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Zimbabwe has different mass media — radio stations, television stations, daily and weekly newspapers, several online outlets and numerous internet-based news providers. In short, Zimbabwe has all communication components for a healthy democratic dispensation, and these media have an important role of nurturing this ideal.
Mr George Charamba, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Media, Information and Publicity, recently sensitised journalists on the enormous communicative potential the media has in its ability to construct or completely deconstruct a nation.
“The media should identify the key issues of the day and lessen misrepresentation and where there is conflict, it should temper down the mood of the nation,” he said.
Election time is a volatile and unpredictable period for every nation’s citizens, their future stands to undergo inevitable transformation for better or for worse, depending on the political choices made during a plebiscite. Hunger for pertinent information increases during this period. People are anxious for knowledge that will assist them in making informed decisions. Newspaper sales go up during this period because the media, as the watchdog or Fourth Estate of our society, is better positioned in assuaging this hunger, a necessary ingredient in making decisions.
It is possible for tempers to flare easily as different political ideologies clash — at interpersonal or group level — with the worst scenarios culminating in violence. This scenario can be exacerbated by insensitive and reckless handling of the contentious issues by the media. As society’s cultural communicators, the media should not fan violence but cool temperatures that have a potential of inflaming attitudes and destroying the unity and peace of our nation.
The Rwandan Civil War of 1990 to 1994 goes a long way in showing how the mass media has the potential to obliterate a large chunk of a nation’s inhabitants if conscientious reporting is relegated to the periphery. More than 800 000 Rwandan citizens, a figure which constituted about 20 percent of that state’s population then, were killed, with about 500 000 murdered in three months as two rival ethnic groups, the Hutus and Tutsis, clashed in a war powered by deliberate, blatant media reportage.
From 2000, Western news agencies used media power to convince the entire global village that Zimbabwe had perpetrated an injustice through the fast track land redistribution programme. A crippling 10-year economic recession and illegal western sanctions became some of the more unfortunate consequences.
Deliberate misinformation became common as the whole world was made to believe that the sanctions were targeted at a few individuals yet the entire country’s citizenry languished and continues to languish under their spell.
This is therefore, not the time for the media to embark on baseless sensationalism when reporting on issues with serious election implications.
Truthful accounts of events should be the mainstay of every message to the audiences, but this again is governed by the fact that in communication, what we say is not as important as how we say it. The drive to maintain peace and stability should be the major lubricant in any text directed to a mass audience. Facts though important as they may, cannot be reported in a flagrant and careless manner, especially if they are bound to engender explosive ramifications.
As different players vie for political office, it is the role of the media to scrutinise the eligibility and suitability of the candidates or party in meeting the needs of the electorate. It must allow parties and candidates to debate issues in moderated forums. Mainstream media is accountable to the populace and is obligated to serve the masses in a truthful, transparent and unbiased manner. It should provide accurate facts which people can usefully utilise in making their political choices.
According to the Sadc Electoral Commissions Forum document, a pluralistic media is the cornerstone of any democratic dispensation. “The media have a duty to provide election coverage that gives the voter comprehensive, accurate and reliable information on all aspects of the electoral process. This information will also help to ensure that the voters know and understand their democratic rights and exercise them free from fear, intimidation or coercion.”
Polarisation, between private and public mainstream media remains a challenge in Zimbabwe, but this has the advantage that it makes it possible for the electorate to be served alternative viewpoints, provided that the different angles presented are factual. A condition of this nature does not warrant any deliberate misinformation and misrepresentation of facts by the media concerned.
The problem that might be found in a democracy is when citizens make electoral choices based on falsehoods, with the media having played hoax in issues that affect people’s lives.
Zimbabwean media is owned by a variety of interests: corporate, private individuals and the public through the Government, making it possible for a “marketplace of ideas”. Our media is mandated to bring out accurate, different viewpoints and allow the public to participate in the discussions and ultimately in the elections for choosing the right candidates of their choice, based on true knowledge. Political tolerance is cultivated in this regard, and the media should make this democratic ideal possible.
Voter education before and during election — especially for the illiterate sections of our society — is necessary for effective participation of citizens in a free and fair ballot. The media is best positioned to meet this demand. People should be made aware of the voting procedure, which candidates and parties are contesting, different party manifestos and their analyses, documents needed to vote, polling stations where people can easily cast their vote and analysing individual parties’ and candidates’ pedigrees in rectifying problems bedevilling the society. It is the role of the media to go beyond party or candidate electioneering by analysing the veracity of those claims against the needs of the society.
Elections are due this year, thereby triggering an even elevated commitment for the media to take the centre stage in them as well as the constitutional referendum preceding them. After elections, the media is not expected to rush in announcing electoral outcomes without the approval of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission — as some media did during the country’s 2008 March harmonised elections. They should be professional and ethical in order to avoid societal friction and discord.
Undisputedly, news reportage of election processes should go beyond commercial imperatives and ownership constraints for this democratic process to thrive in the 2013 harmonised elections. For elections to be deemed free and fair, media access, coverage and reportage of events is another critical yardstick used to determine this ideal. The media therefore need to serve the society by toning down conflicts; preaching peace and tolerance, providing accurate and reliable information to the electorate and making sure people are well informed and educated about the voting process.
Aragi Yorro Jallow, editor-in-chief of the UK based Independent newspaper, highlighted the importance of the media in upholding its social responsibility mandate during elections.
“An election, especially in our evolving democracies, lies very much in the public domain. The public interest is always at stake. In matters of public interest, journalism and journalists cannot take a back seat. They are not there for the sake of being there, but as a kind of agent for the public who wants them to report back on developments. People have to know about those who seek their support and their votes. They need to know about their ideas, their programmes and plans for the citizenry,” he said.
• Kudakwashe Mwanza can be reached on 0774027218 or [email protected].
Online Reporter