St. Petersburg: Philological Faculty of St. Petersburg State University, 2011, 228 p.

I. V. Gerasimov's monograph is devoted to a very rare problem in Oriental and African studies - the history of journalism in Sudan. As an independent state of modern times, Sudan lasted just over half a century - from 1956 to 2011, when it split into Northern and Southern parts. But the author does not limit himself to these historical limits, but goes deep into history in his analysis, while separating the concepts of journalism and journalism proper. At the same time, he emphasizes that it is possible to talk about Sudanese journalism in the modern sense only after

the appearance of periodicals in the country at the end of the XIX century. An important feature of Sudanese journalism, which can be traced throughout the monograph, is its existence in two language planes - Arabic and English. The latter originated in Sudan at the end of the 19th century in the form of periodicals in English. A significant place in all sections is occupied by the study of the activities of newspaper, magazine and other mass media.

The monograph is dedicated to Olga Borisovna Frolova and all the author's university teachers. It consists of five chapters, an introduction, conclusion, and appendices. Each of the chapters deals with the subject of research in a certain historical period, starting from the XVII century. in chronological order. In each case, the author gives such a period his own socio-political characteristic, which serves as an illustrative background of the study.

In chapter I, " The birth and development of Sudanese journalism (XVII century-1940s of XX century)", summarizing the background of the research topic, the author notes that " before the appearance of periodicals, all journalism in Sudan developed in oral or epistolary form. Development occurred unevenly depending on a particular region and concerned mainly those areas where writing was widely used. In general, the development of journalism was strongly influenced by Muslim and pan-Arab traditions" (p. 20).

After analyzing various sources, the author comes to the conclusion that the earliest publication on the territory of Sudan was the Gazita Sudaniyah bulletin, also known as Al-Jarida al-Sudaniyah, published on March 7, 1899.The articles and other materials published in it met the interests of the colonialists and were aimed at a non-Sudanese audience. Among these materials was the text of the condominium agreement (pp. 28-29). A special place in the Sudanese press of this period was occupied, according to the author, by a group of newspapers and magazines owned by Egyptian publishers.

It is important to emphasize that the author does not mechanically list publications of a particular period of Sudanese history, but critically evaluates their nature and, in some cases, rethinks existing estimates. So, on January 4, 1913, a new edition of Ra'id al-Sudan ("The Sudanese Pioneer") appeared in Sudan as an appendix to the Sudan Herald newspaper, which was already published in English. "Ra'id al-Sudan", unlike some other publications, had a much greater literary focus.

At the same time, according to the author, "it is difficult to agree with the views that the Ra'id al-Sudan was the first forum for the literary revival and formation of the national ideology of the Sudanese bourgeois intelligentsia, since it is premature to talk about the formation of the national ideology of the Sudanese bourgeoisie due to its extreme small number and lack of conscious interests" (p. 31)..

On February 28, 1919, a new newspaper, Hadarat al-Sudan (Culture of the Sudan), was published in Sudan, providing international information, local news, economics,and literature. By some Sudanese authors, this newspaper is regarded as a print organ, thanks to which the literary upsurge in Sudan began. It continued in the following 1920s and 1930s.The author, in particular, believes that "...the period of the thirties was a time of a sharp rise in interest in literature and journalism. It was then that the foundations of modern journalistic genres were laid, and writers considered it necessary for themselves to express themselves not only in an artistic, but also in a journalistic form" (p. 41).

The first chapter concludes with a section on the periodical press in Sudan in the 1930s and 1940s. In particular, in the 1940s, a new phenomenon in this area was the emergence of provincial publications. The first of them was the newspaper "Kodofan", published in the province of the same name. Its first issue was published in November 1945 in El Obeid. In this newspaper, along with reprints from the central newspapers, materials and entire sections devoted to the life of this province appeared.

Based on careful monitoring of the dynamics of the development of Sudanese journalism in the 1930s and 1940s, the author notes that it was very common during this period that a person who received even a little experience in journalism eventually became the owner or editor-in-chief of the publication (p.54). In total, more than 30 newspapers and magazines appeared in Sudan during the first six post-war years (p. 55).

In chapter II," The Sudanese periodical press in the 1950s and 1960s", the author notes that during this period the number of printed publications increased, which began to play an increasingly significant role in the country's public life. The number of printing houses and publishing houses grew. Along with the party press, various publications appeared that specialized in covering the problems of various spheres of human activity

activities, branches of the economy, education, and the arts. At the same time, the author rightly notes that many magazine publications of this period belonged to various army and police institutions and departments, through which the command informed the military about the state of affairs in the army and introduced the population to military service, its goals and objectives. In the same years, the number of journal publications of a socio-political and literary nature increases. There was a growing interest in their own history, literature, and understanding of the Sudanese identity and specifics. On the eve of independence, which was gained in 1956, the process of forming national State institutions and public organizations began.

