Socio-historical approach of emancipation movements in Africa

Semantically, the notions of culture and media remain different. However, they are not antinomic, but rather, complementary in terms of their social functions. In fact, cultures are conveyed by individuals and can only be expressed through them (Abdallah-Pretceille, 2001). That is why it is generally accepted that one cannot claim to know the cultural identity of others without communicating with them, without exchanging, without allowing them to speak, to express themselves as a subject. The media intervenes precisely at this level, to play this important role. With this technique, communication becomes utilitarian and therefore, communicating becomes synonymous with exchanging, initiating dialogue, and perpetuating a person-to-person relationship. In this role of bringing individuals together, the media disregards the difference in origins, nature of behavior and tradition of the latter, rather than taking them in their cultural diversities (Pierre Moulinier, 2001). So in the light of the African case, the present reflection focuses on the real issues of the media, in defense of the cultural identities of the continent. Through a sociohistorical approach, the author wants above all to demonstrate that media and culture are vehicles for the union and integration of different peoples.