Media | Council on Foreign Relations

Mali

French Journalist Kidnapped in the Sahel

In April, Olivier Dubois, an experienced French journalist, was kidnapped in Gao, a Malian city on the Niger River. Though his disappearance was soon known by the Malian and French authorities, and b…

Blog Post by John Campbell May 11, 2021 Africa in Transition
Media

Misinformation and Trust in Media

Daniel Acosta-Ramos, investigative researcher at First Draft News, shares best practices in fact-checking and monitoring misinformation. Joy Mayer, founder of Trusting News, discusses how local journalists can demonstrate credibility and build trust in their reporting. Carla Anne Robbins, adjunct senior fellow at CFR and former deputy editorial page editor at the New York Times, hosts the webinar.

Webinar by Daniel Acosta-Ramos and Joy Mayer May 11, 2021 Local Journalists Webinars
Nigeria

Nigeria: Anxiety Over Deteriorating Security Morphing Into Panic

Some Nigerian movers and shakers appear to be panicking over the continued deterioration of security nationwide. Longtime political heavyweight Bukola Saraki—former governor of Kwara State, former pr…

Blog Post by John Campbell May 6, 2021 Africa in Transition

Europe

COVID-19 and the Threat to Press Freedom in Central and Eastern Europe

Restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic have increased threats to press freedom in the region, raising questions over how to respond.

In Brief by Mia Speier April 20, 2021
United States

Think Global: Write Local

Mark Seibel, technology policy editor at the Washington Post, discusses his journalism career and best practices for connecting local issues to global dynamics. Carla Anne Robbins, adjunct senior fel…

Webinar by Mark Seibel February 25, 2021 Local Journalists Webinars
Digital Policy

The Putin Regime Will Never Tire of Imposing Internet Control: Developments in Digital Legislation in Russia

Moscow's recently introduced bills are the latest in a long history of efforts to bring the internet more tightly under its control.

Blog Post by Guest Blogger for Net Politics February 22, 2021 Digital and Cyberspace Policy Program
Nigeria

Nigerian Human Rights Activist Omoyele Sowore Released on Bail

In Nigeria, causation of arrests and release are murky, and the rumor mill operates overtime. Some Nigerians are suggesting that Omoyele Sowore was released because the authorities are aware of the s…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 27, 2021 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

Western Media and Distortion of Nigeria's Chibok Kidnapping

Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani, writing for the BBC, argues that Western media distorted the 2014 Boko Haram kidnapping of more than two hundred girls sitting for high school examinations. Based on conversat…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 21, 2021 Africa in Transition
Censorship and Freedom of Expression

Authoritarianism, Social Media, the United States, and Africa

Nolan Quinn contributed to this post. Twitter and other social media platforms have suspended or restricted President Donald J. Trump's access, mostly because of his and his followers’ use of them…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 12, 2021 Africa in Transition
Coronavirus

COVID-19, Statistics, and Africa

When COVID-19 struck, public health experts predicted that it would be particularly devastating in sub-Saharan Africa. A UN agency estimated that, in the worst case scenario, 3.3 million Africans wou…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 8, 2021 Africa in Transition
Transition 2021

Nigerian Reaction to the Assault on the U.S. Capitol

Americans should be under no illusion about the serious damage to their country’s remaining moral authority and capacity for international leadership caused by yesterday's assault on the U.S. Capitol…

Blog Post by John Campbell January 7, 2021 Africa in Transition
Coronavirus

Resurgence of COVID-19 in Africa

It was long expected that Africa, with its weak public health infrastructure and the impoverishment of its population, would face particular disaster with the outbreak of COVID-19. It arrived later t…

Blog Post by John Campbell December 29, 2020 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

Amnesty International and Nigerian Civilian Deaths in Military Custody

On December 8, Amnesty stated that at least ten thousand civilians have died in Nigerian military custody since 2011. The report cites Giwa Barracks, a particularly sordid prison in Maiduguri. Previo…

Blog Post by John Campbell December 17, 2020 Africa in Transition
Pharmaceuticals and Vaccines

Russian Disinformation Popularizes Sputnik V Vaccine in Africa

Beach Gray, PhD, is a Senior Open Source Analyst at Novetta, specializing in Russian disinformation and media influence. Neil Edwards is an Open Source African Media Analyst at Novetta. On Dece…

Blog Post by Guest Blogger for John Campbell December 10, 2020 Africa in Transition
Nigeria

Nigerian Army at the Lekki Toll Gate

On the night of October 20, Nigerian army units attacked demonstrators calling for the abolition of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), an elite police unit known for its brutality. Demonstrators …

Blog Post by John Campbell December 1, 2020 Africa in Transition