ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the research on how the Millennium Villages Project (MVP) was covered in the African, US and UK media and blogosphere between 2004 and 2015. It examines the coverage overall as well as the differences between legacy media reporting and the emerging blogosphere that tackles development topics. Delving deep into the press coverage of the MVP gave us a case study to examine how some of the standard theories about the media played out in reality, over time and across countries. The chapter discusses that the analysis available in the development blogosphere offset the scant press coverage, an interesting observation as the legacy media faces financial pressures and audiences rely increasingly on online sources for their information. It also argues that African journalists might be dependent on government sources or government advertising and not want to upset the establishment by reporting critically on the MVP.
