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Weekly Media Updates 2005
Weekly Media update 2005 - 11
THE national public broadcaster’s failure to adequately inform its audiences on daily events was illustrated by ZBH suffocating the recent ruling on the application by jailed MDC MP Roy Bennett challenging the Nomination Court’s decision to bar him from contesting the forthcoming poll in his constituency of Chimanimani.
Weekly Media update 2005 - 10
AS this report was being compiled, press freedom in Zimbabwe suffered another heavy blow with news that the Supreme Court had defended the legitimacy of several controversial clauses of the repressive Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA), which the authorities have selectively used to gag the private media.
Weekly Media update 2005 - 9
THIS week The Herald (3/3) comment feebly tried to justify its unbalanced coverage of the contesting parties by claiming that it was not publicly funded.Responding to the MDC’s concerns over its unprofessional coverage of the opposition party, the paper attempted to circumvent its professional obligations by claiming that it was not a “public medium”
Weekly Media update 2005 - 8
THE authorities’ determination to gag the free Press manifested itself again this week in the closure of yet another privately owned newspaper, bringing to four private newspapers that have been closed under the draconian Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA) within 18 months.The closure of The Weekly Times, whose operations have been under threat since its fi
Weekly Media update 2005 - 7
THIS week the authorities intensified their crackdown on the few remaining alternative channels of information further shrinking the media space ahead of next month’s parliamentary election.The Daily Mirror (15/2 & 17/2) and The Standard (20/2) reported that police had repeatedly raided - without a search warrant - the offices of three well known veteran local journalist
Weekly Media update 2005 - 5
ONCE again, Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings (ZBH) affirmed its status as an unreliable source of information when it suppressed the announcement by the MDC that it had finally decided to contest the election despite the country’s uneven electoral framework.While SW Radio Africa and Studio 7 (3/2) duly reported the announcement, ZBH completely ignored the issue that same day.
Weekly Media update 2005 - 6
INFORMATION Minister Jonathan Moyo’s announcement on ZTV (10/2, 8pm), The Herald and Chronicle (11/2) that government would gazette regulations on the coverage of political parties by ZBH once again exposed the media’s failure to play their role as diligent watchdogs of government, particularly those relating to the electoral framework.
Weekly Media update 2005 - 4
INFORMATION on the country’s electoral process remained preciously scarce during the week as authorities failed to use the media to adequately inform the public about pertinent issues relating to electoral procedure.
Weekly Media update 2005 - 3
THE media’s watchdog role was again tainted this week by their failure to thoroughly re-examine the country’s electoral framework, which the authorities have repeatedly claimed was being reformed to level the playing field ahead of the March elections in accordance with the SADC guidelines on the conduct of democratic elections.
Weekly Media update 2005 - 2
THE impression that the government-appointed Media and Information Commission (MIC) is serving as an instrument for muzzling alternative sources of information was reinforced in the week under review by recent reports of its threats to close the newly established Weekly Times under the guise of upholding AIPPA.
