SECTOR 1

announced through the state media (without any formal communication with the
appointees themselves). The ZMC was officially constituted in February 2010.
Up to the end of April 2010 the commission had held four meetings and decided
on fees for the registration of mass media servicesii .

Scores:
Individual scores:
1

Country does not meet indicator

2

Country meets only a few aspects of indicator.

3

Country meets some aspects of indicator

4

Country meets most aspects of indicator

5

Country meets all aspects of the indicator

Average score: 			

1.0

(2008: n/a; 2006: n/a)

1.6
Entry into and practice of the journalistic
profession is legally unrestricted.
Analysis:

Since an amendment to AIPPA in December 2007 the accreditation of journalists
with the Media Commission is no longer compulsory. But the amended act still
contains a number of provisions regarding accreditation. Media services can
make “a block application or individual applications” for journalists employed
by them and part-time or freelance journalists may make such applications in
order to receive a press card. Only journalists who are accredited are allowed “to
visit Parliament and any public body” and “attend any national event” or “public
event”. The commission can impose sanctions on a journalist who “abuses his or
her journalistic privilege” by suspending the accreditation for up to three months.

ii A week after the panel meeting, on 4 May 2010, the Commission issued guidelines for registration that
require applicants to provide a code of ethics, projected balance sheet, editorial charter, code of conduct
for employees, market analysis, mission statement, house style book and projected three-year cash flow
statement, as well as attach a dummy. At the end of May, the Commission approved the applications
of three new daily newspapers (Newsday, owned by private Alpha Media Holdings, publishers of the
Zimbabwe Independent, Daily Mail, to be published by the Youth Empowerment Fund believed to
be aligned to ZANU PF, Daily Gazette, supposedly owned by central bank governor Gideon Gono),
registered The Worker as a weekly publication and re-registered the previously banned The Daily News.

20

AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ZIMBABWE 2010

Select target paragraph3