The African Press Network for the 21st Century, or RAP 21 project (Réseau Africain de Presse pour le 21ème Siècle), has been run by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) for two years.
The new web service will build on the content of the project's newsletter, providing archived articles on a range of topics including marketing and advertising; media convergence and technology; personnel; business structure and editorial issues.
Larry Kilman, director of communications for WAN, told dotJournalism: "The internet has linked like-minded groups together in a way that was never possible before for the co-ordination of actions and the dissemination of information.
"Numerous attempts have been made to launch pan-African forums or organisations for the press. None of them have succeeded, whether because of communication difficulties or the lack of funds to cover the cost of attending regular meetings."
Mr Kilman explained the importance of establishing a network that encourages journalists to exchange ideas and establish regular dialogue with other professionals - especially in a continent where so many journalists work in isolation.
"The extraordinarily rapid growth in the use of the internet can, we believe, change this situation dramatically, by rapidly establishing permanent links between private newspapers and magazines in Africa. Providing this link is RAP 21's contribution," said Mr Kilman.
The site will also include news on WAN's campaigns for freedom of the press across Africa, providing information and advice to help news businesses to remain independent.
The network keeps members informed of press freedom violations on the continent, explained Mr Kilman. "But even more importantly, WAN activities help to strengthen the economic development of the independent press - an essential condition of press freedom.
"We believe that the best journalism can only succeed if newspapers succeed as businesses."
Information on the site is provided by a variety of sources, much of it produced by WAN members through seminars, interviews and conferences held both in Africa and around the world.
African journalists and news groups are also invited to contribute their experiences and ideas. News about print, broadcast and online journalism is included on the site.
WAN, which is funded by donations, campaigns for international press freedom for the news industry and represents around 18,000 newspapers worldwide, as well as national news associations, agencies, executives and press groups.
WAN recently also launched a similar service in Arabic at http://www.wan-press.info/arabic/index.html.
Sources:
http://www.wan-press.org
http://www.wan-press.info/pages/rap21.html
Free daily newsletter
If you like our news and feature articles, you can sign up to receive our free daily (Mon-Fri) email newsletter (mobile friendly).
Related articles
- News subscriptions hit a snag amid cost-of-living crisis, RISJ report finds
- Average revenues up by 20 per cent for UK independent news publishers
- Avery Anapol, commissioning editor at The Conversation, on engaging younger audiences with academic content
- Information literacy courses can help students tackle confirmation bias and misinformation
- You have half a minute to win over your reader - use it smartly
