Media powerhouses failing Africa (ranked)

🌐 Costly stereotypes + new global opportunities.

FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK

WorldWise reader—

In his celebrated 1950s novel Things Fall Apart, which grapples with colonialism, Nigerian author Chinua Achebe plays a clever trick with the reader which is, of course, more than a trick.

I’ll try not to spoil it for any of you who haven’t read the book but plan to. So I’ll just say it has to do with the space Achebe devotes to the narrative of the main story vs. the perspective of the British commissioner in that story. The author brings the point home, simply and brilliantly, on the last page.

That point is still relevant today, as you’ll see below.

Anita

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INSIDER | views & experience

When ‘leading’ outlets don’t lead.

“Negative stereotypes in international media cost Africa £3.2bn a year”.

I was immediately intrigued by this headline, which appeared in The Guardian last month. Caroline Kimeu reported from Kenya on a new index that tracks 20 of the world’s most influential news providers against how they represent the African continent in their coverage.

The results suggest that media portrayals are dominated by narratives of conflict, corruption, poverty, disease and poor leadership—a trend more pronounced during election time.

This won’t surprise anyone who looks critically at coverage of the continent. It’s a tendency that hails from colonialism and still shapes how Africa is perceived around the world.

What’s unexpected is having a price tag attached to it. The researchers behind the index came up with the figure by quantifying the gap between perceived and actual risks of investing in the continent—Kimeu writes:

Heightened perceptions of risk portrayed by the media causes lenders to apply “unjustifiably” high borrowing costs, even for African countries with decent credit ratings, and “provide cover” for unfair loan terms, according to the data scientists and economists behind the study.

Marcus Courage, CEO of Africa Practice, adds that the £3.2bn estimate only factors in how negative stereotyping affects sovereign debt, and doesn’t consider other drivers of development such as tourism or aid.

The index is based on research by Africa No Filter, The Africa Center, and the University of Cape Town. It’s the first large-scale quantitative study of how international media represent Africa.

So, how did different outlets rank?

Photo by Philip Strong on Unsplash

The evaluation centred on three key measures: limited voices (gender disparities were prominent); limited scope (most outlets covered only a handful of countries in depth); and limited topics (more politics/poverty/corruption/conflict—less culture/innovation).

The good

• 1st place for overall coverage, topic diversity and diversity of voices goes to The Guardian—no wonder it covered the report. It was followed by AFP and Reuters.

• AFP outperformed all other outlets in covering the most African countries.

• Deutsche Welle and Le Monde shared the top spot on balanced coverage. Le Monde was also ahead of the rest on offering context to their stories.

• The Chinese outlet Xinhua had the highest score on avoiding stereotypes.

• All outlets performed relatively well in depth of coverage, a measure that took into account balance, context, framing, and avoidance of stereotypes.

The bad

• In terms of overall coverage, the three leading American publications—New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post—came in last.

• The Wall Street Journal ranked lowest for the number of countries covered; The Washington Post ranked lowest in diversity of topics and on offering context to their stories.

• The Economist had the worst score on avoiding stereotypes.

• All outlets performed poorly in the diversity of topics covered, with much of the news focused on negative subjects.

• All the outlets studied “devoted disproportionate space to powerful men” as primary news sources, whether that was politicians, businesspeople or experts.

The hope

The institutions behind this work hope the index—and the economic cost attached to it— will help challenge coverage that creates a monolithic view of the continent in favour of more nuanced narratives.

📌 Read more about the index here and in this commentary in The Conversation.

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OPPORTUNITIES | working with the media

grants+funding

🇪🇸 LAC & IBERIA | Journalists from Latin America and the Iberian Peninsula who are interested in journalism innovations can submit their projects for funding. By the Gabo Foundation—submissions open.

🎥 US & GLOBAL | The Aftermath Project is offering a grant for photographers to tell the other half of the story of conflict, focusing on the 1492/1619 American Aftermaths. They also encourage the exploration of Asian and Hispanic experiences—closing 1 December.

AFRICA | Journalists and communicators interested in agroecology in Uganda and beyond can apply to the Agroecology Media Grant from the Agroecology School for Journalists and Communicators—closing December 2024.

fellowships+scholarships

⏳ GLOBAL | English-speaking journalists from countries with restricted freedom of the press and information can apply to Reporters Without Borders and the taz Panter Foundation’s Rest & Resilience Fellowship in Berlin—closing November 25.

⏳ MENA | Logic(s) magazine and the Arab Reform Initiative are seeking applications for the Palestinian Journalist Fellowship—closing November 27.

⏳ MENA | Al Jazeera Media Institute is accepting applications for its 2025 fellowship, a two-month program in Doha—closing 30 November.

