Chinese media presence in Africa: trends and lessons for Russia

For Russia to be able to secure its geostrategic objectives, defend its national interests, combat effectively anti-Russian propaganda and disinformation, and resist attempts at historical revisionism and misrepresentations of history, a full-scale development of its global media presence is of vital importance. It is especially true for the African vector of Russia’s national geopolitics, which has been showing considerable progress recently. China, which has been actively developing its relations with Africa since the beginning of the 21st century, pays great attention to the media sphere and is expanding its media presence on the continent. China’s considerable success in this causes anxiety in the West, especially in the US, which is developing a special strategy to counter the “Chinese media offensive in Africa”. Despite the substantial financial investment in media cooperation with Africa, China’s African media strategy cannot be called a 100% success. Chinese media still have a relatively low level of recognition in Africa, and many Africans are prejudiced against the Chinese press, considering it biased and one-sided. It is argued that Russia, in developing its own African media strategy, can borrow China’s more successful moves while adapting them to the country’s specific and new geopolitical landscape.