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piqer for: Global finds
Ciku Kimeria is a Kenyan author "Of goats and poisoned oranges" - (https://www.amazon.com/goats-poisoned-oranges-Ciku-Kimeria-ebook/dp/B00HBBWPI6), development consultant, adventurer and travel blogger (www.thekenyanexplorer.com). She writes both fiction and non-fiction focusing on African stories that need telling. She has worked on diverse pieces for various international and local publications including Quartz, Ozy, The East African etc. She has travelled to 45 countries – 16 of them in Africa. 153 countries to go and 63 territories!
"Of goats and poisoned oranges" has been extremely well received in Kenya and beyond. It tells the story of a Kenyan middle aged power couple and their complicated marriage. The novel explores issues of greed, revenge, betrayal and murder. It runs from the 1960s to 2013. It has been described as “Wicked, funny, poignant, wacky, human, a big ball of fun and danger”, “A unique and captivating book”, “Fun and intriguing”, “Impossible to put down once you start reading.”
She recently moved to Dakar, Senegal from Kenya to work on her second novel. She also works at as the Africa Communication Manager at a leading global strategy consulting firm.
She holds a B.S. in Management Science from MIT with minors in Urban Planning and International development studies.
In the age of fake news, it was just a matter of time before someone realized that the average reader is more interested in sharing sensationalist stories than deep insightful pieces. One Zimbabwean journalist is using fake news networks to pay for his real news networks.
"If you’re an idiot on the internet, and you say stupid shit, you’re going to make a lot of money."
His assertion is backed by fact. His main fake news channel earns him around $5,000 a month while he is lucky to make a couple of hundred dollars on his page covering real political news.
"There aren’t that many people interested in politics. I can earn a few hundred dollars a month from my news site, it performs so badly. But stuff about gay baboons, stuff about pastors saying they went to heaven, that goes viral."
It's hard to judge him for his actions given that there are so many fake news outlets that cannot claim to have noble reasons for their existence. Without him, there would still be thousands of articles daily about the most improbable things, outlandish stories, celebrity gossip, etc. What is. however, worrying, is the global growth of fake news and the fact that many people the world over are not able to discern what is real and what is fake. Are we creating a new world order where there will be fake news for the masses and real news for the more sophisticated readers?
The number of forwards I get daily on social media about people getting cancer from bottled water that they left in their car, dead dictators who always turn out to still be alive, or messages that I need to send to everyone in my contact lists lest I get kicked off a certain app are proof to me that this world already exists. One in which, while information will be easier for all to get, knowledge will still be the preserve of the few.
This is brilliant:)