SECTOR 2 2.8 All media fairly reflect the voices of society in its ethnic, linguistic, religious, political and social diversity. Officially, there is a policy in Tanzania, which stipulates that all media in the country must broadcast in the official languages, Kiswahili, or English. Kiswahili is considered the official national language. The promotion of Kiswahili and English above other languages was intended to unify the country and reduce divisions along tribal lines. There is only one type of media, a community radio station called Orkonerei Radio Service (ORS), based in the northern Simanjiro district, which broadcasts programmes partly in Kimaasai (up to 10 per cent of news and sport), as well as Kiswahili and English. It exists to inform the pastoralist-based Maasai people on economic and social issues, including topics such as female genital mutilation. As a result, not all the 120 or so tribal languages spoken in Tanzania are reflected in the media due to this official stance on language, and there is concern that linguistic diversity is limited due to the dominance of Kiswahili and English. Many political parties own newspapers and, especially in the run up to the elections, they can be very biased. Panellists felt that most daily newspapers focus predominantly on politics and sport, with other issues (education, community, environment, social) barely making the news although such topics may be published as features. Some subjects such as homosexuality, which remains a criminal offence in Tanzania, are completely taboo for cultural reasons, and thus issues affecting gay and lesbian people in Tanzania are not reflected in the media. As a result “the media does not reflect, fairly, society’s views”. 32 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER TANZANIA 2012