There is awareness and recognition in the media sector that professional standards are steadily declining and attempts are being made to address this situation by both the Press Association of Zambia (PAZA) and the Media Liaison Committee (MLC), which boasts the membership of the Press Association of Zambia (PAZA), Press Freedom Committee of The Post, Catholic Media Services, MISA-Zambia, Zambia Union of Broadcasters and other Information Disseminators (ZUBID), Zambia Media Women’s Association (ZAMWA), Zambia Union of Journalists (ZUJ), United Nations Information Centre (UNIC Lusaka) and Panos Southern Africa. Great strides have been made in the area of self-regulation, which has narrowed the divide between state and privately owned media as they unite to commit to the establishment of the self-regulatory body, the Zambia Media Council (ZAMEC). ZAMEC is planning to engage with local online media, which continue to publish with complete disregard of professional standards and ethical practice as anything can be posted anonymously on this forum, thereby presenting challenges for regulation. The creation of ZAMEC was a highly consultative process that took a long time, and was often controversial; but consensus was finally reached. ZAMEC now has a council, a code of conduct, and a constitution in place, but it is experiencing “teething problems”. However, “all the major media institutions have accepted [membership of ZAMEC].” AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ZAMBIA 2013 9