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By Zina Saro-Wiwa
BBC World Service's Hello World!
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Priests are among the new celebrity class in Nigeria
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As a Nigerian who has lived and grown up in Britain, the way the developing world has been portrayed has always been a source of bafflement and great sadness.
It seemed as if the press were obsessed with learning only about the war, the famine and the corruption.
We were all aware of Africa's problems, but we saw little of the colour, the humour and resilience and pride of many Africans.
It was in this frame of mind that I happened across a magazine entitled Ovation. With a monthly circulation of around 100,000 and exactly the same red-on-white cover as Britain's Hello! and Spain's Hola! publications, it is a celebrity magazine dedicated entirely to Nigerian endeavour and success both in Nigeria and in the diaspora.
The magazine's charismatic editor, Dele Momodu, created it in the early 1990s to counter the barrage of negative press Nigerians appeared to receive.
"Everywhere I went, everything negative was attached to Nigerians," he told BBC World Service's Hello World! programme.
"So I wanted to create a magazine that catered to the lifestyle of affluent and aspiring Africans."
Celebrity pastors
On examining the magazine more closely, surprising idiosyncrasies about Nigeria are brought into focus.
For in the ranks of these affluent and aspiring Nigerians are a surprising set - celebrity priests.
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In Nigeria, everybody is a star
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"Pastors are some of the biggest celebrities we have in Nigeria today, if not all over the world," Momodu explained.
Ovation includes "Jet Set pastor" Gabriel Oduyemi, displaying his mansion and private jet.
The idea of wealthy celebrity pastors appal some, though not all, Nigerians. But it is also the case that the church is becoming a more and more powerful institution, capturing hearts and minds of a people living in an economy where corruption still reigns supreme.
Ovation believes it has a serious mission to portray Nigeria in a good light.
However, it also features the lavish parties and weddings of Nigeria's corrupt former dictators and their families.
Mr Momodu himself had been forced to flee Nigeria's military dictatorship under General Sani Abacha in the 1990s - yet Abacha's children's weddings and parties grace the pages of his magazine.
When asked why he allowed such a family into a magazine that professes to be "a celebration of Africa", Dele simply shrugs, stating that "I am just reporting how the wealthy choose to spend their money".
Citizen stars
And there is another twist to the Nigerian celebrity magazine.
Many of the people beaming up at you in their finest clothes from its pages are not national celebrities at all but ordinary people, who have paid to be in the magazine.
As advertising revenue is scarce, this is how Ovation is funded.
General Abacha's family often feature in the pages of Ovation
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Nigeria's celebrity class is just starting to develop.
"In the West they have established stars," Mr Momodu said.
"For us, we are creating celebrities. So we have to distinguish between the two.
"In Nigeria, everybody is a star."
This creates a peculiar situation, where Nigerians all over the diaspora read their own celebrity magazine to catch up with friends - as opposed to merely reading a magazine to learn about famous people they could never hope to meet.
You are more likely to find a doctor than an actress in an Nigerian celebrity magazine.
It is the exaltation of the ordinary. Nigerians celebrating themselves - because no-one else does.
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