Malawi time when the nation was on the verge of chaos as the major political parties failed to agree on the outcome of the elections. The media, MBC and Zodiak Broadcasting Station (ZBS) – which were appointed by the MEC as official broadcasters of the elections – proved critical in updating Malawians on the outcome of the elections. The media also came out strongly in condemning attempts by the then incumbent Joyce Banda to annul the elections and saved as a platform for dialogue on controversial matters such as recount of the votes and extension of the voter tabulation period. FREE EXPRESSION AND ELECTIONS Government intimidation and threats toward ‘critical’ media workers lead to fear and selfcensorship Intimidation and threats worsened during the campaign period and PP functionaries branded those critical of the party’s policies and strategies as pro-opposition. As noted in the 2013 review, such statements spread fear and intimidated journalists, some of whom cowered into silence. In the first and second quarters of 2014, the PP administration continued to castigate media workers and civil society leaders who were ‘critical’ of the Joyce Banda administration as enemies of the state. MISA Malawi, for example, had information that reporters deemed critical of the administration were receiving calls from ‘high places’ cautioning them against writing unpatriotic stories about the Banda administration. In February 2014, then presidential press secretary Steven Nhlane is said to have warned Malawi News Agency (MANA) journalist Grace Kapatuka for commenting on 38 So This is Democracy? 2014 the controversial sale of a presidential Jet. Nhlane warned Kapatuka to resign as MANA reporter instead of ‘degrading’ President Banda. Kapatuka made her comments on a MISA Malawi google group discussion forum where journalists share experiences, views and opinions. MISA Malawi suspended Nhlane as a member of the google group after his action. Several senior journalists also reported receiving calls directly from the Head of State castigating them for criticising her administration and demanding they desist from writing negative stories about government. Some media, however, appeared to be in the government’s good books and towed the government line. This turned the sector into a battleground of conflicting interests and ideologies. Politicians rushed to their favourite outlets and journalists for cheap publicity. Instead of lodging their complaints with relevant bodies and waiting for proper processes to be concluded, most political parties preferred to run to the media. In the end, the media became a complaints body, judge and battleground. Even the ruling PP resorted to the media, state and private, to complain about irregularities in the electoral process, fulfilling a known fact that people – including authorities, merely use the media as a means to an end rather than a partner and critical player in the development discourse. A key area of concern over the years has been the nature and conduct of presidential press conferences, ‘which are usually party rallies rather than a platform for engagement between the media and the president.’ The first and second quarter of 2014 saw unabated continuation of the practice despite numerous efforts by MISA Malawi and other players for government to change. The new President Arthur Peter Mutharika has, however, brought in a marked