Nation Building and Communication

An important point from the site Write for Freedom http://africanfreepress.blogspot.com/ is the idea that for Americans, freedom of the press, and of other expression, is a given. A free press and other freedoms to communicate were central in establishing the American nation.

Many countries take as a part of life free and open media such as the Internet and the information reach it offers as a part of life; in some other countries, simply expressing a contrary opinion in public can be dangerous. A number of countries in Africa are struggling with nation-building, yet do not have basic freedoms to communicate and exchange ideas that lead to nation-building.