GLOBAL | Harvard University and the Nieman Foundation invite journalists, publishers, entrepreneurs and others who work to advance journalism to apply for The Nieman Visiting Fellowships, which offer short-term research opportunities for special projects—closing 1 December.

GLOBAL | The University of Michigan is accepting applications from mid-career journalists to The Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellowship that supports a year of academic study—closing 1 December.

ASIA | Georgetown University is inviting applications for its Asia Media Fellows Program, which provides support for seasoned journalists from distressed media markets in the Asia-Pacific region to conduct research and network—closing 1 December.

training+events

⏳ 🇪🇸 GLOBAL | The UAM/El País Journalism School is hosting an online workshop on science journalism on December 3 and 4—sign up by November 26.

⏳ GLOBAL | The project Data Against Feminicide is hosting a webinar called "Media against feminicide: narratives, challenges and responsibilities” in which experts from Uruguay, Brazil, Kyrgyzstan, Argentina and the U.S. will talk about the media’s role in reporting human rights abuses—tune in on November 26.

GLOBAL | The University of Eastern Finland and the United Nations Environment Programme are inviting applications for a two-week course on Multilateral Environmental Agreements—closing 9 December.

awards+competitions

⏳🎥 GLOBAL | The World Photography Organisation has opened up submissions for the Sony World Photography Awards 2025. All competitions, including those for professionals and students, are free to enter—closing November 29.

🎥 GLOBAL | Smithsonian magazine invites submissions from professional and amateur photographers for its annual photo contest—closing 2 December.

GLOBAL | The American Association for Cancer Research invites journalists to apply for the AACR June L. Biedler Prize for Cancer Journalism, which recognises stories that enhance the public’s understanding of cancer, cancer research or policy—closing 9 December.

pitches+positions

🚨 GLOBAL | The Swiss nonprofit Fondation Hirondelle is hiring an editorial manager in Chad—closing 22 November.

🚨 AFRICA | AFP is looking for a journalist to report and edit stories about Kenya and the rest of the East Africa region—closing 24 November.

⏳ MENA | Al Jazeera is looking for an Executive Producer to manage in-house production, external commissioning and/or acquisition of content for documentaries—apply now.

⏳ 🇫🇷 AFRICA | Les Bonnes Ondes is looking for an editorial production assistant in Casablanca, Morocco—apply now.

GLOBAL | The New York Times is looking for a lead editor for a newsletter focused on international news—apply now.

ASIA | The Environmental Reporting Collective is seeking a managing editor—apply now.

AFRICA | Reuters is hiring for the position of head of Africa Hub in Nairobi, Kenya—apply now.

MENA | Eco-Business is looking for a freelancer journalist to join its team and produce content on sustainable development trends and news in the Middle East—apply now.

📌 More opportunities are available to paid subscribers here.

resources+tools

• Risk Journalism: a guide to clear reporting on any topic - Maricarmen Climént for Science Media Centre Spain

• Weaving Indigenous Science into Reported Stories - Emma Gometz for The Open Notebook

• Science Writing & Story Structures - Erika Hayasaki in The Reported Essay

• Scheduling rest is crucial for good journalism – Katherine Reynolds Lewis for RJI

• 4 ways to diversify your beat as a freelance health journalist - Anna Medaris for the US Association of Health Care Journalists

• 🎙 How journalists can become media consultants, with Ramaa Sharma - Jacob Granger for Journalism.co.uk

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PLUS | in other editions

ICYMI—the latest VIEW edition recaps what happened at the COP16 global biodiversity summit, takes stock of the key issues on the table at the COP29 climate summit, and looks ahead to the desertification COP16. Plus our highlights from the global news agenda.

📌 Additional curated resources to support past and forthcoming UN summits is available for paid subscribers here (a free 7-day trial is available).

It's UN Summit season: on biodiversity, climate, desertification

UPDATE | from the network

The Pulitzer Center has published Making Waves, a report on the current landscape and opportunities for better ocean journalism. Filmmaker Breech Asher Harani from the Philippines emerged as the winner out of 200 entries to the first Climate and Labour Grant—a collaboration between One World Media, the Financial Times and Pulitzer Center—to tell a story about how the country’s cacao farmers and chocolatiers are adapting to the climate crisis. Mongabay has announced the awardees of its Conservation Reporting and Africa’s Environmental Reporting fellowships. Congrats to the winners of two science journalism competitions, the Kavli Science Journalism Awards and the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications.

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Thank you.

WorldWise is read across 67 countries—it remains independent thanks to the support of subscribers like you, and to the rest of my nomadic work-life. Sign up | Browse archive | Sponsor an issue

Created and edited by Anita Makri—journalist/writer, producer and editorial adviser covering global development and science in society. I also help selected organisations with compatible values to strengthen their media work. LinkedIn | Instagram | Email

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