3.6 Persons who have vested interests of a political or commercial nature are excluded from possible membership in the board, i.e. office bearers with the state and political parties as well as those with a financial interest in the broadcasting industry. ANALYSIS: Members of the board of Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings are all politically interconnected and there is a great deal of patronage, thus ensuring that the political status quo is maintained. Most if not all members of the board have strong affiliations to the ruling party and government. Five out of the total of nine occupy senior positions in the state-run newspapers and thus have a vested interest in making all the state media in the country conform to one common editorial (party-) line. SCORES: Individual scores: Average score: 3.7 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1 1.0 (2006 = 1.1) The editorial independence of the public broadcaster from commercial pressure and political influence is guaranteed by law and practised. ANALYSIS: No such legal guarantees are in place. There is a great deal of interference that hinders the professional and efficient operations of the public broadcaster. The divisions and factionalism within political circles are often played out in the newsrooms. Ministers will phone and give a directive regarding a story and soon after a Permanent Secretary will call and give instructions that counteract the initial directive. Politicians will stipulate who to report on and who not to report on. The reality is that the system allows politicians and government personnel to interfere, manipulate and place political pressure on the national broadcaster. There is a great deal of commercial influence by large advertisers who can then make their own demands. The business section in the news bulletins seems to be influenced by the interests of advertisers. A chimurenga (liberation war) song is played after every Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe advert and this subtle and strategic placement is powerful. It is clear that big advertisers are spared from stories that may prejudice their reputation. Sponsorship of highly popular programmes is often driven by political rather than commercial interests. Although there is legislation specifying what is permissible and what is not during an election period, the unwritten policy is that as a “public” broadcaster, ZBC will put aside the need to operate commercially and in the interests of the public at such times. As Zimbabwe enters the pre-election period ZBC will be expected to campaign for the ruling party although they are legally obliged to provide equal coverage to all parties. There is no directive in this regard but editors at ZBC know what is expected from them. ZANU PF politicians have the advantage of holding public office and so they will be covered extensively in their capacity as ministers, governors, etc. The timing of stories can also be So This Is Democracy? 2008 -271- Media Institute of Southern Africa