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There’s been a flurry of activity in Zimbabwe’s print media sector. New dailies have begun publishing while several more media received licenses from the government. These do not include a single broadcast outlet.

By Tawanda Karombo

Harare – After being licensed almost a year ago, two privately run daily newspapers recently hit the streets in Zimbabwe.  The Daily News began publishing late last month while another new daily, The Mail, started publishing earlier this month. The Daily News covers politics in what The New York Times has called an “aggressive” challenge  to President Mugabe’s grip on power.  The Mail takes a more tabloid approach to current events.

Meanwhile, the Zimbabwe Media Commission (ZMC) announced last week that it had licensed seven more publications, including three weekly newspapers and four magazines.

“Yes, we have licensed seven more print publications and these include three weekly newspapers and four magazines,” said ZMC chairperson Godfrey Majonga.  Majonga later revealed the newly licensed publishers and their publications as the following: News Times Media (a monthly financial magazine), Ekxi Investment (a monthly business magazine), Swim Africa Media (a weekly newspaper and bi-monthly magazine), Zimbabwe Heritage Trust (a weekly newspaper), The Joe’s Low (a motoring magazine) and Sentinel Publications (a weekly Christian newspaper).

“We received a call on Monday from the ZMC informing us that our license application for Business Press magazine had been approved,” said Memory Mataranyika, a New Times Media co-director. New Times Media has already launched an associated online version of its business magazine www.finpress.co.zw, which will run as a separate entity.

While some cheered the government’s progress in liberalizing the print media sector, media freedom advocates remain critical of its reluctance to open up the airwaves. Years after the unity government pledged to diversify the media sector, only one broadcaster, run by the state, is operating. Community Radio Harare   is dragging the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe to court over its failure to call for applications for community broadcasting licenses.

Njabulo Ncube, acting chairperson of the Zimbabwe Chapter of media freedom advocacy group Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA), repeated his group’s calls for the government to liberalize the broadcasting sector. He told Voice of America Studio 7 last week that his “organization wants to see independent broadcasters issued licenses without delay.”

Kumbirai Mafunda, chairperson of the advocacy committee of MISA, said the inclusive government has committed itself to opening the airwaves and that there is urgent need for private broadcasters to be allowed to offer such services. He was speaking at a community outreach program organized to raise awareness of the need for the government to live up to its promise to liberalize the print and broadcast sectors.

Newspapers in circulation in Zimbabwe now include The Herald, The Chronicle, The Daily News, NewsDay, The Mail (all dailies); The Financial Gazette, The Zimbabwe Independent, The Standard, Sunday News and The Sunday Mail (all weeklies) in addition to The Sunday Times, which now has a Zimbabwean edition.

Others, such as The Daily Gazette and Zimceleb, have yet to launch since being licensed last year.

 
Tawanda Karombo

Tawanda Karombo is a freelance journalist living in Zimbabwe. He has had experience with financial, business and communication reporting. He can be reached at: tawakarombo (at) yahoo.co.uk

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