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The international blogging network, AfricaBlogging, was founded in Johannesburg, South Africa within the context of a workshop for political bloggers and journalists from Sub-Sahara Africa, hosted by KAS Media Africa.
blogging.africa is the network’s publishing platform. It operates on five basic principles mutually agreed on by the founding members of the network at the Johannesburg Conference:
AfricaBlogging’s mission is to act in public interest governed by the above principles. We serve our audience through the provision of well-argued, high-quality and distinctive content which informs, educates and triggers debate on issues of public interest.
We strive to earn trust from our audiences; therefore, we commit to adhering to the highest editorial standards.
We believe in freedom of expression. This freedom is at the centre of our editorial work.
We operate in the public interest – reporting stories of significance to our audiences and holding power to account.
We seek to provide our audiences with well-argued content that helps them establish facts and trigger public debate on topics of interest.
We commit to providing our audiences with well-researched, properly argued articles that enable them to draw informed conclusions. While the platform encourages freedom of thought and plurality of voices, it will not publish material that is intentionally skewed to mislead our audiences.
Where such a conclusion has been made on a material already published on the platform, such material will be removed immediately.
We commit to ensuring that the materials published on the platform contain the best possible form of language use including but not limited to grammar.
All photos or multimedia content used in our content MUST always bear the name of the copyright owners. The authors and editors will always ensure that necessary permissions are granted before the use of such items.
AfricaBlogging rejects plagiarism in any form.
The platform only publishes original work or work already published by the same author on a platform they own, or a platform that allows them to republish their work.
Where an author needs to use someone else’s work to reinforce their arguments, such works need to be properly attributed and the source cited.
The editors will employ various anti-plagiarism tools on all articles submitted to them. Some of the tools to be used include but are not limited to the following:
These portals will be tried out over time, and compared to each other, to determine efficiency.
AfricaBlogging does not condone defamation.
Content deemed to be defamatory will not be published and the blogger will be instructed to take extreme care to avoid it in their future contributions.
The AfricaBlogging editors commission world-class content with a distinctly African perspective. We want to work with the writers and multimedia content producers to tell stories which inform or trigger debate on continental issues, or global issues with a continental impact.
AfricaBlogging editors will regularly commission articles and multimedia content from network members and the general public.
Where the editors commission works from non-members, they will expect the writers or producers of such content to adhere to the AfricaBlogging network principles and blogging.africa editorial guidelines.
Editors will, henceforth, monitor more closely all works submitted by bloggers. Further, the editors and KAS Media Africa, though separately, will conduct spot checks to ensure good quality is maintained.