Impact of Covid 19 on Media Sustainability https://zimbabwe.misa.org a month.100It must be noted that the Zimbabwean government has not relied solely on Covid-19 misinformation to suppress freedom of expression. According to lawyers, around 60 people have been charged with insulting the president since Mnangagwa took power after the 2017 coup.101Among recent victims was a freelance journalist, Godfrey Mtimba, allegedly for “reporting on a vehicle chase in which police officers were pursuing opposition youth leaders.”102 The arrests of journalists and the violence they have been subjected to must be put into context. First, in Africa, the hostility towards journalists and independent journalism can be seen against a background of repression of political protest and resistance to accountability. In South Africa, greater violence has been visited on members of the public than journalists, who are at least afforded some protection by publicity they can count on and solidarity among media professionals. This includes killing of a teenager whose Downs syndrome impeded his ability to communicate with police, an incident that caused widespread outrage and was seen as highlighting police brutality and disregard for the law and the basic human rights.103 Second, attacks on and arrests of journalists have become more common globally as populist politicians riding the wave of authoritarianism use the media as a handy target for mobilisation. In the US, for example, where denigration of the media has characterised the presidency, more than 300 incidents of arrest, assault, often by police, and damage to journalists’ equipment were recorded during the unrest surrounding the Black Lives Matter protest.104 Even in a Western country like the Netherlands, a beacon of tolerance, attacks on journalists have been on the rise.105 It is notable that Africa is by no means the worst offender in the International Press Institute Tracker on Press Freedom Violations Linked to COVID-19 Coverage (Figure 2). 100. Thandekile Moyo, “Zimbabwe (in) Ruins: Censorship in Zimbabwe: When Fake News Is True and ‘Official’ News Is Fake,” Daily Maverick, April 28, 2020, https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/ article/2020-04-28- censorship-in-zimbabwe-when-fake-news-is-true-and-official-news-is-fake/. 101. Farai Mutsaka, “Zimbabwe Government Abuses Critics, Allege Rights Groups,” Washington Post, September 15, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/zimbabwe-government-abusescritics-allege-rights- groups/2020/09/15/4067bde6-f72a-11ea-85f7-5941188a98cd_story.html. 102. CPJ, “South Africa Enacts Regulations Criminalizing ‘Disinformation’ on Coronavirus Outbreak.” 103. Ziyanda Stuurman, “Police Brutality in South Africa Exposed Once Again,” The Mail & Guardian (blog), August 28, 2020, https:/mg.co.za/opinion/2020-08-28-police-brutality-in-south-africa-exposed-once-again/. 104. David Smith, “‘Denigrated and Discredited’: How American Journalists Became Targets during Protests,” the Guardian, June 8, 2020, http://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/jun/08/ us-journalists-media-protests- donald-trump. 105. Jon Henley, “Dutch State Broadcaster Pulls Logo from Vans after Attacks,” the Guardian, October 16, 2020, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/16/dutch-state-broadcaster-nos-pulls-logo-vans-attacks. 28