'Journalism In Africa And Russia: Regional And Cultural Specifics' Round Table Discussion On January 24

27.01.2023

Photo1 (1).pngGroup photo (1).pngThe meeting, organized by Russian-African Club based at the Lomonosov Faculty of Global Studies, and co-organized by the Faculty of Journalism, was dedicated to building a lively dialogue, which would serve as a base for forming a uniquely strong trustworthy relationship between Russia and Africa.

Vice-President of Russian-African Club, Ilya Iliyn and Secretary of Russian-African Club, Aleksandr Berdnikov opened the meeting by highlighting the utmost importance of strengthening ties between Russia and Africa, and outlining future activities of the Club, including a brand-new venture – Forum of Russian and African Journalists, celebrations of Africa Day on May 25, and so much more. In this regard, the organizers stressed the crucial nature of media support in promoting cooperation initiatives.
Dean of the Faculty of Journalism, Elena Vartanova, once again underlined the importance of ethical journalism work in shaping public consciousness and preserving cultural heritage.

Ambassador of South Africa in Russia, Mzuvukile Jeff Maqetuka revealed the specifics of South African media, addressing four topical areas outlined in the agenda of the round table meeting. He spoke of media as a stakeholder of the new democracy, and delved into the latest development trends, such as rapidly-paced digitalization and increased professionalism of local journalists.
Ambassador of Sudan in Russia, Mohammed Elghazali Eltijani Sirraj and Second Secretary of Embassy of Sudan in Russia, Abdalrahman Mohammed brought up major changes and multiple challenges faced by the Sudanese media, broached the subject of freedom of speech, and expressed hope that Africa and Russia will work together to preserve values that are historically shared by both countries.

Co-Founder and Chief Editor of Africana.ru, Igor Sid talked about his 20-year professional path as an Africa-focused journalist, and urged everyone to appreciate intellectual achievements of African peoples, such as philosophical ideas of mutual help and social synergy that lie at the core of African culture.

Radio Sputnik Anchor, Aleksey Krasilnikov noted that while the presence of certain Africa-related stereotypes in mass media could to some extent simplify the digestion of this topic by the public consciousness, the emerging widespread recognition of the key geopolitical role of Africa calls for a more careful wording while addressing African issues.

Radio Sputnik Columnist, Tatyana Ladiaeva and Head of Social and International Projects at TASS, Irina Mandrikina underlined that Russian media outlets offer an increasingly rich palette of Africa-related content, both in terms of the growing number of urgent news that point to the rapidly developing relations between countries, and in terms of entertaining and educational products about African life and culture. In this regard, organization of press tours to African countries could help Russian journalists to create a vivid narration based on first-hand impressions.

Founder of Hello Africa journal and President of Cameroon Diaspora in Russia, Louis Gouend spoke in line with the Russian journalists, pointing to the necessity of bridging the information gap by both sides. Information support of many different areas, such as history, culture, sports, will ease distrust of the two peoples and facilitate stronger connections.
Publishing Editor of LE PANAFRICAIN Magazine, Diahate Abdu Karim noted that Africa and Russia should refresh their relationship by exploring the advantages offered by their synergy, and stressed that modern journalists could not be better equipped to promote this process.

Counselor of the Association of Economic Cooperation with African States, Gali Monastireva supported the previous speakers and voiced the idea of creating an association of African and Russian journalists.

Altogether, government officials, world-class academics and journalists of leading media outlets coming from 20 countries engaged in this crucial discussion and thanked the organizers for this valuable opportunity to share and exchange ideas.