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As Britain prepares to leave the European Union after the popular vote of June 2016, the government is embarking on the revision of foreign policy. Boris Johnson, or ‘just Boris’, has been entrusted with forging the new ‘Global Britain’ for the post-Brexit era and reinventing British economy around new relationships. Boris has a track record of misrepresenting and offending foreign peoples, leaders and countries. This article assesses the prospects for Africa in Johnson’s vision for ‘Global Britain’ as presented in his foreign policy speeches. The paper unpacks Johnson’s discursive construction of ‘Africa’ and inserts it into a broader historical and political context of British relations with Africa. It argues that, by constructing Africa as a ‘problem’ and offering liberal values as a condition for development, Johnson is continuing British imperial and post-colonial discourses of ‘developing’ or ‘civilizing’ Africa. In the post-Brexit world of a changing global balance of power, democratic conditionality serves to sustain and reproduce British forms of power and policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the relationship between European (international) broadcasting and Islamist terrorism in Africa and positions media portrayal of Boko Haram within the larger picture of Europe’s relations with Africa. Two international broadcasters provide the basis for the analysis: France 24 and Deutsche Welle. The article compares and contrasts their discourse on terrorism to advance several arguments: 1) that through their respective portrayal of Boko Haram and Nigeria both France 24 and Deutsche Welle’s reporting is in line with their respective countries’ foreign policies towards Africa, 2) that discourse on both F24 and DW perpetuates the unequal relationship between African countries and Western powers, 3) that portraying terrorism in terms of ‘clash of civilisations’, as in the case of France 24, may unintentionally contribute to the strengthening of the extremist cause. This is due to the transformation of violent extremism into ‘new wars’. The concept, elaborated in the article, differently explains the logic of extremist behaviour and its relationship with media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article offers an inquiry into the discursive construction of ‘terrorism’ by France 24, the French international broadcaster, in the aftermath of the attacks on Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in January 2015. The article argues that the broadcaster seems to employ a relatively narrow definition of terrorism linking it to Islam and Muslims. France 24 portrays the attacks as an external phenomenon coming to France from outside. The blame is assigned to non-French factors, mainly to foreign extremist organisations, Islamist ideologues and overseas training. No reasons for violence are sought inside the country. Internal developments, such as discrimination, youth marginalisation, lack of educational and work opportunities, relations between law enforcement and the Muslim community that could potentially contribute to the acts, are not explored by the broadcaster’s investigative journalism. This narrow interpretation of ‘terrorism’ that assigns responsibility to Muslims, Islamic indoctrination and overseas training may further alienate Muslim communities in France’s already divided society. It points to narrow policy responses that focus mainly on stricter monitoring of Muslim minorities, on limiting combat and cross-border movement. This type of discourse excludes long-term policy solutions that address broader socio-politico-economic conditions in which ‘terrorism’ might flourish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines German public service broadcasting and its message for African female audiences. It situates the activities of Deutsche Welle (DW) within public diplomacy theory and analyses the content of DW'sLearning by Earseries, which is geared towards young African women. The article investigates DW's view on gender and education in Africa and positions the broadcaster's activities within the broader context of the German and European Union's (EU) development assistance to the continent. Through critical discourse analysis, the article examines the broadcaster's perception of Africa. It argues that DW constructs a flattened, reductionist and often incorrect image of Africa. In its stories, Africa is depicted as a continent of harmful traditions that need to be abandoned, gender-biased schooling practices which are a product of regressive African communities, and women who are voiceless and powerless. The article concludes that although well intended, DW fails to grasp the complexities of African realities. Its broadcasts emerge as a series of culturally insensitive programmes that perpetuate well-worn stereotypes. Supported by Germany's Federal Foreign Office and designed to dispose of ‘backward’ African traditions to make space for the ‘new’ and the ‘modern’, theLearning by Earseries echoes the language of themission civilisatriceof Africa's imperial past – something that contemporary development discourse has significantly moved away from. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]