Understanding the dynamics of Ebola epidemics

Ebola is a highly lethal virus, which has caused at least 14 confirmed outbreaks in Africa between 1976 and 2006. Using data from two epidemics [in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 1995 and in Uganda in 2000], we built a mathematical model for the spread of Ebola haemorrhagic fever epidemics taking into account transmission in different epidemiological settings. We estimated the basic reproduction number (R0) to be 2·7 (95% CI 1·9–2·8) for the 1995 epidemic in DRC, and 2·7 (95% CI 2·5–4·1) for the 2000 epidemic in Uganda. For each epidemic, we quantified transmission in different settings (illness in the community, hospitalization, and traditional burial) and simulated various epidemic scenarios to explore the impact of control interventions on a potential epidemic. A key parameter was the rapid institution of control measures. For both epidemic profiles identified, increasing hospitalization rate reduced the predicted epidemic size

The news agenda of the black African press in the United Kingdom

The proliferation of ethnic press in the United Kingdom has enabled the ethnic communities to represent themselves in the public sphere, to contest negative stereotypes, and to receive information with Blacks as central subjects. However, the perception of Black people as one Black group has skewed our understanding of how different groups within the Black communities project their linguistic and visual distinctiveness through their media. Subsequently, we have little understanding of the press for and by Black African diasporas in the United Kingdom. Therefore, the article explores the dynamic relationship between the Black African community and its press through a case study of African Voice, interview with the editor, and audience survey. Furthermore, it explores the news agenda of the African Voice from the theoretical paradigms of alternative and tabloid popular press. It concludes that the African Voice is neither an alternative press nor tabloid popular press but leans towards semiserious pres