Customer Reviews

New News Out of Africa: Uncovering Africa's Renaissance (W.E.B. Du Bois Institute)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I had very high hopes for "New News Out of Africa," but I was ultimately disappointed.

For someone who knows nothing about contemporary Africa, the book does provide a good introduction to some of the main issues that Africa faces (the legacy of apartheid, AIDS, corruption, NEPAD, the African Union) and elucidates some bright spots on a troubled continent. However, there are several problems with this book, in my opinion.

1) THE FOCUS ON SOUTH AFRICA
Hunter-Gault focuses disproportionately on South Africa (well over 1/3 of the book). This makes sense since she lives in Johannesburg, but South Africa is hardly representative of Africa as a whole. South Africa has the highest GDP per capita in Africa (higher than even Croatia, Chile, Russia, or Turkey). It has extremely low public debt. And it has a world-class infrastructure. When talking about Africa's future, you cannot compare South Africa to [...] Congo-Kinshasa.

2) NARROW COVERAGE OF AFRICA
The author's overemphasis on South Africa and the book's short length mean that the rest of Africa gets less attention than it merits. The book is 142 pages (before endnotes) and is printed in large font. It is true that chapter 2 (out of 3) jumps all over Africa, giving little snapshots of the situation in many countries (and it is the best chapter). But the author could have written a book twice as long and gone into greater depth. Moreover, if she had divided the book up into a region-by-region analysis, she might have been able to highlight the real disparities across Africa in terms of development and hope for the future.

3) THE "I" FACTOR
Readers of "New News Out of Africa" should know that the book is not just about Africa and its recent history. The book is also substantively about Hunter-Gault and her personal relationship to Africa. It is about her experiences in Africa, what Africa has meant to her as an African-American, and which famous people she has interviewed in Africa. This isn't a criticism per se, but prospective buyers should know what to expect. Rather than such a deeply personal aspect, I was hoping for a more dispassionate analysis.

4) SOURCES
I am one of those people who wants to know where facts come from. And Hunter-Gault cites some amazing facts. So, as I read "New News Out of Africa," I was constantly flipping back to the endnotes, but I was very disappointed to see that most of them come from interviews with Hunter-Gault and from websites.
Many academic scholars (especially historians, but not sociologists) are wary of interviews since they are highly subjective and often not verifiable.
And who verifies the websites used? How do we know that the information provided there is accurate? I generally trust websites like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, but what about other sites?
Some of the information seems to be taken uncritically from these sites. As an example, from one website: She quotes a poem by the "Congoloese poet and politician" Patrice Lumumba. I've heard Lumumba called many things before (postal worker, beer salesman, politician, rebel), but never a poet.
In the endnotes/bibliography, I was surprised not to see page after page of scholarly analyses, monographs, and academic papers. There are some, but far fewer than warranted.

"New News Out of Africa" does provide a very good introduction to important issues; however, the best passages -- those that are the most useful -- are buried among others and are best excerpted. But herein lies the paradox or the problem. The person new to African studies wouldn't know which passages are better than others, and the Africa expert, who does know, doesn't need an introduction.

Three Stars for an extremely laudable premise, especially considering Africa's renewed efforts at "getting it right". Well written, easy to read piece of work.

However, the writer could have done better by focusing on one sub region at a time. Her extended situation in South Africa allows her a relatively in-depth perception regarding progress and developments within the immediate region.

Her attempt to harness East Africa, West Africa as well as North Africa in this one book drastically watered down what would otherwise have been an extremely great piece of work.

She committed the one grave error most foreign journalists make in reporting on Africa- attempting to lump the entire continent up into one short story. This is regardless of the fact that given the diversity of its societies and economies - a country like Nigeria on its own presents a formidable challenge to analyze in a few paragraphs.

In addition, instead of focusing entirely on supposedly positive news alone, readers will be better served if the writer had given a factual country-by-country report.

If aggregate positive development within the entire continent of Africa can truly be outlined in less than 150 pages, I would not think it worth reporting.

I however think it fair to mention the fact that I lived in West Africa for over 30 years, extensively traveled the continent, still maintain strong ties and am an avid Africa watcher, which somewhat gives me an indepth perception.

