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The Dilemma of Presenting an African Image Abroad: The Kind of African News Contained in Canadian Newspapers

The recent demand by underdeveloped nations for improvements in quantitative and qualitative presentation of their images abroad reflects their dissastisfaction with existing patterns and content of world news flow (Africa Currents, 1977: 19-21). This demand is based on allegations that the news media of the developed nations disseminate distorted images about them. To investigate this allegation, this study analyzes Canadian newspaper treatment of one underdeveloped region, Africa. The first section of the paper concerns aspects of Canadian African relations, indicating that the region could be of some news value to Canadians. Section two argues against the proposition that increasing functional proximity between nations would be the answer to poor treatment of underdeveloped nations abroad. The third section concerns the role of foreign correspondents and African newsmen in the service of the world news agencies. After a content analysis of presentation of Africa in certain Canadian newspapers, the paper concludes with suggestions for improving coverage of Africa. Questions like, “why are we in Africa at all?” and “what do we get out of it?” indicate how restless Canadians have become about Canada's involvement with Africa (MacEachen, 1975: 1, 4). These questions smack of disapproval especially of the rationale for Canada's involvement in the region which is late Lester Pearson's dictum “it is only right for those who have to share with those who have not” (ibid.:1).