By Alex Johnson
If given this map of Africa, could you identify the Democratic Republic of the Congo or South Africa? How about Senegal or Kenya? In the media we hear of Ebola in Liberia or fighting in Sudan, Mali, Nigeria, and Somalia. How are we able to visualize this in our minds? Can we separate each country based on its unique culture and set of problems? Do we make an over generalized picture of what Africa is as a whole? It would be wrong to think of France as being the same as Germany or Spain. Therefore it is equally wrong to compare Southern Sudan and Kenya is such a way. This guide is specifically designed with the America people in mind. It is not meant to criticize your lack of knowledge on African issues and how they are being reported. Instead, it is meant to get you thinking about potential biases in the news outlets we use. Rather than to focus this guide on all of Africa, we will focus specifically on the Democratic of the Congo and how it is represented in the media. This brief presentation will discuss what types of events are being reported, who is reporting on them and how the country is being portrayed.
[1] “OUTLINE MAP OF AFRICA.” Africa Outline Map. World Atlas, n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2014.
Democratic Republic of Congo 