A University of Colorado at Boulder journalism professor has been elected to a top position in Africa聮s largest communication education organization.
Polly McLean, associate professor of journalism and mass communication, was elected to the executive committee of the African Council for Communication Education (ACCE). She is the first non-African born member of the ACCE聮s highest governing body.
The ACCE is Africa聮s only continent-wide assembly of communication scholars, educators and practitioners. Based in Nairobi, Kenya, it examines communication issues that are key to Africa聮s development and provides vital support to African schools of journalism and communication. The ACCE also is integrally involved in increasing Africa聮s use of and access to information technology.
A specialist in international communication development support, communication policy and planning in developing societies, McLean has been a member of the CU-Boulder faculty since 1984. She has conducted extensive research on culture, communication and reproductive health in southern Africa.
McLean also teaches and studies the role of media in society and racism, and anti-racism in popular culture. She is continuing her work as the 1998-99 Fulbright Scholar at the University of Namibia, where she will teach and research the use of media in curriculum development, teaching pedagogy and student learning.
McLean has been active in the ACCE for many years and is chair of the group聮s communication and information technology division. She also has been involved in efforts to monitor gender issues in Africa as they relate to communication and development.
The communication support that the ACCE provides is particularly important to Africa as the continent聮s political and economic systems evolve, McLean explained.
"To consolidate and sustain Africa聮s wave of democratization, free exchange of information and communication is necessary to promote the function of democracy and to enhance the participation of citizens in decision making," she said. "While in the past communication was an afterthought, today it is seen as fundamental for the interests and demands of economic and political liberalization."
Telecommunications support is particularly critical because many Africans do not have access to basic telephone services. McLean said that it would take an estimated $8 billion to establish one telephone for every 100 people by the year 2000.
"The greatest challenge facing African nations is to increase autonomy and end dependency on outside sources of support in all areas of development, including communication," she said. McLean also sees the Internet as an effective way for Africans to increase autonomy, even though access to the Internet is currently limited. The Internet allows communication faculty to access teaching resources, and online newspapers facilitate information exchange between Africa and North America.
Like many non-governmental organizations, McLean said, the ACCE faces funding shortages that threaten the organization聮s ability to serve African communicators.
"If we lose the ACCE, Africa will be the only continent that doesn聮t have a comprehensive communication organization," McLean said. "Many of the African schools of journalism don聮t even have sufficient or up-to-date textbooks."
Library and textbook resources have been a key part of the ACCE聮s service to academic institutions. McLean said that most textbooks previously used in African schools of journalism were published in North America and Europe. Due to tremendous differences in culture and media operations within Africa, these textbooks often have had little relevance to students. To fill the gap, ACCE publications include case studies focusing on African issues.
"We have publications that deal with the press within a military or one-party state, and communication research among small women farmers 聴 topic areas that you seldom find in North American journalism texts," McLean said.
African libraries also do not have the financial resources to maintain extensive reference and research collections on communication and communication development. The ACCE funds the largest center of such information at the University of Nairobi.
In order to ensure its continued existence, the ACCE is focusing on increasing its visibility in the hope of attracting additional members and funding. McLean is involving her CU-Boulder students in creating a web site for the ACCE, giving the students an opportunity to learn first-hand about communication challenges in developing nations.