Al Jazeera English is first out of the gate with a very good, short analysis of the political life of Nigerian President Umaru Yar’Adua, who died yesterday after months of illness and absence from the public eye. He had effectively been out of public view for an extended period — first in Saudi Arabia from November last year until February this year, and then at his official residence — while his aptly named deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, governed the country in his stead.

As a result, Yar’Adua’s passing arrives as something of an anticlimax. The only exceptions may be his aides—and those who misrepresented his condition in order to maintain their tenuous access to power and resources—as well as 419 scammers, for whom his death will no doubt provide new plot twists in their elaborate schemes to lure prospective victims into parting with their money.

Western media will likely roll out the usual clichés in the coming days. For more grounded and textured analysis, it is worth turning instead to Nigeria’s vibrant media landscape.

Among these, the most reliable are Next, The Vanguard, The Punch and, of course, This Day. The same for the country’s blogosphere, both inside Nigeria and amongst its diaspora; sites like Naijablog, Nigerianstalk, Loomnie, Akin and Suleiman’s Blog.