“Navigating Digital Authoritarianism: Communication Responses in African Contexts” was the theme of the panel convened by the DDMAC project team on 28 September 2024 as part of the 14th edition of the East African Communication Association (EACA) conference. The conference took place in Dar es Salaam University, Tanzania from 28 to 30 September 2024 under the theme: “Africa and the Global Dialogue on Media and Communication”.
The panel, moderated by Dr. Mulatu Alemayehu Moges, Associate Professor at OsloMet University in Oslo and member of the DDMAC project, saw the participation of other members of the project: Professor Kristin Skare Orgeret from OsloMet University in Oslo, Professor Mirjam de Bruijn from Leiden University in the Netherlands, Prof. Bruce Mutsvairo from Utrecht University in the Netherlands, Modibo Galy Cissé from the University of Bamako in Mali and Ph.D. candidate at Leiden University, and Samba Dialimpa Badji, Ph.D. candidate at OsloMet University in Oslo.
The panel explored the complex interplay between state control, pressure for “patriotic” news coverage, journalistic practices and citizens networks and activism within the digital sphere, focusing on the two distinct African countries, Ethiopia and Mali. Amidst times of crisis, different actors and networks play various roles in aiding the spread of online disinformation.
Opening the discussion, Kristin Skare Orgeret presented the aims of DDMAC Project, born out of a need to gather more empirical evidence on the dynamics through which digital media leads to new forms of conflict or strengthen those that already exist, as well as on the ways through which digital media escalate, but also potentially deescalate conflict. Focusing on two distinct African countries, Ethiopia and Mali, “the project inscribes itself in the theoretical discussions of media and conflict seeking empirical evidence to better understand the intricate relationships between digital media, conflicts and peace,” she said.
Addressing the theme of the panel, she highlighted “the complex interplay between state control, pressure for ‘patriotic’ news coverage, journalistic practices and citizens networks and activism within the digital sphere”. By taking some cases from Ethiopia, she elaborated on how the powerful people, activists and political leaders attempt to control the digital media and its debates and discussions on the platform.
Borrowing from digital participation (Jenkins et al, 2016) and its application to warfare (Merrin, 2018, Ford & Hoskins, 2022), Mirjam de Bruijn used the concept of digital participatory warfare to analyze the situation in Mali. The country is the scene of a multifaceted crisis since 2012. In the case of Mali, she said “we have both a warfare, and authoritarian governance” and in this context, “the digital participation of citizens in this takes many forms and is constrained.” She then emphasized the role of new digital actors. These are called influencers or citizen journalists, some pro or contra government, others pro or contra rebel groups.
Bruce Mutsvairo’s intervention offered fresh perspectives on how the DDMAC project has shown how disinformation is perceived and actualized by people living in Ethiopia and Mali. “Our project has offered lesser-known perspectives on what it means to live with conflict on one hand and disinformation on the other, by going on the ground to speak with people, who experience both daily,” he said. In the same vein, Samba Dialimpa Badji gave an overview of the disinformation ecosystem in both countries, presenting the nature and circulation of disinformation. Furthermore, he presented the fact-checking landscape in Ethiopia and Mali by portraying the organizations involved in fact-checking activities in both countries, highlighting the challenges they face, and how they navigate and negotiate media crackdown to continue to operate.
Modibo Galy Cisse focused his intervention on the role of WhatsApp in intercommunity conflicts in the center of Mali. He particularly highlighted the emergence of community WhatsApp groups, which in the context of the conflict are used as spaces for information and interactions between members of the same ethnic groups. However, these groups are also places where hate speech and misinformation are shared and amplified, thereby exacerbating community tensions.