Chronicle Editor
Simba Jemwa, Online Reporter
INFORMATION, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa has called on local media to work responsibly for the growth and development of the country.
Presenting a paper on ‘The role of Government in safeguarding public interest journalism in a post-news world’ during a workshop hosted by Africa Journalism and Media Summit and Konrad Adenauer Stifting in Bulawayo this morning, the Minister said while the Second Republic was committed to ensuring that journalists in the country operate in a free and fair environment, it was equally concerned with negative publicity that discourages potential investors from doing business in the country.
“My Ministry is concerned about the welfare and safety of media personnel. We are working on ways to address corruption in the sector. However, we need journalists to also play their part by being responsible and avoiding the temptation of tabloid news especially when it comes to national issues.
“Government expects the media practitioners to be accountable and professional in how they conduct themselves as well as to the people of Zimbabwe. Local media must sell Zimbabwe, stories must be factual and build Zimbabwe,” Minister Mutsvangwa remarked.
The Minister pointed out that public interest journalism is journalism that informs the public about matters that they need to know about. She described it as the antithesis of the media’s darker side, which includes fake news, propaganda and censorship.
“Many of you here will testify that the Zimbabwean Government has demonstrated commitment to enabling a conducive environment for the promotion of public interest journalism, restoring trust in journalism and fighting fake news, disinformation and misinformation in a post-news world,” she said.
Minister Mutsvangwa said the Government does not only embrace the media but values its role, adding that the Government is the biggest generator of content and the media is the biggest disseminator of that content.
“At the advent of the Second Republic a decision was made to demystify Government processes and Cabinet decisions, hence we came out with the Post Cabinet Media Briefing.”
The Minister also said they were shifting focus and addressing other challenges that are of concern to the media industry such as the safety of journalists, political polarization, partisan journalism, publishing falsehoods, and decline in training standards, gender discrimination and reports of rampant corruption in the sector.
“Government cannot address these challenges alone. They require concerted efforts by all stakeholders to address them,” Minister Mutsvangwa said. @RealSimbaJemwa
derick.khumalo
Online Reporter