Converged Radio, Youth and Urbanity in Africa

This book explores the convergence of urban radio with digital media technologies in Africa, focusing on how youth are riding on the rapid (though uneven) internet rollout on the continent to participate and drive the production and consumption of urban radio. With thirteen original chapters, the book sheds new light on the changing landscape of radio in a diverse set of African countries, illustrated with rich case studies from Zimbabwe, South Africa, Eswatini, Nigeria and Kenya. This book covers the following themes: youth agency and cultural power; civic engagement and political participation; youth, identity and belonging; youth cultural expressions as well as the impact of capitalist imperatives on commercial radio programing in Africa. Vibrant and innovative, Converged Radio, Youth and Urbanity in Africa reveals the creation of a new public sphere, through which African youth project their voices and identities, participating in and shaping national discourse.  
Stanley Tsarwe (PhD Rhodes University) lectures Journalism at the University of Zimbabwe. He is a Senior Research Associate in the Faculty of Humanities with University of Johannesburg. His research interests are at the intersection between smart phones, the internet and talk radio.

Prof Sarah Chiumbu is Associate Professor in the Department of Communication and Media in the School of Communication, University of Johannesburg, South Africa. Her research interests are in media, democracy, citizenship and representation.