SECTOR 3 “It is difficult to have a news bulletin that highlights situations or events that go against the government in power, which other private media could easily do.” As one of the media panellists noted: “I worked with GBC as an intern for about 3 years. In the 2008 election, the propaganda secretary of NDC came with a commercial ad, and in that ad, the content said things like the NPP had destroyed the economy and there were no jobs. GBC rejected the ad. But then in the run-up to the election[s], NPP was running ads [on GBC stations] in which NDC was being called a party of murderers, and so on. When NDC won, the heads of the TV station were removed, and there was an internal side-lining of people believed to be critical of the new ruling party. So, the law is good, but the practice is terrible.” Another added, “What I saw when I was there was that any change of government brings its own interference because of fear of victimisation and transfers. This is not unique to NDC, but all the parties; although NDC, may be more crude in how they do things.” A panellist posited that Ghana’s political history may have something to do with this bad practice. “One party rule and the military regime dominated for a long time and used the GBC as [a] mouthpiece for whoever is in government.” “One of the issues is the identity crisis of GBC. It is not identified as a public service broadcaster and rather operates under the name of a state broadcaster. In all records of NMC, GBC is referred to as a public broadcaster. But GBC names itself in all its own records as a state broadcaster. Because of this, the government thinks it can interfere in the running of GBC. This is a leadership problem.” Beyond the party politics and how those in power try to use state machinery to influence the masses, those being influenced also have a role to play. “Politicisation is pervasive. One can’t blame government directly, but also those working within.” Some panellists noted instances in which staff at media houses might name drop (e.g. the president’s name) in order to have greater coverage, or in which colleagues’ report on each other to the powers that be, on political affiliation. In this regard, panellists highlighted a need for changing the institutional culture that exists, in order to attract journalists who are more accountable to the public, rather than to their positions, pockets and some politicians. “In the current transition, for example,government wanted to invite media heads to account to the Minister of Information. The media responded ‘no, we don’t account to you.’ Journalists need to understand their societal role better in being more accountable to the public.” The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation does not have an editorial charter. AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER GHANA 2017 53