SECTOR 3 Panellists agreed that neither TV nor radio is sufficiently funded. A panellist with previous experience at SBIS noted that in the past ‘as employees, we had to subsidise the coverage of the elections by paying for our own transport or petrol costs, airtime to communicate back, etc’. At Swazi TV, the station’s vehicles were once attached to service debt. ‘Employees have had to go for some time without being paid.’ ‘There definitely is not adequate funding.’ 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: ✓ ✓✓ ✓ ✓✓ ✓✓ ✓✓✓ 1.4 (2005: n/a; 2007: n/a; 2009: 2.4; 2011: 2.3; 2014: 1.1) 3.7 The state/public broadcaster offers diverse programming formats for all interests, including local content and quality public interest programmes ‘The broadcasters are government mouthpieces. That is their mandate and the result is that we do not have diverse programming.’ Concerning radio, the cancellation of talk radio programmes for phone-in programmes has made it clear that the broadcaster is both fearful and unwilling to engage in programming that might be controversial, thereby restricting the formats available to the public for engagement. ‘Phone-in programmes have cost people their jobs.’ There are no live talk shows on radio – all shows are pre-recorded to ensure that contentious issues do not make their way onto the airwaves. ‘The ministries (e.g. Ministry of Youth) may have phone-in programmes on the issues they’re covering, but they keep the discussions to safe subjects and ensure that the programming is geared at promoting government.’ 42 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ESWATINI 2018