SECTOR 2 the managing editor is also so close to the king, acting as his correspondent and writing speeches for him. Naturally, there won’t be much diversity in political coverage then’. In state or royal family-owned publications, coverage of hardhitting political issues is also reduced – editors do not want to upset the powers that be, making self-censorship an everyday practice and thereby limiting the full coverage of political issues and investigative reporting. The Nation, however, is credited for its strong investigative reporting. One panellist commented, ‘I sometimes wonder how The Nation – which sometimes engages some difficult issues – how does it survive? Why aren’t others doing it? Amongst the shareholders, are there people linked to the powers that can protect them?’ Another panellist attributed this to The Nation having seasoned journalists and editors who can publish well-researched investigative pieces that can withstand the scrutiny of the powers that be, while other media struggle with both self-censorship and the juniorisation of their newsrooms, thereby compromising the quality of investigative reporting. ‘Our journalism is event-based and not issues-based’ and ‘reporting is centred on government and covering state functions, press releases and so on. Journalists are not necessarily covering politics and are just following these events’. With journalists in the print media (specifically dailies) having to produce three stories per day, being able to put aside the time to pursue investigative stories can be difficult. Capacity issues and conditions of service were also raised in discussions around the coverage of the full spectrum of topics and the quality of this coverage. These issues are discussed in greater detail in Sector Four. Panellists also noted that across the spectrum of issues, ‘there is little analysis beyond the event’. Much reporting is done on the economy, culture and social issues, but this reporting lacks in-depth analysis and certain boundaries are also created around the issues being covered. ‘For example, if an interview is being conducted and you have someone speaking on HIV and AIDS, you might speak about general issues, but as soon as he or she starts talking about potentially controversial issues such as availability of drugs, the interview is cut off and music starts to play.’ 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: 32 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ESWATINI 2018 ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓✓ ✓ ✓✓✓ ✓ 2.5 (2005: 3.4; 2007: 2.8; 2009: 3.7; 2011: 3.7; 2014: 2.9) ✓