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itsalexjackman's review against another edition
3.0
Bad News is the memoir of [author:Anjan Sundaram|6937023], covering his time in Rwanda training journalists. Under the Kagame regime, freedom of speech and press in Rwanda are under attack - slowly and silently eroding in an effort to protect those in power.
Sundaram writes of his time leading a program, sponsored by foreign governments, to train students in the art of journalism. It is an increasingly dangerous and daring practice, as the government refuses to allow stories that criticize their efforts and shortcomings. Following the Rwandan genocide, Kagame has risen to power, painted himself as a hero of the people, and will do anything to retain it - including brainwashing the country's citizens into believing that his regime is what is best for them. The story is simultaneously a narrative specific of its place and time (Rwanda, April 2009-December 2013) and a more universal story of the necessity of a free press.
I was recommended this book by a clerk when the store did not have the book I was looking for ([book:The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin|12382651]) - the clerk clearly understood what I was looking for, and the recommendation was spot on. In this new time of political unrest in the US, I was able to read this book with more meaning than I may have previously. Now more than ever it is important that journalists seek and present the truth, in spite of a government that may compel them not to. Bad News covers the slow but sure destruction of the press in Rwanda, and in it you can find the warning signs and hallmarks of destruction you can look for in your own culture.
Stay vigilant.
Sundaram writes of his time leading a program, sponsored by foreign governments, to train students in the art of journalism. It is an increasingly dangerous and daring practice, as the government refuses to allow stories that criticize their efforts and shortcomings. Following the Rwandan genocide, Kagame has risen to power, painted himself as a hero of the people, and will do anything to retain it - including brainwashing the country's citizens into believing that his regime is what is best for them. The story is simultaneously a narrative specific of its place and time (Rwanda, April 2009-December 2013) and a more universal story of the necessity of a free press.
I was recommended this book by a clerk when the store did not have the book I was looking for ([book:The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin|12382651]) - the clerk clearly understood what I was looking for, and the recommendation was spot on. In this new time of political unrest in the US, I was able to read this book with more meaning than I may have previously. Now more than ever it is important that journalists seek and present the truth, in spite of a government that may compel them not to. Bad News covers the slow but sure destruction of the press in Rwanda, and in it you can find the warning signs and hallmarks of destruction you can look for in your own culture.
Stay vigilant.
cpalisa's review against another edition
4.0
5 stars for the subject matter and maybe 2.5 stars for readability? This was a very eye-opening book...before reading it I couldn't have told you anything about Rwanda other than there had been a large scale genocide there at some point in recent history. This book is pretty recent and tells of the current political situation there. According to the author, the state of affairs is pretty shocking and horrendous, but largely ignored. The book centers on the treatment of the Press and, essentially, the complete suppression of any free press, and the stranglehold the government has on the people. It isn't a pretty picture and it makes you feel immensely grateful for the freedoms we have here. As far as readability, it wasn't great. I actually had to look and see if it was a translated version since it seemed so clunky, but it wasn't. It didn't flow at all, but the story is still an important one.
canadajanes's review against another edition
3.0
It was very hard to reconcile Sundaram's book with what I experienced in Rwanda in 09. I imagine that I missed a lot, but something about his style of writing felt like he was trying to hard to dramatize things, which made it harder for me to believe.
becann's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
Insight into the life of a journalist during the early stages of a dictatorship. Incredibly easy to read and understand, but hard information to process at times
margaretefg's review against another edition
3.0
Sundaram describes the program he ran for journalists in Kigali, and over the course of the book, the program gradually becomes less and less effective. Journalists are afraid to report, those who even seem to hint at criticism of the government are harassed, jailed, threatened and their families and neighbors reject them. This is a completely different image of Paul Kagame than the one that comes through in Gourevitch's We wish to inform you. Sundaram's metaphor for how to see the repression in Rwanda is to look at what's missing, but it's perhaps a testament to how successful the repression is that even while reading I wondered about the conclusions he was drawing...how could this be true? He paints a picture of a society steadily moving towards a single voice, the voice of the government, even to the extent that people betray loved ones or take actions that hurt themselves.
czytomasz's review against another edition
3.0
Temat w sumie ciekawy, o którym nie mówi się zbyt wiele, ale nie jest to mój typ książki. Bardziej niż reportaż na temat samego zjawiska są to wspomnienia autora i opis jego doświadczeń- spodziewałem się czegoś złożonego, może dodatkowych analiz, listy źródeł i tekstów uzupełniających, ale niestety tego nie dotrzymałem. Za to jak na opis konkretnych wydarzeń jest tu trochę zbyt ogólnie, brak opisów miejsc, ludzi, a umiejscowienie w czasie zajęło mi chwilę. Plus jest taki, że czytało się dobrze, ale to chyba nie wystarczyło.
imcorneliastark's review against another edition
4.0
It’s sad that such dictatorships are still prevalent in our world and how freedom of speech is threatened. What’s even more distressing is the way Western nations and world organisations turn a blind eye on what it’s happening in less developed nations and how they support the corrupt and autocratic governments despite of notorious warnings from journalists which are eventually killed or forced to flee the country.
The piece that struck me most is when author sees the huts’ roofs destroyed by the government’s order.
“The man said the local authorities had come to the village and told the people to destroy their roofs. It was an order (…) And what did this man think? “They are too primitive,” he said. “Our country is modern now”.
The power of social influence, governmental influence not only on explicit but also implicit attitudes of the citizens is striking. And this isn’t how life in a country supported by United Nations should look like.
The piece that struck me most is when author sees the huts’ roofs destroyed by the government’s order.
“The man said the local authorities had come to the village and told the people to destroy their roofs. It was an order (…) And what did this man think? “They are too primitive,” he said. “Our country is modern now”.
The power of social influence, governmental influence not only on explicit but also implicit attitudes of the citizens is striking. And this isn’t how life in a country supported by United Nations should look like.
chalicotherex's review against another edition
5.0
Very compelling and hard to put down. Chronicles life in a dictatorship in the 21st century.
Paul Kagame's personality cult is so in control that one of the only ways to criticize him is to offer outlandish praise.
Maybe not as brutal as what you hear in similar stories out of North Korea (though there is the practice of kufaniya, the killing of child soldiers so you can't be prosecuted for using them) but it's all the more chilling because the international aid community is completely aware of what's happening, and propping the system up.
Paul Kagame's personality cult is so in control that one of the only ways to criticize him is to offer outlandish praise.
Maybe not as brutal as what you hear in similar stories out of North Korea (though there is the practice of kufaniya, the killing of child soldiers so you can't be prosecuted for using them) but it's all the more chilling because the international aid community is completely aware of what's happening, and propping the system up.
ginkgotree's review
Read Harder Challenge #5: A book by a journalist or about journalism.
Although the subject matter - the repression of the press in Rwanda after the genocide, and government control of the people more generally - is fascinating and timely, something about the writing style made this book a little difficult to get through. Worth the effort, though.
Although the subject matter - the repression of the press in Rwanda after the genocide, and government control of the people more generally - is fascinating and timely, something about the writing style made this book a little difficult to get through. Worth the effort, though.