ABSTRACT
Culture is a central aspect of any human society. Once affected, positively or otherwise, the society’s way of living changes. Like other Southern African cultures, Mozambican culture is facing a new set of challenges, coupled with classic hindrances as it joins the global community. One of these challenges is the uncertain trajectory of mass media, particularly television, which has both positive and negative impacts on culture. This paper constitutes a philosophical examination of the impact of mass media on African cultures and adopts Mozambique as a case study. I was intrigued by this subject given the dramatic changes in the Mozambican culture as the tide of globalization in terms of mass media sweeps across the country. My philosophical argument is that for Mozambican culture to thrive these challenges must be discussed, addressed and mitigated against. Otherwise, the Mozambican culture will soon become history to its own people. The key conclusion from the paper is that the future of Mozambican culture, and by extension African cultures, will ultimately reside in its ability to address a number of theoretical, political and socio-cultural questions which confront the present and the next generation. To this end, a framework is presented for studying socio-cultural issues that impact on how knowledge, ideas and values should be transmitted and developed from one generation to another for the good and posterity of the African cultures.
