Western media sources are "not entirely balanced or entirely objective", according to Prof. Frederick Golooba Mutebi, an independent researcher and political analyst based in Kampala.
"I think that they have agendas that they pursue. It's not that they want to inform us [...] They are projecting certain things. They are projecting their values, they are trying to shape our minds and they don't shape our minds for our own good. They shape our minds for their own good," Prof. Golooba Mutebi explains.
A solution to this problem is for "Africa's best media doing stories or producing stories that reflect reality", the researcher says.
"Will Africa ever have something like Al-Jazeera or CGTN or The New York Times or things of that kind? I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. And as long as that doesn't happen, we are going to remain victims of this misreporting and misrepresentation and lazy journalism," Professor Golooba Mutebi elaborates.
With the rise of accessibility of social media, information sources become more and more diverse. It has created "front for Africans to be able to to try and push back at these misrepresentations of the continent".
"Social media has afforded us the opportunity to be able to talk about ourselves to the outside world. There was a time when we were simply being talked about and defined by outsiders and explained by outsiders. And I think that that has changed," the expert says.
On the other hand, with such availability online, there comes a risk of falling victim to fake news and unverified sources of information.
"You need to be aware that not everything you see on social media is necessarily true or valid or accurate, and then you will learn to treat things with caution. If you think, well, this is true and you know it's true, you can retreat it. But if you're not sure, check. I think that that comes from a certain level of sensitization and awareness creation," Prof. Golooba Mutebi advises.
To hear what else the expert had to say, check out the entire episode of the AfroVerdict podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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