#HumAngleAt5: How Our Audience-Inclusive Approach Is Improving Africa’s Narratives
Stories are not only shaped by people who write or amplify them; they are shaped by those who read them and engage with them.
At HumAngle, we have always understood that storytelling is a two-way communication enriched by the passionate voices of our community. Just as the mission has always been to document underreported stories, we have prioritised building an authentic relationship with our audience and the trust that with HumAngle, the truth will never be compromised.
As we mark our fifth anniversary, we reflect on how our stories have shaped our audience and how their interaction and engagement with our stories, in turn, have been important.
Catering to multiple audiences
Audience engagement has never been a one-size-fits-all plan, and this gave way for us to create distributions formats that meet each user at the point of their preferred platform and means of digesting and engaging with our stories. This evolution has given rise to products like The Angle, a weekly newsreel that simplifies some of Africa’s pressing problems in less than five minutes and is published purely on social media; Vestiges of Violence (VOV), a video podcast on all podcast platforms, that follows the trail of violence, making sure that behind every number, there is a name, a voice that shouldn’t be forgotten; and the Biribinchi Rikichi podcast, the Hausa version of VOV that caters to our Hausa-speaking audience.
Through our journey, we have made great strides and explored the use of animations in storytelling and covering Africa’s conflict landscape. The Missing Persons animated series and the North East Accountability Series are some examples of how we have used motion pictures, illustrations, and animation to simplify complex information, enhance audience retention, ensure our stories carry empathy, and form a bond with the person at the other end of the screen.
Of course, we have continued to push the boundaries in this regard, using virtual reality, where you can witness, from the comfort of your location, life in another part of the world devastated by conflict. The goal is simple: bring these stories to you in the most engaging versions of themselves so they leave a mark. And we hear, see, and read how this mark continues to deepen.
Audience feedback
Audience feedback is also critical to our work.
“Someone is impersonating Bello Turji on Facebook and spreading terror on the app. What are you journalists doing about this?” This question by a Facebook user birthed one of our most impactful and viral stories of 2024.
We have seen our audience take action after reading us. For example, in 2023, we reported the ongoing food crisis in North East Nigeria and how, for survival, IDPs in the Shuwari camp were resorting to eating Biri Gamda, a dried food traditionally reserved for animals. After our video, individuals gathered independently and lent a helping hand to the community. We have also seen how highlighting the period poverty happening in Nigeria’s North East propelled Kucheli Jacob to provide sanitary pads to young girls in her community.
To make this process seamless and recognise your opinions, we created the Dear Editor page and the annual roundup for audience-favourite stories. These two initiatives received tremendous feedback from our readers.
“Your newspaper’s dedication to truth and excellence has made it an indispensable part of my daily routine,” Safiyani, one of our readers, said in a message to us in the past. To continue improving and delivering quality content, one recurring suggestion has been for us to expand—and we are.
Audience-interactive approach
We’ve continued to explore audience-interactive approaches, which allows our audience a chance to be part of the process.
Through surveys, polls, quizzes, and responses to our newsletters, we crowdsource information from the public, encouraging audience participation and measuring the knowledge gap we are bridging or need to bridge in certain areas. This type of journalism has given rise to reports highlighting the gender pay gap in Nigeria and the mental health challenges of Nigerian workers.
Additionally, we have hosted virtual events such as YouTube premieres. In 2023, our first premiere–involving our documentary, The Girls Left Behind–led to a huge turnout and endless possibilities for engagement.
That same year, we hosted our first offline event, “Enhancing the Intersection of Humanitarian, Media and Security Sectors in Managing Conflict in Nigeria”, bringing together stakeholders crucial to Nigeria’s security landscape.
This event revealed an urgent need we could not ignore. While our audience engaged with us online, it became clear that they also craved an offline space to meet us in person, interact with our work, and ask questions. The need birthed The HumAngle Showcase, an immersive experience that exposed our audience to our diverse range of products, what we do, how we do it, and the people who make it possible.
The maiden edition of the HumAngle Showcase happened in November 2024. We had participants from all walks of life, including journalists, researchers, policymakers, and advocates. The goal was to make it an explorative journey where you connect the dots for yourself and find what resonates with you the most.
From the panels, documentary screening, photo exhibition, silent podcast listening, GIS booth, and VR stand, we wanted to cater to every news-consuming preference and engage with the audience through our products.
The future of audience engagement
Everything we have managed to do has left us striving for more. The fascinating thing is that there is no end to audience engagement. It will always need to be deepened and made more interactive, engaging, and trustworthy, especially with the rise of misinformation, disinformation, and artificial intelligence.
We have never shied away from AI or its role in the many stages of journalism. We have already begun using it for engagement, backend support, and accessibility. Thanks to our IT team, you can listen to our stories and read a summarised version if you are in a hurry.
In the coming years, and as we evolve, how we engage with you will be more personalised, driven by behavioural analytics, and inclusive from a gendered lens and for people with disabilities. We will continue being open to audience feedback, augmented reality, and virtual reality to enhance the experience.
As we continue to make great strides and improve our relationship, especially as we maintain the uniqueness of our processes, we appreciate your continued support, which comes with every call to action and collaboration.
HumAngle celebrates its fifth anniversary, emphasizing storytelling as a two-way communication enriched by audience trust and engagement. The media outlet caters to diverse audiences through multiple formats, including newsreels like "The Angle," podcasts like "Vestiges of Violence," and animations such as the "Missing Persons" series. Audience feedback plays a crucial role, inspiring impactful stories and community action, such as addressing food crises and period poverty in Nigeria's North East.
Moreover, HumAngle explores interactive approaches through surveys and virtual events to bridge knowledge gaps and highlight social issues like gender pay gaps. Initiatives such as the HumAngle Showcase and offline events aim to create a more personal connection with audiences. With a focus on combatting misinformation and utilizing AI for better engagement, HumAngle is committed to developing more personalized and inclusive content, ensuring continued audience interaction and trust in journalism.
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There are millions of ordinary people affected by conflict in Africa whose stories are missing in the mainstream media. HumAngle is determined to tell those challenging and under-reported stories, hoping that the people impacted by these conflicts will find the safety and security they deserve.
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