SECTOR 4 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: 3.6 (2010 = 2.9; 2008 = 4.2; 2006 = 3.0) 4.3 The media cover the full spectrum of events, issues and cultures, including business/economics, cultural, local and investigative stories. Urban-based political, economics and sports stories are generally well covered in the mainstream media on a daily basis, while cultural stories appear more often in the weekend newspapers than in the dailies, and on the state radio and television channels. Stories on rural issues are rarely covered by the mainstream, daily newspapers as media houses often lack the resources or funds to send journalists to outlying areas. Only a few media houses have correspondents in outlying areas. MBC TV and radio tend to cover rural areas better than the print or commercial broadcast media, as there are MBC journalists dotted around the country who work closely with the Ministry of Information and district information officers. “If NGOs want a rural issue covered, they have to push journalists to be interested as they are not taking up these kinds of stories on their own initiative.” Investigative journalism is starting to have a powerful effect on Malawian society, with ministers being fired after stories on corruption were published in the print media. In addition, an investigative story on riverside latrines, which was broadcast on MBC radio, resulted in the government removing these health-hazards. “The level of investigative journalism is quite high. In the past two years, it has really come back to life.” Some newspapers are even providing special resources for this purpose: The Nation, for example, has a dedicated investigative desk, with three reporters and an editor. Their articles are published as features on Fridays and on the weekend. 54 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MALAWI 2012