
On the one hand they have been praised for their progressive characteristics. This is because they offer great organising potential, enhance political accountability and disrupt old media practices that tend to exclude less powerful voices from important social and political discussions.
On the other hand, they have invited notes of caution. This is because new media platforms embolden and even midwife bullies, ethnic jingoists, and nationalist radicals who are a threat to social cohesion.
Both points of view have merit. New media platforms can be powerful forces for democracy and also a space for dangerous, sectarian and divisive ideas. A number of governments seem to be exploiting these fears in a bid to control these platforms.
These attempts are likely to become a lot more commonplace across Africa. Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia and Gambia have already passed laws that target social media users specifically. Some of these laws criminalise free speech online, while others have made the use of social media too expensive for users.
Nevertheless, new media platforms are increasingly being used. Their importance on the political landscape can't be over-emphasised. This is because they have allowed people excluded from public communication to articulate their fears and desires in a way that wasn't previously possible. The widespread use of applications such as Twitter, Facebook and WhatsApp has been particularly instrumental in including a broad range of users in public discussions.
A modern news platform Rather than rely on the mainstream press to cover important political stories, citizens are able to discuss issues in the digital space. When their stories go viral the mainstream media then begins to cover them as important news items.
Twitter in particular has become a useful political tool for many. And Twitter's standard vernaculars such as hashtags and memes have also been creatively appropriated to reflect local inflections. Humour, local languages, and idioms abound.
The fact that participants are also able to tag their leaders further means that authority is confronted directly. And a poor person living in an informal settlement is now able to confront the head of state with just as much authority as anyone else. These small victories matter.
These platforms have also enabled users to link local issues with international concerns to give them global currency and legitimacy. In Kenya for example, an anti-rape campaign which coalesced around #JusticeForKemunto could be seamlessly linked to the [#MeToo movement], a similar rebuke and articulation of anger against sexual violence against women.
Government control The shift from legacy media has not been accidental. A number of African governments still exert enormous control over the media sector. The is because the state remains the single largest advertiser in the media in sub-Saharan Africa, and so can influence coverage and content.
In some countries, presidents and high-level politicians even own media houses.
This is why the digital space is so important. The emergence of a relatively new structure of communication - which is amorphous, unrestrained, and largely unaffected by state control - has meant there are new ways of holding governments to account.
But their popularity has drawn negative reactions from some governments.
Cracking down Some are now employing digitally savvy state operatives to counter opposition discourses online.
Others have gone further by enforcing regulations to control online discourse through punitive laws and taxation.
In Tanzania for example, digital content producers - including bloggers - are required to get yearly licences which cost $900 dollars. In Uganda, data bundles are now much more expensive with a $0.05 levy charged per day. And Zambia plans to introduce similar measures.
Other countries have been a lot more brazen in their efforts to clamp down on free online speech. Cameroon, Egypt, and Ethiopia, for example, have regularly shut down the internet. Users considered too critical of the government are routinely arrested, threatened or even jailed.
Fake news This is not to say that new media platforms are entirely without problems. Social media has been used to create and disseminate fake news. This has contributed to a dangerous regime of misinformation that has undermined democratic processes in a number of African countries.
This was the case during Kenya's 2017 general elections when the ruling Jubilee party employed Cambridge Analytica, a UK-based public relations company, to boost its electoral prospects. The company was later accused of populating social media and using bots to create and circulate fake news.
Similarly, in South Africa, both the ruling African National Congress and the opposition Democratic Alliance were reported to have used social media to spread fake news to besmirch opponents during municipal elections.
These trends reflect the fact that fake news, misinformation and disinformation have infected the continent's body politic, which is a dangerous development.
Future threats It's however safe to say that new media platforms are now firmly part of Africa's public culture and any attempt to stop, frustrate or undermine their significance in public life is bound to fail.
However, the creative use to which they are put must be constructive and progressive. For example, in countries where collective political organisation and expression is increasingly being undermined by the state - such as Tanzania - instances of self-expression through new media form important pockets of resistance. These pockets, when viewed collectively, can help focus attention on state repression and excesses.
Originally published by George Ogola on The Conversation.
Tags: Africatechnology
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Blendkit Expands Beyond Blender
Brie Clayton August 4, 2026
0 Comments
Popular 3D Asset Library Launches Alpha Plugins for Maya, Godot, and Rhino
Blend...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Ikegami has chosen the 11-14 September 2026 International Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam as the European market launch venue for additions to its UNICAM p...