During the same period, the desire of young Sudanese authors to create literary works and publish them in periodicals increased. In the field of fiction, magazine publications were established, unlike in previous periods, when artistic works were published mainly in newspapers. Their place in newspapers is largely occupied by political publications in connection with the politicization of public life. The author clearly states: "Practically all newspaper periodicals of 1950-1960 represented the interests of political groups and parties. Some parties had not one but several newspapers of their own" (p.64).

Below, Gerasimov somewhat goes beyond the general topic of the monograph, in my opinion, giving characteristics of the political parties themselves, organizations and their propaganda activities.

This is especially true for the Muslim Brotherhood organization.

Chapter III, "Problems of Sudanese newspaper and magazine periodicals (1985-1989)" chronologically includes the history of Sudanese journalism not only in these years, but also in the 1970s and 1980s. At the same time, the analysis of periodicals is given against the background of the political situation in Sudan in these decades and its dynamics. During my work in Sudan in 1976-1977, many of the periodicals mentioned in this book were used daily by the Soviet missions to get acquainted with the current situation in the host country. Therefore, I can confirm from my own experience the validity of his assessments of the analyzed publications.

After the overthrow of the Nimeiri regime in 1985, more than 40 political parties entered the political arena, each of which sought to create its own press organ. According to Gerasimov's data, in 1987 there were 46 of them, including independent publications (p. 110).

Among the many different topics covered in the publications of the second half of the 1980s, one of the central ones was the South Sudanese problem because of its special relevance. In general, it can be assumed that during this historical period, not a single significant event in the socio-political life of Sudanese society was ignored by newspapers and other printed publications of the country. The author gives a special place to Islamic publications. He believes that they "showed a special interest in organizations and individuals representing informal Islam, and strongly opposed them, seeing them as ideological opponents and apostates... Many aspects of international and domestic Sudanese life were considered through the prism of Islamic doctrine" (p. 132).

A logical continuation of the strengthening of Islamic tendencies in the socio-political life of Sudan was the rise of Islamists to power after the military coup of June 30, 1989. During the first months of its existence, the new regime waged a real struggle with the media and with the journalists who worked in them. This process is analyzed in chapter IV, " Sudan's Mass Communication Media under Islamist Rule (1989-1996)".: "The dissolution of the Journalists' Union, an organization that has defended the freedom of the press even in the most difficult times, resulted in the confiscation of all the property at its disposal. But the most serious consequence was that almost 600 journalists found themselves out of work... " (p. 139). In the future, the policy of Islamization of the media was expressed in maintaining only newspapers and magazines loyal to the regime, where journalists - propagandists of Islam, loyal supporters of the National Islamic Front worked.

But gradually, some changes in the media sphere did occur. In 1993, a legislative act was adopted, according to which the publication of private publications was allowed. This led to a certain revival of the press and an increase in the number of publications. The author cites data according to which 20 periodicals were published in the country at the beginning of 1998 (p.147).

The monograph concludes with chapter V, "Mass Communication Media (QMS) of Sudan in 2000-2010". Prior to analyzing the functioning of the Sudanese QMS in the first decade of the new century, Gerasimov believes that their socio-political role in this decade has significantly increased compared to previous periods. Prior to this, Sudan's QMS lagged behind due to unevenness

the development of different regions of the country, the binding of the population to a particular language, the remnants of colonial rule, the lack of printing equipment and trained personnel.

In the new conditions, as the author emphasizes, the economic growth achieved recently, combined with the emerging elements of political pluralism, gave a certain impetus to the development and improvement of the Sudanese QMS (p.151). An important role in this development is played by trade unions and associations, among which the organizations of journalists stand out. According to the latest data available to the author, the modern Union of Sudanese Journalists consists of 3,000 members. Its functions, along with protecting the rights of journalists, include retraining mass media workers and improving their skills (p. 153).

In the light of current trends in political development and the division of Sudan into two States in the south of the country, the "Union of Journalists of South Sudan"was established in 2005. In 2007, it included 55 people (p.150).

Overall, according to EU observers covering the 2010 elections, there were 47 Arabic-language and 5 English-language newspapers published in Sudan across the still unified country (p. 158). All of them are roughly divided into those that were founded before the coup of 1989, and those that were established during the last two decades and gained popularity in certain circles.

Summing up the results of a thorough analysis of the development of journalism in Sudan, Gerasimov reasonably believes that " Sudanese journalism has played an outstanding public role in the country's recent history. This role is largely due to the very important place that Sudan's journalism and its core - journalism-occupied in the political, cultural, socio-literary process of Sudan" (p.185).

The peer-reviewed monograph is an original tool both for specialists analyzing the socio-political processes that took place in Sudan before 2011, and for young researchers-Arabists and Africanists who are just beginning to study acute and controversial problems of the Afro-Asian region.

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