Rethinking peace journalism in light of ubuntu

Abstract

Much criticism has been levelled against news coverage regarding African issues. It is said to be informed by Western confrontational norms of news casting that exaggerate Afro-pessimistic typecasts. To wit , news on Africa tends to be sensationalist and to over emphasize war, conflict and violence. In response to such norms and practices, Peace Journalism (PJ) has been put forward as an alternative model of reporting with the potential to ameliorate and mitigate conflict and violence. However, PJ has also been criticized for being too idealistic, and for conforming more to sunshine journalism than a real alternative to established confrontational practices and norms of journalism. In this chapter, we therefore ask if PJ could be re-assessed and re-developed by taking cognizance of the African moral philosophy and relational ethic of ubuntu , which uniquely underpins African philosophical accounts of human and social relations. This in the interest of articulating as well as expanding on existing, journalistic ethics, and even an embryonic model of journalism that can provide news audiences with better insight in to Africa, African communities and African people, and that most importantly, affords accuracy and dignity to the issues and people reported on.

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