In Zambia, where Chinese made phones are ubiquitous, news media organisations are at the mercy of
web browsers which serve both as search engines and news aggregators with algorithms that
determine the content users will see.
j.

Corrections page or a linked corrections policy

Nine media organisations indicated on the survey that they have a corrections page. Out of these, only
4 organisations said they shared the corrections policy page with the public. However, a physical
check on websites indicated none of the media organisations had a corrections page. In a follow-up
interview with the respondents, they said that media organisations did make corrections to published
stories whenever an error was brought to their attention. These corrections or retractions were made
public in both electronic and print media.

5. Conclusion
Trust in news is declining globally, and had fallen in almost half the countries surveyed in the Reuters
Institute for the Study of Journalism's 2022 Digital News survey5. Having policies that are well
articulated and accessible to audiences and journalists alike is part of the mechanism that can not only
help insulate news media organisations against attacks on their credibility, but also ensure their
sustainability.
It is important that newsrooms increase the audience's understanding of how journalism works,
especially the decision-making and newsgathering processes that shape how the news is made. This
will differentiate reputable news organisations from other less professional sources. While we have
used some of the more popular and larger media organisations in Zambia as samples for this study, the
media space is quickly shifting, with audiences moving away from mainstream media and towards
other newer means of news consumption such as social media, blogs, or even partisan media that
sometimes masquerade as vernacular or community media organisations.
Our recommendations cover areas of support to media houses to develop up to date policies and
guiding principles for their operations. Systems that rank the trustworthiness of news sites use
AI-driven analysis of a site's structures to score a news organisation's vulnerability to information
manipulation. News sites that do not have easily discoverable editorial policies and ownership
structures will inevitably score low on these metrics, with a potential knock-on effect on revenue.
The awareness of the existence, variety and nature of accountability measures used by media
increases the audience's trust, and news media can improve their relationship with readers by creating
and maintaining an infrastructure of accountability practices that is accessible to those looking for it.

5

Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2022, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, 2022

Cite this report as: Mwale et al, 'Transparency and trust: newsroom policies in Zambia', African Data and Democracy
Observatory, April 2023.
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