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SUMMARY:Somalia: Media Law in the Absence of a State - Dr Nicole Stremlau\
 , University of Oxford
DTSTART:20131212T170000Z
DTEND:20131212T180000Z
UID:TALK49430@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Judith Weik
DESCRIPTION:The media exposure of the Timbuktu Manuscripts during the rece
 nt years\, still boosted by the recent events in the city after its occupa
 tion by armed groups\, is a subject that deserves the attention of histori
 ans. The current celebration of these manuscripts makes them much more tha
 n just heritage resources or tools of knowledge. They become carriers\, in
 struments\, of a new myth of Timbuktu. The ‘mysterious city’ has becom
 e something of a sacred cave\, holding mysterious forgotten texts. It is t
 he revelation of ‘hidden things’\, or so supposed\, which arouses the 
 public’s enthusiasm. There’s no question here to diminish the interest
  and value of these documents\, but to consider these uses of the past by 
 the media. The origins of this media hype can be traced back to an America
 n television series of the 1990s on PBS \, the U.S. public television\, wh
 ere Henry Louis Gates Jr.\, a professor of African Studies at Harvard Univ
 ersity\, presented the ‘Wonders of the African world’\, including the 
 manuscripts of Timbuktu. A larger public suddenly discovered historical re
 alities hitherto only known to specialists. Fundraising have increased for
  the rehabilitation of Timbuktu and its manuscripts\, the Ford Foundation 
 having played a major role in this field. The campaign also attracted the 
 interest of the UNESCO \, which had already been involved in the past\, an
 d that of different states\, including South Africa. This media coverage h
 as also lent credibility to ‘fantastic numbers’. Over the press articl
 es and medias\, the number of the manuscripts of Timbuktu has known tremen
 dous increases ( from 100 000 to 700 000 and 1 million)\, with no real bas
 e of calculation. The scientific results of these media campaigns are ulti
 mately limited. Talking about the manuscripts\, making them promotional it
 ems is one thing\, making a systematic and rational scientific exploitatio
 n of these documents is another thing. Moreover\, the scientific work alre
 ady begun for many years (at Northwestern University especially) do not re
 ally interest media\, in search of mysteries and dramatization. Do the rec
 ent media campaigns facilitate and promote research or act as a diversion 
 ? This will be our final question.
LOCATION:Seminar Room S1 Alison Richard Building\, 7 West Road\, Cambridge
  CB3 9DT
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