By Enock Sithole
There appears to have been a global meltdown of independent media organisations following the freezing of US government foreign aid after January 2025.
African media industry bodies have partnered with the Code for Africa’s (CfA) media research unit, CivicSignal, to survey how community media and small independent publishers navigate economic challenges.
The survey is expected to allow for a better understanding of the landscape from grassroots and independent media organisations. It is conducted in partnership with Africa Media Hub at Strathmore University in Kenya, the AIP and Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA) in South Africa, Media Rights Agenda (MRA) in Nigeria, Namibia Media Trust (NMT), and the National Community Radio Forum (NCRF) in South Africa. This is the second study in a series of planned surveys to gather data on community media challenges and emerging models in the African media sector.
The survey is also expected to gather data on both legacy challenges facing grassroots media in Africa and those created by the funding freeze, which might have compounded their predicament.
“This is part of the #MediaMeltdown research coalition of industry bodies to analyse how the disruption is transforming the continent’s media, to better understand the scale, pace, and impact of market consolidation and the resulting changes in the sector,” the two organisations said in a media statement.
This unpredictability of economic circumstances, both local and global, compounds pre-existing pressures faced by community media, they argued. “For context, in Southern Africa, the Association of Independent Publishers (AIP) reports that they have lost almost 13% of their members since 2016, with monthly print runs plummeting from 7.5 million to 2.5 million.” According to the statement, another recent study of South African community media found that 90% of the target audiences for small newspapers could not afford to buy a copy. “Community media are also largely dependent on advertising income – accounting for 84% of their income – but struggle to attract sufficient revenue from this source,” they added.
Closures or reduced coverage leave communities with fewer sources of locally relevant news and critical information to inform people’s daily decisions, particularly where internet penetration is low, they argued.
The director of the Namibia Media Trust, Zoe Titus, said, “community media drives inclusive development by sharing vital information on health, education, governance, and the environment”.
She added that “we saw these benefits firsthand during Namibia’s 2024 general elections, where community media conversations bridged the gap between national policies and local realities”.
The statement added that while community media creates space for linguistic, cultural, and technological accessibility, they face persistent financial challenges. “Strong community engagement and quality local language content, while socially vital, doesn’t automatically translate to financial sustainability,” they argued.
“By mapping both mainstream media job losses and now community media adaptations, we’re building a comprehensive picture of Africa’s changing media landscape. The insights from the survey will be shared in a public report and are intended to help industry bodies and funders better understand the African landscape, and inform strategies to support these vital grassroots information providers,” said Amanda Strydom, senior programme manager of CivicSignal.
“This Media Meltdown initiative isn’t just about saving individual media organisations – it’s about protecting the diverse voices that keep our communities informed,” added Strydom.
- The full community/grassroots media survey can be found here.
- If you are not part of community media but have been impacted by US government funding freezes, please share your experiences here.
- Join the #MediaMeltdown coalition, a network of editor/journalist associations and media organisations assisting to map the changes in the media sector here.