SECTOR 2 2.2 Citizens’ access to domestic and international media sources is not restricted by state authorities. No, there is no restriction of citizens’ access to national or international media other than market constraints. 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: 4.8 (2010:4.7; 2008:4.8; 2006:4.7) 2.3 The editorial independence of print media published by a public authority is protected adequately against undue political interference. In Senegal, the mission of the print press as a public service has fallen to Le Soleil. A member of the panel insists that “Le Soleil is a public service, not an organ of government”. The panel, as a whole, notes greater autonomy and diversity in processing information in comparison with previous years. In support of this view, a panellist who is knowledgeable about the current running and tendencies of the newspaper testifies that, during the last three years, he has never heard of anyone being called to account by any authority with regard to an article or the main headline of the newspaper. Yet, he adds, there is no legislation or directive aimed at formally protecting editorial independence. In his view, what was perceived by public opinion to be political interference in the treatment of information could rather be rather be seen as the result of excessive zeal or self-censorship on the part of journalists and/or the editors of the newspaper. That is why the main missions entrusted to the editors of the newspaper were to restore the publication’s seriously weakened credibility, on the one hand, and to turn around the company that publishes the newspaper, practically moribund at the time, on the other. This panellist assures the group that the new government has confirmed that editorial choice and those strategic guidelines. 88 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER SENEGAL 2013