Reuters to open Africa Journal


By Priscillia Alao
September 25, 2018

News
Africa Journal

International news agency Reuters is launching a mobile-first video service called Africa Journal, reflecting the growing digital consumption of news on the continent.

Serena Chaudhry

With the new service, Reuters aims to tell the African story in an unbiased way, covering news locally and globally in daily ready-to-publish English-language video packages.

The service brings fresh news from unique and diverse perspectives, ranging from human interest, entertainment, lifestyle, sports, business, politics and general news. It offers video content to broadcasters, online and mobile platforms as well as publishers.

“Africa Journal is produced with the same ethics and principles used in all Reuters news gathering, which is free from bias or influence and there is no limitation to Africa Journal’s reporting,” Africa Journal editor Serena Chaudhry told Content Nigeria.

“Our Trust Principles clearly state that Reuters provides unbiased and reliable news services to all sources, whether they be newspapers, agencies, broadcasters or other media subscribers. We do not report fake news,” she said.

“Far from showing stereotypical images of Africa suffering only from war or famine, Africa Journal showcases incredible stories from the worlds of science, technology, entrepreneurship as well as political and business elements.”

Thanks to the growth of the digital mobile audience in Africa, launching Africa Journal will not only offer Africans updated content but also give the international market the stories it demands.

Chaudhry added: “Rapid population growth, high levels of mobile penetration and falling data rates are driving an explosion in digital and telco industries. Our content can be used cross-industry, including broadcast, print and digital publishing, technology, telcos, corporates and brands.”

The new service will start by producing between 16 and 20 short voiced packages every week.

“Africa Journal is a commercial service. We offer a 30-day free trial. Pricing is based on various factors including audience size. We offer flexible commercial models to suit news organisations of all sizes,” Chaudhry said.

“Clients can request a free trial to explore how the content will work for their needs. The content is not country-specific. We will comprehensively report the continent of Africa as a whole in its entirety depending on where the story is and offer a unique insight into a myriad of stories about the continent,” she added.

“I’m really excited to be showcasing the latest stories, whether they are in innovation, science or technology. There’s so much happening and it’s such a vibrant and diverse continent, so for me it’s really going home.”

The move follows recent moves by Reuters to beef up its African coverage. Former sub-Saharan Africa bureau chief Ed Cropley was last month re-assigned as the first Breakingviews columnist focusing on Africa, while three new reporters were hired for the sub-Saharan newsdesk in March.

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