through fear of the Act among media practitioners, leading to self-censorship as they are prone to discretionary interception and surveillance under the Act. The study also undertakes a brief review of the socio-political front where there was no recorded incident of violence against journalists, a stark comparison to previous quarters in which several attacks (sometimes grievous) were noted. During the period under review, there was an instance of interference at Kasempa FM Radio by a civic leader, a case of concern given the potential to instil self-censorship. Notable, also, was the high political will and commitment towards media freedom by the Head of State, President Hakainde Hichilema who officiated at the National media Indaba which was part of the World Press Freedom Day Commemoration activities. Finally, on the economic front, a positive picture was noted in terms of the key economic variables during the period under review. However, these gains have not trickled down to the media sector which continues to grapple with the impact of the 2020-2021 COVID pandemic era and fluctuation of fuel prices among other factors. As such, this lack of a trickle down continues to threaten the operations of the media. Overall, the State of the Media in the period under review did not post significant developments (save the political and economic fronts) when compared to the trends in the fourth quarter, 2021 State of the Media. 4