SECTOR 4 4.6 Journalists and editors do not practise self-censorship in in the private broadcasting and print media. “There are cases of self-censorship. Even in civil society, you think about what you say and how people perceive you and then you speak accordingly, especially when talking about those in power.” “In the face of constant threats, journalists do censor themselves.” “Over time, journalists and media houses have come to learn the issues that are likely to put them in trouble, and try to navigate safely around them by leaving out some sensitive information or abandoning the stories. The self-censorship often comes from the media house owners; more so than the journalists.” “People leave out a lot of stuff for their own safety,” “I got quite scared and I would restrain myself from stories that put my life in danger in the future.” “Once you get a scary call, anyone will think twice.” “When it comes to speaking truth to power and holding leadership to account, there is censorship, particularly where personal risk or commercial risk are involved.” “There is constant tension between the newsroom and the marketing department. The newsroom is sometimes constrained because of the marketing interest.” Media owners might also interfere with the tone of a story. For example, “MTN advertises with us, but we get many complaints from our callers, and the owner wants you to block those calls or put them off. So you have to make the choice to either sacrifice your integrity, or let it go and defend it later. The station had to come up with another policy that if it is not something new, then you have to stick to what was broadcast in the news. If something comes up that you want the newsroom to investigate, you are told, ‘MTN allows you to live, it pays your salary, so how dare you speak about them in that way’. And as the journalist, you don’t want to block your own ability to get paid.” In addition to their efforts not to step on their advertisers’ toes, owners are also concerned about the issue of liability, and might block a story that could end up in the courts. “But self-censorship is sometimes misguided based on a reporter’s perception that certain things won’t run. If it is an investigative story, if for any reason we have to drop a story, the journalist must be involved, and will have to agree. But it’s very rare for us to drop an investigative story unless you fail to 72 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER UGANDA 2016