Journalists from West Africa participate in a discussion about coverage of the Ebola epidemic. Posner Center in Denver, 2014 Africa Agenda | Africa Agenda

“the press may not be successful much of the time in telling people what to think, but it is strongly successful in telling its readers what to think about,” Bernard Cohen, 1963

In the rush to report the news, well-meaning reporters sometimes may oversimplify or perhaps exaggerate reports about things that are taking place in the African continent. The question is: what are the challenges involved with Africa reporting, and how do reporters and bloggers alike balance their reporting with the need to be fair and accurate.

Cases in point: Ebola, Somalia. Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mali, Zimbabwe

Africa Agenda’s News and Blogger training is an opportunity to provide hands-on resources, tips, techniques, and tools for would-be bloggers, journalists, and writers to sharpen their focus as they report about a continent as vast and dynamic as Africa. Our inaugural classes, conferences will focus on the following areas:

  • How to Write about Africa/How not to Write about Africa
  • The Ethics of Blogging/Who is a Journalist?
  • 10 Ways U.S. reporters can better present African News
  • Top 5 Africa Stereotypes in the media
  • LinkedIn for Journalists and Bloggers
  • African Headline News in the era of Twitter and Facebook