SECTOR 2 New Era is to link up with the Republikein distribution network, which includes the Namibia Sun and Allgemeine Zeitung. The Namibian has its own distribution network. All of the daily newspapers, and some weeklies, such as Informanté, have an internet presence, where readers with internet access can read the newspaper online on the day of publication. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country minimally meets aspects of the indicator. 3 Country meets many aspects of indicator but progress may be too recent to judge. 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator. 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator and has been doing so over time. Average score: 3.2 (2005 = 4; 2007 = 3.4) 2.4 The editorial independence of print media published by a public authority is protected adequately against undue political interference. Analysis: The government owns and operates the Namibian Press Agency (NAMPA), the daily newspaper New Era and the Southern Times, a joint venture with the Zimbabwe government. All three receive state funds sourced from taxpayers. The boards of both NAMPA and New Era are appointed solely by the Minister of Information and Communication Technology, while the respective information ministries of Namibia and Zimbabwe appoint the board of the Southern Times. These boards subsequently appoint the editors and the CEOs of these stateowned enterprises. An indication that the Minister is directly involved in the management of New Era is that during 2008 both the Chairman of the newspaper’s board of directors and subsequently the acting chairperson of the board resigned. Both these resignations were reportedly about disagreement between the minister and the chairperson/ acting chairperson over the reappointment of the CEO. 32 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER NAMIBIA 2009