04/08/2026
Appear (IBC2026 booth 1.C61) will showcase new X & VX Platform capabilities that extend broadcast-grade performance from venue to cloud
Appear ASA (OSE: APR), ...
04/08/2026
LiveU, the global leader in live IP-video solutions, today highlighted the crucial role its EcoSystem played in Broadcast Management Group's (BMG) successfu...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
04/08/2026
Homecoming Artist Spotlight: Dreion The singer, songwriter, and producer talks about finding his village at Berklee ahead of his Homecoming performance on Sep...
04/08/2026
Surging AI demands are driving the need for massive datasets and context windows that burst past the confines of system memory.
But rising needs aren't me...
04/08/2026
For robotaxis and other autonomous vehicles (AVs), the hardest problems aren'...
04/08/2026
Members of the Open Secure AI Alliance - now more than 120 organizations strong - are developing new guidelines to strengthen agentic AI cybersecurity as the an...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
03/08/2026
SVG's annual TranSPORT conference returns to New York City for a full day of sessions focused on the current state of live-sports-transmission technology. S...
03/08/2026
A five-time Emmy winner, this esports vet has built a production career on live storytelling, audience connection, and meeting viewers wherever they are
The sp...
03/08/2026
Live production in the cloud is a growing trend across the industry and Major Le...
03/08/2026
(L-R) Nyah B., Nala B., Shannon Elizabeth S., Celia K., Olive G., and Nikki B. attend the Q&A for Cookie Queens by Alysa Nahmias, an official selection of the...
03/08/2026
Recreates a 1977 Hohner Clavinet D6
After launching a software recreation of their own electric piano, Rhodes set about capturing another classic instrument...
03/08/2026
A modern solution for an old technique
Peak Tamer is a new standalone application that automatically applies gain automation to keep rogue peaks under cont...
03/08/2026
Plug-in gains object metadata automation export
Sound Particles have just released an update that adds a new Metadata Automation function to their their rec...
03/08/2026
SGL Carbon and X-energy today announced a binding agreement to double SGL's production capacity for medium-grain isotropic graphite ( NBG-18 ), a specialize...
03/08/2026
Glensound will launch the Greater Divine Supernal at PLASA Show 2026, extending its intelligent loudspeaker range for professional studio monitoring and live au...
03/08/2026
How Agua Tinta's Class Project Launched Her Songwriting Career Two years after graduating from Berklee, the songwriter has a Latin Grammy nomination, a So...
03/08/2026
Leiden University's new Campus Spui, located in the heart of The Hague, the diplomatic and administrative centre of the Netherlands, opened in February 2026...
03/08/2026
Bitfocus, the specialist in media control and monitoring, has received a further boost to its plans for continuing growth, particularly in Europe and North Amer...
03/08/2026
Jason Flemyng, Tessa Peake-Jones, Lee Ingleby and Georgia Tennant join the cast ...
03/08/2026
Building on the momentum of a landmark year for soccer in North America, Leagues...
02/08/2026
Classic EQ design goes virtual
Following on from the launch of the 500-series version of their BAX EQ unit, Dangerous Music have now teamed up with modellin...
02/08/2026
The Government's Missing Dimension
This article was originally published on the National Preparedness Commission website on 25 June 2026.
----------------...
01/08/2026
Latest free Vaults instrument released
The Crow Hill Company's Vaults collection offers a continually rotating selection of virtual instruments and samp...
01/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/08/2026
COW Jobs: Lead Generation Representative - Animation Services
Brie Clayton July 31, 2026
0 Comments
Lead Generation Representative - Animation Service...
01/08/2026
Emilie Lowe Shoots Award Winning Short Film Where Dead Things Grow with Blackmag...
01/08/2026
Early Registration Opens for the 2026 SMPTE Media Technology Summit
Brie Clayton July 31, 2026
0 Comments
Initial Program Announced Alongside New Medi...
31/07/2026
With an emphasis on local, the league is looking beyond the initial four teams t...
31/07/2026
The 2026 Sundance Institute Directors Lab fellows in Estes Park, Colorado (Photo by Gabe Rovick)
Dear Friends,
This has been an extraordinary year for our ar...
31/07/2026
Offers 360-degree sound placement in any DAW
Audiocube have just announced the launch of a new plug-in that embeds a complete 3D acoustic environment inside...