Journal of African Media Studies - Volume 5, Issue 3, 2013

The double-faceted nature of film as both a cultural and an economic good means that the direct involvement by the state in the film industry can often be guaranteed. Such state involvement worldwide is largely expressed through function-specific organs, whose powers and functions tend to vary. The National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) of Nigeria, as one of such organs, has powers that go beyond film classification and censorship. This has been manifested especially through its attempt to regularize film distribution in Nigeria through the introduction of a distribution framework. Many resented this attempt by the NFVCB. They considered it as needless interference, especially since the Nigerian video film industry had grown without any assistance from the government. But the NFVCB stated that it was merely exercising its mandate. This article examines the various issues involved and seeks to throw some light on a body that has been little studied.

In 2009, the Anti-Homosexuality Bill was introduced to the Ugandan parliament for consideration. This article analyses how the domestic press, most notably the privately owned, substantially changed the narratives around the Bill during the first eight months after it had been introduced to the general public. The study argues that although a traditional content analysis reveals changes in media’s attention, media narratives, it does not tell us much about the intricate interplay behind those emerging narratives. The article thus argues for a need to supplement content analysis with a broader analysis of the socio-political context, including transnational anti-gay and human rights activism, international politics on gender and sexuality, as well as aid dependence for understanding changing media narratives on a domestic social policy option.

Focusing on politician-businessperson-owned (PBO) newspapers, the study examined how loyalty to the owners’ multiple interests has reduced the professional elbowroom of the Nigerian journalist. Through in-depth interviews and textual analysis, the study found that journalists in PBO newspapers are extremely constrained on the kind of stories they write and how. Caught in the conflict between professionalism and pandering to the owners’ layers of political and economic interests, many journalists submit, while some rebel. The narrowed elbowroom is a reason for many of the ethical violations among Nigerian journalists.

Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems (ADRs) for conflict resolution in the media are processes ‘alternative’ to statutory courts. Players in the Zimbabwean media industry are developing and promoting ADRs as a means of evading the restrictive, expensive and time-consuming legal courts. Media and complainants arguably have speedier and satisfying resolutions outside the courts. However, typical of Zimbabwe there are marked signs of contestation, controversy and lack of unanimity with regard to the ADRs. On the one hand, there is the Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe (VMCZ), a self-regulatory structure favoured by the privately owned media players. On the other hand, there is the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) formed under statutory law and whose structure is still not adequate to resolve cases brought before it. VMCZ and ZMC are contesting for legitimacy and in various ways they present dialectical positions on the debate on self-regulation. One media house, Alpha Media Holdings, has formed its own ADR system that uses the ombudsman. This article uses press reports and interviews of key people in the media and the ADRs in order to ascertain the effectiveness and problems of the evolving processes, making comparisons with the United Kingdom and South African scenarios where similar debates on Press Councils are topical, especially after the publication of the report on the Leveson Enquiry.

The idea of climate change has reached a contentious breaking point at an international level where its major causes, existence and intensity are separating informed minds. This article is an examination of the four major schools of thought on climate change and how two newspapers in Uganda are covering those divergent views. The article argues that in the coverage of global warming in particular the hitherto treasured notion of objectivity has been replaced by a form of blind journalism instigated by frames from local and international stakeholders. The study analyses content from two newspapers in Uganda to show that media in Uganda cover the resonating frame, which argues that climate change is a time bomb, with total disregard for other views or their existence. Guided by the framing theory, the article suggests that a detachment of climate change from international meanings and an introduction of the ‘scientific spirit’ will restore balance by inviting media to explore counter-frames.

This study examines the effectiveness of an entertainment education (EE) programme, Makgabaneng, in reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS in Botswana. If successful, this communication intervention should result in greater self-report of attitudes, actions and knowledge related to risk reduction goals among those who listen to Makgabaneng more often than among those who listen less often. This article begins by describing the general orientation of Makgabaneng as EE and its specific theoretical model: the MARCH model of behaviour change. Through a survey of Batswana living in and around the capital of Gabarone, we assess whether Makgabaneng is effective in promoting knowledge, attitudinal and behavioural change. Findings reveal successes in some areas, but lack of success in other areas of prevention-supportive messages. We offer some conclusion for improving this form of EE.

African Video Movies and Global Desires, A Ghanaian History, C. Garritano (2013) Athens, USA: Ohio University Press, p/bk, ISBN: 13  978-0-89680-286-5, $26