The 19th IREN EA Media Forum

Theme: Digital Communication Platforms and How they are Impacting the Framing of Political Issues in East Africa
This is a fractious time in journalism as the world is inundated with a deluge of information sharing digital platforms. The pursuit of better communication has led to the continuous development of wireless technology, from the analog 1G to the subsequent digital generations. All these have proved disruptive. The current 5G technology promises to be a game-changer due to its incredible speed, near-zero network latency, media-rich user experiences, better features, greater capacities, greater bandwidth, next-level navigation apps, cutting-edge 3D models, improved customer support, and decreased hardware dependency.

What do all these developments mean for traditional news media platforms? IREN will engage journalists and IT professionals to explore Digital Communication Platforms and How they are Impacting the Framing of Political Issues in East Africa.

Overall Objective

To explore the evolution of digital communication apps and their impact on framing of political issues in East Africa. 
Objectives
·         To identify evolving digital communication apps and future 
·         To discuss the impact of evolving digital communication apps on news media platforms
·         To discuss how digital communication apps have impacted the framing of political issues in East Africa 

ACTIVITIES

ACTIVITY 1
IREN is looking for Journalists/ Scholars to write a 3500-word essay on

1.The impact of evolving digital communication apps on Africa’s news media platforms. 
2.How digital communication apps have impacted the framing of political issues in East Africa.

ACTIVITY2 

IREN is also calling on journalists from any 3 East African countries to make a video that addresses the following aspects

•    3 Cartoons, 3 Pictures, 3 Tweets, 3 Facebook Posts, and 3 videos that had a political message
•    The underlying message the above media carried?
•    4 ways evolving digital communication apps (name them) have impacted on the journalism profession
•    How embracing the 5G technology will affect the future of journalism

ACTIVITY 3

General participants are encouraged 

a)    to share any 3 of the items below that carry a political message:
•    Video clips
•    Cartoons, 
•    Pictures, 
•    Facebook posts, 
•    Tweets

b) to State how digital communication apps are affecting journalism 

c) to State what promise 5G technology holds for the future of journalism

All correspondence should be addressed to 
a)    juma@irenkenya.com       or 
b)    WhatsApp  0724968698

Deadline 5th May 2021.