Why Civil Society Should Engage the Media

The media can set the agenda, raise awareness on an issue and is used by the public to know complex issues.  This piece will try to explain why civil society (CS) should involve the media in the light of the aforementioned media functions.

Firstly, since the media have the power to set the agenda for the populace, the CS can take advantage and use the media to champion their issues.

CSs are usually not popular with some governments or sectors. They can be arrested or harmed. If the media is in good relations with the activists, it can provide some security as governments fear bad publicity reaching donors, UN and regional partners.

It is cheaper for CS to deliver content to the public as news than via advertising. Adverts are easily ignored while news items are believed to a larger extent.  Only a good relationship between CS and media will see CS campaigns being reported as news.

Some research indicates that the populace relies on the media to understand complex issues, the CS stands to gain if they use the media to explain issues and raise awareness to the public which is already looking up to the media.

Finally, Media sometimes promotes ills like genocide, violence, adultery and sustaining hegemony to name but a few. It would thus be very crucial that CS, which is usually fighting these ills, engages the very media to curb them.  

CS, it can be concluded then, should engage the media as intensively as possible. (250)

Negros: What to do in ‘racist’ Russia when the World Cup comes

News that Russia had won the world cup bid ahead of England shook the world alright, some saw it as punishment for the Brits and their badmouthing BBC, some said Russia deserved their win with Arshavin's performance highly playing reference.

...but think of the Ojiofor (not real name) family in Nigeria, they have recently lost a son who was their only hope: he was in Russia doing his MA when a redneck did him in saying he is bringing impurity to the land of the Czars. Ask every African about Russia and you will hear how they fear it, I mean is it not the racism capital of the world?

I ask therefore, is Russia prepared to host the cup? Will the racist youths that Ross Kemp in his BBC program "Ross Kemp on Gangs" hold their fire? No is the obvious answer, it is easier for a German to buy a fake Chinese product than to make Russians accept 'others," but there is hope.....

To all the dark skinned and the Ojiofor family I say do not hate Blatter, this might be an opportunity to Change Russia!

Maybe after the World Cup, Negroes can start freely clubbing in Russia nightclubs and maybe taking on their women, I hope they have heard of our prowess, we Negroes, in bed I mean.

This is what every Negro should do when we arrive in Russia: stay up late and patronise the most racist clubs, do many Russian women, drink and sing African verses when moving the streets....if one of us is beaten or killed then we stage the protest that is block their impressive underground trains, refuse to play matches and march to the UN begging for sanctions!

The only way change can come is by exposing the stagnant mind to that which he despises, I know that the reason racism began was because white and black people that made the first contact thought the other was an animal or a lesser human, now that we know that we are equal (or are we?) we can move on and fuck some of these stupid ideas!