The media landscape is changing, and with these changes come new opportunities, but also new threats. While new online platforms offer exciting channels to expand and extend the frontiers of media freedom and freedom of expression in Africa, some African governments have increased crackdowns on freedom of expression and sharing of information.
If these attempts to gag the media succeed, then the press will no longer be able to fulfil its critical role of informing citizens, facilitating freedom of expression, fostering access to information and holding power to account. These functions are all critical for building and strengthening democracy and democratic societies across the continent.
Why the course is important?
This free edX 'Media Freedom and Freedom of Expression in Africa' course will help participants identify principles and components of democratic media policy and practice, while training them to identify strategies for effective engagement of issues related to freedom of expression in an African setting.
The six-week long online course requires just 2-3 hours of participation per week, and kicks off on October 4, 2019.
The course is dedicated to the late Southern African media activist Jeanette Minnie, who fought tirelessly to shape media freedom and the policies that govern it in the region.
It's not too late to enrol. Click here for more information.
Who was Jeanette Minnie
Jeanette Minnie was a passionate fighter who dedicated her life to encourage informed and robust engagement to help shape the Southern African media landscape and the region’s media policies. This course aims to deepens the values and principles that guided her life’s work.
Minnie’s commitment to improving the quality of journalism in Africa was unparalleled. She was involved in the formation of the Media Institute of Southern Africa, the Freedom of Expression Institute, and recently the SOS Support Public Broadcasting Coalition.
Meet the instructors
The course will be presented by a number of experts with a range of skills and backgrounds, each with a special interest in media freedom and freedom of expression in Africa, and in driving the conversations that shape the policies that regulate these freedoms.