This book would probably be a good enough read for the casually interested person.

Charlayne Hunter-Gault provides a snapshot of life in Africa, from the perspective of someone who has lived and breathed news coverage on the continent for decades. Yes, the book is heavy on South Africa, but as the powerhouse of Africa and the launching point for most of her work, it makes the book more personal and anecdotal - a plus from my perspective.

She is a journalist questioning her industry's poor coverage of the continent -- that is the heart of the book. It is not meant to be an academic book or the definitive word on Africa. New News presents a moment in time. She addresses the sad fact that most Westerners have a severely skewed perspective of the continent, largely due to doomsday media coverage.

New News was a modest attempt to give some balance to what Hunter-Gault calls the four D's of the African Apocalypse. Yes, I would like to read more, but was grateful for the 100-some pages of honest, first-hand analysis.

I found this book in the library under "African news".

Although I was expecting an analysis of news representation of Africa, I was sorely disappointed. Even from a qualitative analysis point, this book does nothing but fan the flames of discordance in a still recovering country while showing what a fantastic job the author did of interviewing various high-profile names.

Even while she attempts to disregard and prove otherwise the "dark continent" and "jungle-filled" myths of Africa, she does nothing but exacerbate these in the first few pages. She mentions that she was, with her family holidaying in the Eastern Cape, right in the middle of "a real jungle, in Africa!"

Jungles? In the Eastern Cape? In South Africa? Really? I'm surprised you didn't see tigers there while you were at it.

Cheerful and interesting at times, Hunter-Gault's book is unfortunately let down by the, as another reviewer stated, "I Factor". The book is written singularly through the lens of her one-sided viewpoint and should not be presented or expected to be a discourse analysis of international news. If anything, it supports and adds to the stereotype the American is attempting to dissolve.

Enjoyable if you know nothing about Mother Africa, a really awful and incensing read if you've ever lived in Africa - south or otherwise.

Veteran journalist Charlayne Hunter-Gault hits the nail on journalism's head with her latest book, New News Out of Africa: Uncovering Africa's Renaissance. Hunter-Gault, who up until recently was the Johannesburg Bureau Chief for CNN, gives her take on media coverage of Africa. Half of the book is dedicated to her work experience in both pre- and post-apartheid South Africa, while the rest of the book examines what she calls the renaissance occurring in postcolonial Africa with the help of enterprising African journalists. If one only depended on Western media for news about the continent, they would conclude that the only things happening in Africa are war, famine and AIDS. This
Afro-pessimism is further compounded by patronizing celebrities and Live 8 concerts that claim to be "saving" Africa. While she agrees that atrocities, such as the HIV pandemic and the Darfur genocide should be covered, Hunter-Gault feels that this should be balanced out with the new news about the politicians and activists making a positive impact on the atrocities. "Recalling the old/bad news and putting it in context must also be a part of our new news mission if there is to be any hope of the past instructing the future," she says. Hunter-Gault cites the rise in democratic elections, and, thus, more democratic leaders around the continent as part of the new news. The reporter also recognizes being an African American and a woman has also helped her to "come in right" or fairly report news about Africa. A must read for all journalism students and those who care about Africa's future.

NEW NEWS shows us that there is, in fact, good news coming out of Africa.

This new book by Charlayne Hunter-Gault provides a lively overview of the political, economic and social progress occurring in many African countries in recent years.

Hunter-Gault, who has lived in South Africa for the past decade, personalizes the narrative with her own firsthand stories as a black female American journalist covering African events for CNN, NPR and the MacNeil/Lehrer Newshour. She frequently contrasts her African experiences with her life in the pre-Civil Rights American South. (As a young woman in 1961, Hunter-Gault famously integrated the University of Georgia amid racial taunts, personal threats, and student riots.) Hunter-Gault's personal anecdotes are perhaps the most compelling part of NEW NEWS.

For those seeking to understand where Africa has been in recent years, and where one hopes it will continue to go, NEW NEWS is an excellent start.

the book arrived very fast and in the condition as described. would definitely do business with again!