Festus Eribo is a professor of journalism and mass communication at East Carolina University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and M.A. in journalism from St. Petersburg State University, formerly Leningrad State University. Eribo has been a visiting scholar at the China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing. He is an award-winning communication researcher and author/co-editor of eight books, including In Search of Greatness: Russia's Communication with Africa and the World, Development and Communication in Africa, and Press Freedom and Communication in Africa.