Medium and message: The Internet and Activism in Africa

About

Join the editors of Pambazuka News, an award-winning online platform for social justice in Africa based in Oxford, Dakar, Cape Town and Rio de Janeiro, for a discussion on using the web to facilitate and transform activism and citizen journalism across the continent. Firoze Manji, Tidiane Kasse, Joshua Ogada and Alyxandra Gomes will share their experiences of electronic activism in Lusophone, Francophone and Anglophone Africa with OII’s Mark Graham and Nicola Stremlau from the Programme in Comparative Media Law and Policy.

Whether it’s Kenya’s electoral crisis or the mass killings in Darfur, Pambazuka News is the source of authentic voices of Africa’s social activists and analysts – an online platform for voices that challenge mainstream perceptions and biases. Published in English, French and Portuguese and with a readership of over 500,000, Pambazuka comprises a social network of more than 1500 academics, activists, women’s rights campaigners, bloggers, artists and commentators who together produce insightful and thoughtful analyses that make it one of the most innovative and influential sites for social justice in Africa.

Pambazuka fosters a community of African citizens who hold their governments to account, supports pan-African campaigns for human rights and social justice, and enables African women and marginalised groups to develop their own blogs, podcasts and mobile phone campaigns.