Comparing African media coverage of
the crisis in Darfur
South African Mail and Guardian
and
Egypt’s Al Ahram Arabic daily and Al Ahram
English Weekly
Tamara Swenson Cari Skogberg Eastman
School of Journalism and Mass Communication
CU-Boulder
Reasons for differences in national media
coverage
national commonality and interest in
Sudan?
ownership, financing and operations of
news medium?
South Africa: commonality with Sudan?
Both former colonies
Turbulent transitions
Multiple ethnic and religious
differences
South African media: Large foreign investment
Rated #1 or “free” by Freedom House
Media considered watchdog of government
Mail and Guardian
Started in 1985 as Weekly Mail, critic of
apartheid, owned by many
smallshareholders
Becomes first online daily in Africa (1994)
87.5% ownership sold to Botswana's Trevor
Ncube in 2002
30
Number of Articles
25
February 2003:
Start of crisis in
Darfur according to
Human Rights
Watch
20
15
10
March 19, 2003: Iraq
War II starts
July 27, 2004: AU agrees to
increase monitoring force to
2,000 troops in Darfur
June 30, 2004: Kofi Annan
and Colin Powell visit
Darfur
August 2003: SLA attacks weapons
storage sites; Sudanese government
continues to arm Janjaweed militias
5
0
Coverage by Month
December
26, 2004:
Tsunami
Mail & Guardian on Darfur
• Use of Terms
 genocide, ethnic cleansing,
oil
 Reason for Crisis (If included)
 Ethnic and / or racial
Government inequity
• Framing
 What happened / what
should be done (90%)
• Minimal inclusion of historic
background / causes
 Blame  Janjaweed &
Sudan Gov’t (50%)
 Ending  Combined Int’l &
Domestic
• Who gets quoted?
 Sudanese / UN officials /
Rebels / AU or African
government reps
 Occasionally: NGOs
 Missing (mostly):
Darfur villagers, Refugees,
Janjaweed
Making Sense of M&G Coverage
• Agency used in article determined frame of
article
Guardian news agency : More emotional,
descriptive, sensational
Other Agencies: SAPA & AFP
• distribution of resources or political / economic
marginalization as one of the reasons
• African issue with South Africa in a leadership position
Solution to Darfur to be found in the African
Union
Moving to neighboring Egyptian news media
Any national commonality and Egyptian interest in
Sudan?
Egypt controlled both North and South Sudan
before Sudanese independence: ties strained and
cordial at different periods since
Primary issue: Sudan’s control of Nile waters
Media control in Egypt
Law: media must uphold foundations of society,
guarantee unity, social peace
80% of publishers media state-owned, President
appoints editors: news media are “voice of
government”
By Month: Al Ahram English Weekly
14
February 2003:
Start of crisis in
Darfur (Human
Rights Watch)
10
8
6
4
March 19, 2003: Iraq
War II starts
June 30, 2004: Kofi Annan
and Colin Powell visit
Darfur
December
26, 2004:
Tsunami
August 2003: SLA attacks weapons
storage sites; Sudanese government
continues to arm Janjaweed militias
2
Feb
Marc
h
April
May
June
July
Aug
Sept
Oct
Nov
De
2004 c
/Jan
Feb
Marc
h
April
May
June
July
Aug
Sept
Oct
Nov
De
2005 c
/Jan
Feb
0
2003
/Jan
Number of Articles
12
July 27, 2004: AU agrees to
increase monitoring force to
2,000 troops in Darfur
Coverage by Month
Al Ahram English Weekly
 Author listed
(40 of 44)
• Blame
 Terms
• Responsible for
ending crisis
 Focus:
What happened /
What should be
done
• Perception of
emotional intensity
of articles
 Cause (infrequent)
• Voices heard,
unheard
By Month: Al Ahram (Arabic)
14
12
February 2003:
Start of crisis in
Darfur (Human
Rights Watch)
July 27, 2004: AU agrees to
increase monitoring force to
2,000 troops in Darfur
8
6
4
March 19, 2003: Iraq
War II starts
August 2003: SLA attacks weapons
storage sites; Sudanese government
continues to arm Janjaweed militias
2
Feb
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
2005
/Jan
Coverage by Month
May
June
July
Aug.
Sept.
Feb
Marc
h
April
Oct.
Nov.
Dec
2004 .
/Jan
July
Aug.
Sept.
May
June
Feb
Marc
h
April
0
2003
/Jan
Number of Articles
10
June 30, 2004: Kofi Annan
and Colin Powell visit
Darfur
December
26, 2004:
Tsunami
Al Ahram (Arabic) on Darfur
• Terms
genocide:
Oil
 Focus: conduct
and/or remedies
(77%)
• Blame: None (74%)
 Causes (infrequent):
When identified
• Emotional intensity
of articles
• Responsibility for
ending conflict
• Voices
Making Sense of AA Coverage
Al Ahram Weekly
Al Ahram (Arabic)
• Reflects conflicted
history between Egypt
& Sudan
• Presents Darfur crisis
as African (and Arab)
issue
• Pan-African framing
• Intellectualizes
discourse
Rejects international
role
• Pan-Arab framing
• Contests Western
view
Al Ahram: A single viewpoint?
• Different markets: Arabic and English
versions NOT identical
AA (Arabic): Frequent linkage to Iraq, Palestine
AAW (English): Minimal linkage to Iraq, Palestine
• Position of Egyptian government
predominates
Arab League or African Union (under Egyptian
leadership) should have a leading role in solution
in Darfur
African media coverage of an
African crisis
The Mail and Guardian in more distant South Africa
had more articles than either Al Ahram newspapers
in neighboring Egypt; M&G had longer articles the
Arabic Al Ahram
Coverage in all three media took place when a nonAfrican global leader discussed Darfur
Voices of the Darfurian victims seldom heard
Coverage of Al Ahram Arabic and English different
although both of low intensity due to Egyptian media
law
Limited space in all 3 media to causes of crisis