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Print and Electronic Daily Media Update #6
Media Monitoring Project Zimbabwe
March 28, 2005

1. Daily Print Media Update No 6.  March 28, 2005
MMPZ was unable to obtain a copy of The Chronicle in time to include its content in this report.

a) Campaigns
TODAY'S Herald continued its partisan coverage of political parties' campaigns by reporting only on ZANU PF activities while ignoring those of the main opposition MDC, smaller opposition parties and independent candidates. This resulted in the paper even ignoring a major MDC rally held at the Zimbabwe Grounds in Highfield yesterday, whose attendance many observers estimated at around 20,000.

For example, out of the seven campaign-related stories the paper carried, five were on the ruling party rallies and the rest were public relations stories passively endorsing ZANU PF's rule. An example of The Herald's failure to fulfil its basic journalistic duties appeared in its story about the unveiling of a housing scheme at Nel Farm in Norton by ZANU PF candidate for Manyame Patrick Zhuwawo. Instead of questioning the timing and motive behind this event, the paper led with a Press conference story in which ZANU PF Secretary for Information Dr Nathan Shamuyarira dismissed Archbishop Pius Ncube's claims, contained in a news report by London-based Sky News, that government was deliberately starving opposition supporters in Matabeleland to force them to vote for the ruling party. Ncube, whom Shamuyarira described as "a mad, inveterate liar" was never given the right of reply. Nor were the authors of the report. In fact, the details of the Sky News report were never given.

The paper's unprofessional conduct was equally reflected by its blatant disregard for balance and fairness when sourcing for comments in its campaign stories, as shown in Fig 1.

Fig 1 Voice distribution in The Herald

While The Daily Mirror also failed to balance Shamuyarira's accusations with details from Sky News or comments from Archbishop Ncube, it ran a side story in which it reported MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai calling on government to "relax its crackdown on NGOs, through the NGO Bill, to resume full-scale food distribution to lessen the impact of a looming drought". Otherwise, the paper gave a balanced presentation of the campaigns of ZANU PF and the MDC although it carried none on the activities of the other contesting parties and independents.

The paper carried nine campaign related stories, five of which were on ZANU PF, three on the MDC and the other was a general opinion article focusing on how various candidates that have since been featured on ZTV have fared. The ZANU PF stories comprised three rallies and a statement defending the party's policies.

The three MDC stories were made up of five rallies the MDC held in Mabvuku

(one), Manicaland (three) and an unspecified one. Because of the paper's failure to explain where the rally took place, MMPZ was unable to ascertain whether it was the one the opposition party held in Highfield yesterday.

A direct reference to the MDC rally was only made in the paper's comment, but only in the context of buttressing the theme that the run-up to the election has been peaceful. The paper merely noted: "MDC supporters going to a rally addressed by Morgan Tsvangirai at Zimbabwe Grounds and a host of ZANU PF supporters in party regalia came face to face, but none chided the other for being in the opposite camp." This notwithstanding, the paper made a fair attempt in sourcing its voices by citing ZANU PF 14 times and the MDC nine times in its stories, all clearly enunciating their party's policies.

None of the media carried news that police had arrested 150 MDC supporters after the Highfield rally for behaviour likely to cause a breach of the peace and that about 70 of them had been detained. International reports noted that the remainder had paid admission of guilt fines and had been released.

b) Administrative Issues
THE Herald carried two stories on administrative issues, which superficially depicted the electoral environment as favourable. One of them merely reported on the SADC observer team leader Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka commending Zimbabweans for the peaceful environment ahead of the elections after a meeting with President Mugabe.

