SECTOR 3

However, religious programming is only Christian and ignores other faiths
practiced in Namibia. There are no programmes aimed specifically at sexual
minorities, and rural people are largely left out of the broadcaster’s programming,
possible as a result of lack of funding that prevents journalists from travelling to
outlying areas to cover stories.
In terms of music, NBC TV caters predominantly for urban kwaito fans. The 10
radio stations, however, have a very broad music coverage overall. Members of the
public can submit their own music videos to NBC TV and, as long as they meet a
few basic criteria, they will be broadcast.

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:			

2.9 (2005 = 2.4; 2007 = 3.3)

3.10 The state/public broadcaster offers balanced and
fair information reflecting the full spectrum of diverse
views and opinions.
Analysis:
NBC radio and television seem to have – as one panellist put it – a “split
personality”, manifesting in radio and TV news bulletins having different angles:
TV news as a rule tends to report first what the president or a minister said or did
and focuses on the governing SWAPO, at the expense of other political parties
and organisations or individuals deemed not to be supporting the governing party.
NBC radio seems to have a less rigid approach with a strong focus on development
issues. However, “burning issues of the day” are often neglected.
NBC TV journalists often fail to get different views on an issue, mostly going
with the SWAPO view, and thus not creating a balanced story. This was a step
back from apparent progress mentioned in the 2007 report, where it was noted

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AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER NAMIBIA 2009

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