media freedom in parts of Africa is still an ongoing battle. Following MISA-Malawi's response on recent incidents, the chairman of the Malawi Chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa, Anthony Kasunda, has since received threats over the chapter's stance on the Malawi government's repeated attacks on the media. While Malawi police were called to protect journalists and the public who are receiving threats from unknown persons, police forces in Angola have reportedly raided a private newspaper and shut it down.
Acts such as these are instilling fear in members of the media and is thus a step back in the promotion of media freedom and freedom of expression. Just when will it end?

Earlier today, a trending topic on Twitter (#timesafrica) caught my eye. I suddenly followed the conversation to see what it was all about. It appeared to be The Times's CEO Summit Africa, currently taking place in London. Various topics and issues were brought up. Tony Blair, who addressed the summit, said the continent is changing for the better, adding that "perceptions of Africa are also changing for the better".
In order to change some of these perceptions that the globe have of Africa, A24 Media and CCTV Africa partnered to produce a documentary series titled, 'Faces of Africa'.

In other news this week: Media in Uganda have been urged to be more professional in reporting on current affairs; Communications Commission of Kenya responds to issues of broadcasting frequencies; MD of M-Net Africa makes it to the WEF's Young Global Leaders for 2012 list; and there has been an increase of entries for the African Movie Academy Awards.

Here's to a great week!

Evan-Lee Courie @evan1985