Africa and the New York Times

I have been an avid reader of the NYT for just over two years now but never have I seen multiple stories, not directly dealing with war and refugees, about Africa on the front page of the paper. But today's online version of the paper had three articles about the continent. One has to do with the situation in Tunisia, the other deals with the referandum in Sudan and the third is an op-ed from Africa's foremost man of letters, Chinua Achebe, reflecting, with particular attention on Nigerian, on why Africa is where it is today and how it can get out of the situation. It may well be that I am reading too much into the matter but it seems to me that the attention which is being paid to the continent, attention not necessitated by situations of war and refugees but by signs of a flourishing continent, is a sign of the increasing importance which that continent is beginning to have.