SECTOR 2 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: 1.1 (2005 = 1.1; 2007 = 1.9; 2009 = 1.8) 2.4 The editorial independence of print media published by a public authority is protected adequately against undue political interference. he issue of whether or not a public print media exists in Mozambique continues to fuel heated discussions. he newspapers Noticias, Domingo and Desaio are all the property of Sociedade do Notícias, which is registered as a corporation and as such governed by commercial law – not by public law. However, the Bank of Mozambique (the central bank and bank of issue) is the majority shareholder, together with EMOSE (a public insurance company) and Petromoc (the national oil distribution company) both of which are publicly owned. his means that Sociedade do Notícias is private only in a formal sense, but in essence, is a public company given the nature of its majority shareholders and the public capital supporting it. Indeed, the chairman of the Sociedade do Notícias Board of Directors is appointed by the Bank of Mozambique, and it is also common practice for this person to be a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of Mozambique. It is also noted that the Governor of the Bank of Mozambique, who chairs the Board of Directors, is appointed by the President of the Republic, making it clear that his oicial duties (including the appointment of the Sociedade do Notícias Board of Directors) are conducted on behalf of the State. From this perspective, the Sociedade do Notícias publications are part of the public media, and participants felt that their editorial independence is limited. his is evident in the “timid” way they have reported cases of misconduct in public administration in general. In a statement to TVM on the occasion of the 85th anniversary of Noticias in 2011, the newspaper’s Managing Editor recognized that self-censorship existed in the daily, but he maintained that the emergence of the private press had encouraged the newspaper’s professionals to be aware of this phenomenon. It is also common for the Domingo newspaper, in particular, to endorse candidates of the ruling party come election time. Although common AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER MOZAMBIQUE 2011 95