2007年VOA标准英语-Study Says African Media Growing But Lacks Inde

By Scott Bobb
Johannesburg
19 January 2007

One of the first and most comprehensive studies of the media in sub-Saharan Africa has revealed massive growth in the industry over the past five years, with the emergence¹ of private and community radio stations and an explosion in the use of mobile telephones. However, the study says African media are not yet strong enough or independent enough to fulfill² the role of the fourth estate. Correspondent Scott Bobb reports from our Southern Africa bureau in Johannesburg.

 
Habiba Maalim and other girls at Khadija Umul Mumminin girls' primary school in Mandera, Kenya listen to an English lesson broadcast on a WorldSpace satellite radio in this 6 Nov 2002 photo
A survey by the African Media Development Initiative released Monday says the media on the continent have undergone considerable growth and change in the past five years.

The director of one of the sponsors of the study, Steven King of the B.B.C. World Service Trust, says this is due to democratization, globalization and economic growth.

"The private media has grown very substantially and that's largely due to liberalization. We've also seen a large growth in some countries in community media stations," said King.

The study was conducted by the Trust, Nigeria's Ahmadu Bello University, South Africa's Rhodes University and a network of researchers in 17 African countries. They interviewed more than 300 leaders in media, government, academia and related fields.

King says the researchers found a surprising consensus³ on the state of the media in sub-Saharan Africa.

"Radio is still the dominant⁴ media although television is growing fast," he said. "And also another significant but not surprising statistic⁵ is the growth of mobile telephony and also in some countries a massive uptake of access to internet."

 
Trevor Ncube, the Chief Executive Officer of the weekly newspaper the Zimbabwe Independent selling copies of his paper to motorists in Harare, 19 Oct 2001 
He says newspapers often do not reach audiences in rural areas and internet access, while growing, is still limited. For example, two-thirds of all internet users live in Nigeria or South Africa.

However, the report says the media in Africa face many challenges. They are neither strong enough nor independent enough to fulfill their role as the fourth pillar of democracy along with the executive, legislative⁶ and judicial⁷ branches of government.

One of the research leaders, Gerry Power, says state-owned broadcasters tend to dominate but they are not independent.

He said, "In many of these countries, despite the liberalization, they tend still to serve the needs of the ruling government and tend to be the mouthpiece of the ruling party."

The study says that laws guaranteeing the freedom of the media are lacking in many countries and is not implemented⁸ in many where they do exist.

In addition, African media suffer from low technical standards, low professional standards and funding shortages.

King says, however, that vigorous and independent media are vital in the struggle to end poverty and promote good governance.

"In a globalized world people succeed and economic growth happens because of a more liberalized and globalized access to information. And to deny that to many people in the development world is a real brake on development," he said.

The study recommends new funding schemes to ensure financial sustainability, more and better coordinated⁹ training programs and the implementation¹⁰ of laws that protect the media from interference by government and wealthy private interests.

1 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

2 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

3 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

4 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

5 statistic   

n.统计量；adj.统计的，统计学的

参考例句：

• Official statistics show real wages declining by 24%.官方统计数字表明实际工资下降了24%。
• There are no reliable statistics for the number of deaths in the battle.关于阵亡人数没有可靠的统计数字。

6 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

7 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

8 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

9 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

10 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。