LoadingLoadingLoadingLoadingNewsroom and civic integrity under low bandwidth—not a press card from a government.
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Information integrity fails when a radio station cannot afford to check a viral voice note, and when an electoral code is cited as if it were a newsroom policy. This MA starts there. You will design a verification workflow, map a shutdown’s effects on rural audiences, and write an editorial standards note—without this university claiming electoral-commission employment. African Future University centres African media economics: underpaid reporters, state advertising as leverage, and bilingual publics. Digital platforms are studied as they are used—forwarded audio, compressed video, prepaid data—not as Silicon Valley case studies. AfCFTA appears only if a content-moderation or cross-border broadcast file is genuinely in the case. The award is academic. It is not a press gazette, not an observer mission, and not a UN communications job. It is for practitioners who must keep a newsroom honest when the generator dies on results night. You will compare a capital newsroom workflow with a community-radio station that survives on prepaid data and state advertising pressure. Identity-checked exams use public content. No electoral-commission appointment and no AU observer contract are implied. Study is tuition-free online aside from the examination fee. MA Media, Information Integrity and Elections is taught as one award, not a list of unrelated modules. The published length is 18 months, and the credit total is 36. Students move from Verification under Time and Money Constraints through Verification under Time and Money Constraints; Editorial Independence and State Advertising; Safety of Journalists as Operations; Forwards, Voice Notes, and Cheap Smartphones; Shutdowns and Rural Audience Harm; Fact-Checking Organisations as Workplaces, and finish on Writing Standards Notes. Each course has a question, a method, and a submission. In this field, students justify a marketing decision with evidence rather than a slogan. Reading is a brief, a channel note, and a measurement plan. The artefact a marker expects is a campaign or content recommendation with audience, channel, and measure. The award is built so that a graduate can do the following in practice: Run a verification workflow that survives low bandwidth Write bilingual editorial standards for election periods Map shutdown and rumour dynamics for rural audiences Teaching assumes the student can read a source, attempt a problem before the seminar, and revise after feedback. Attendance at live seminars is part of the design. The capstone or final course must use the methods of the earlier courses; a project that ignores them does not pass. The pages for each course name the topics that are examined. Those topics are the syllabus. A brochure line is not a substitute for them.
Thirty-six credits: newsroom practice, platforms and rumour, electoral law as text, and a public-corpus capstone. Identity-checked exams. No observer contract is implied.
Study online
Tuition is free. Examinations are free. There is no exam fee. Study from anywhere in the world.
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| AFU841 | Verification under Time and Money Constraints Students specify a small system or work, its users, and the interface between parts. The module is Verification under Time and Money Constraints.
| 3 |
| AFU842 | Editorial Independence and State Advertising Students implement or review a component and show how it was tested or critiqued. The module is Editorial Independence and State Advertising.
| 3 |
| AFU843 | Safety of Journalists as Operations Students describe release, failure, and the record an operator or producer would need. The module is Safety of Journalists as Operations.
| 3 |
| AFU844 | Ethics of Graphic Harm and Rumour Students deliver a supervised build or design and defend the trade-offs. The module is Ethics of Graphic Harm and Rumour.
| 3 |
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| AFU845 | Forwards, Voice Notes, and Cheap Smartphones Students specify a small system or work, its users, and the interface between parts. The module is Forwards, Voice Notes, and Cheap Smartphones.
| 3 |
| AFU846 | Shutdowns and Rural Audience Harm Students implement or review a component and show how it was tested or critiqued. The module is Shutdowns and Rural Audience Harm.
|
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| AFU849 | Electoral Codes as Texts, Not Press Cards Students specify a small system or work, its users, and the interface between parts. The module is Electoral Codes as Texts, Not Press Cards.
| 3 |
| AFU850 | EN/FR Media and Electoral Documents Students implement or review a component and show how it was tested or critiqued. The module is EN/FR Media and Electoral Documents.
|
| Code | Course | Credits · hours |
|---|---|---|
| AFU853 | Media Research Methods Students specify a small system or work, its users, and the interface between parts. The module is Media Research Methods.
| 3 |
| AFU854 | Public-Corpus Study Students implement or review a component and show how it was tested or critiqued. The module is Public-Corpus Study.
|
Modules are assessed through a published mix of coursework, applied projects, and examinations. Exam windows are announced in advance so students in other time zones are not forced into overnight sittings. Alternative arrangements are available where documented.
The published duration is 18 months. Teaching language: English + French assessment options. Actual time-to-complete depends on mode and any recognised prior learning.
This is a fully online award. You study from your country. No student visa and no campus relocation are required.
Degree tuition for this award is published as £0 / tuition-free on the online pathway. Examination or administrative fees may apply at checkout — never an annual tuition invoice. Check the Fees page for any extras.
Requirements are grouped on this page (academic, English, documents). Equivalent qualifications are considered. English may be waived after prior English-medium study.
Assessment is typically a mix of coursework, projects, and examinations. Doctoral awards include a thesis or dissertation and an oral examination. Details sit in the programme specification and module outlines.
Recognition of the award for local employment, professional licence, or ministry attestation is decided by your employer or regulator. African Future University publishes verification pages for certificates. We do not claim automatic equivalence in every country.
Start an application on this website. Progress is saved from the first step. Admissions: admissions@afutureuni.com.
Recognised & Accredited
| 3 |
| AFU847 | Fact-Checking Organisations as Workplaces Students describe release, failure, and the record an operator or producer would need. The module is Fact-Checking Organisations as Workplaces.
| 3 |
| AFU848 | Digital Archives when Sites Vanish Students deliver a supervised build or design and defend the trade-offs. The module is Digital Archives when Sites Vanish.
| 3 |
| 3 |
| AFU851 | Disinformation as Political Economy Students describe release, failure, and the record an operator or producer would need. The module is Disinformation as Political Economy.
| 3 |
| AFU852 | Civic Education without Partisan Capture Students deliver a supervised build or design and defend the trade-offs. The module is Civic Education without Partisan Capture.
| 3 |
| 3 |
| AFU855 | Writing Standards Notes Students describe release, failure, and the record an operator or producer would need. The module is Writing Standards Notes.
| 3 |
| AFU856 | Capstone: Information Integrity File Students deliver a supervised build or design and defend the trade-offs. The module is Capstone: Information Integrity File.
| 3 |