SECTOR 3

board appointments are done by government, while the staff are all employed
as civil servants.

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:

2.1 (2012 = 2.3; 2010 = 1.9; 2008 = 1.7;
2006 = 1.5)

3.5 The editorial independence of the state/public
broadcaster from political influence is guaranteed by
law and practised to ensure balanced and fair news
and current affairs programmes.
While the regulations that establish the two state/public broadcasters are seen
to be quite good on paper in that they stipulate their editorial independence,
in practice they are not free of political influence. Because the chairmen and
directors-general of the two state broadcasters are appointed by the president,
the broadcasters are forced to operate in such a way as not to shed negative
light on the ruling party/government. DGs that were unsympathetic to this biased
approach in the past have not had their contracts renewed and the content,
especially of the news and current affairs programmes, is not balanced and fair,
but with a distinct bias towards the ruling CCM party, which receives more,
positive coverage than opposition parties, which are sidelined.

50

AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER Tanzania 2015

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