The African Press, Civic Cynicism, and Democracy

Winner of the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi Award in ResearchThis book explores the thesis that civic cynicism in African countries is a major obstacle to the consolidation of democracy, and that the African press should address the problem not just among leaders, but also among the general populace. Finding that corruption has extended from leaders and governmental institutions to the populace itself, the author asserts that the growing independent press needs to intensify its critique of the public attitude and civic orientation, the fertile soil on which corruption in public life has thrived.

Minabere Ibelema is Associate Professor of Communication Studies, University of Alabama at Birmingham.