The second story, a comment in the paper, hailed the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission's "new poll measures as laudable" and "best organised" in Zimbabwe's 25 years of "democracy". The critique however narrowly focused on
the positive while ignoring several electoral concerns raised on the matter by various stakeholders. The Daily Mirror did not carry any stories on the electoral framework.

c) Political Violence
THE Herald did not carry any stories on politically motivated violence or rights abuses today. But the privately owned Daily Mirror did. It carried two stories on the topic and recorded one incident of rights abuse by the police. The alleged incident stemmed from claims by outgoing ZANU PF Kadoma West MP Paul Mangwana that riot police had brutalised villagers in the constituency for backing him during the ZANU PF primaries, which he lost to Brighton Matonga.

Although the paper quoted Matonga and police spokesperson Wayne Bvudzijena as denying any knowledge of the matter, an unnamed Kadoma-based policeman was recorded in the same story confirming the beatings. However, he denied there was a political motive to the beatings, saying those assaulted by the police were illegal gold panners. Said the police detail: "According to the information I have, there were some gold panners arrested by the police. However, gold panners usually resist arrest resulting in the police applying minimum force." The remaining story by the paper was an editorial reiterating the peace prevailing in the country and commending the police for a job well done.

2. Electronic Daily Update: March 27th 2005

ZTV rebroadcast five-minute long repeats of manifestos by independent candidates Silas Mangono (Masvingo Central) and Charles Mpofu (Bulawayo South).

a. Campaigns
WITH four days before polling, ZBH continued to give more space to ZANU PF in its news bulletins. For example, 14 (74%) out of 19 reports ZTV carried in its 6pm and 8pm bulletins were on ZANU PF, while four (21%) were on the MDC and one (5%) on independent candidate for St Mary's Tendai Maswata. Two of the four stories on the MDC were belated reports on the party's rally in Bulawayo, which was held the previous day.

Even then, the broadcaster suffocated attendance figures and used close-up shots of the party's leadership addressing the rally without giving a full view to indicate the size of the crowd in its footage. The other two were on a rally addressed by the party's candidate for Zengeza. There was still no report on another main rally the opposition held in Gweru. So biased was ZTV that it chose to cover a small ZANU PF rally in Highfield and ignored the MDC's star rally in the same area attended by thousands of opposition supporters. Its pro-ZANU PF stance was reflected in the time the station allocated to different parties in its 6pm and 8pm bulletins. For example, 72% of the 29 minutes ZTV devoted to campaigns were on ZANU PF campaign activities while six minutes (21%) were allocated to the MDC rallies. The remaining two minutes were devoted to independent candidate Maswata.

Radio Zimbabwe and Power FM were no different. Eight of their 10 campaign stories were on ZANU PF, while the remaining two were on the MDC. The two stories on the MDC merely mentioned in passing that the party held rallies in Highfield and Bindura without giving details. Apart from giving more space to ZANU PF in its bulletins, ZTV also gave Lands Minister John Nkomo a platform through its one hour-long current affairs programme, Talking Farming, to justify and sell to the electorate his party's land reforms. The programme usually features agricultural experts to discuss various farming issues.

Conversely, Studio 7 carried two detailed campaign stories on the MDC. One was on the party's Highfield rally and an interview with MDC candidate for Chimanimani Heather Bennett on her campaigns in the constituency. The station only mentioned in passing two ZANU PF campaigns in Rushinga and Mutoko.

Fig 1. Campaign stories on ZBH stations and Studio 7

b. Administrative Issues
ZBH carried 14 reports on administrative issues, all of which appeared on Power FM and Radio Zimbabwe. The reports were merely announcements on the arrival of African Union observers, the deployment of police to various provinces in the country and updates on the training of polling officers by the Electoral Supervisory Commission. The stations simply restricted themselves to such announcements without asking pertinent questions. For instance, they failed to question who the polling officers were nor explained how many will be present at each polling station. ZTV and Studio 7 steered clear of these issues.

c. Political violence
THERE were no reports on incidents of political violence on ZBH. The broadcaster only carried two reports on the police's efforts to maintain peace and ensure a violence-free poll.
Studio 7 carried a report in which Heather Bennett alleged that ZANU-PF was using food to campaign in Chimanimani. However, ZANU PF secretary for information Nathan Shamuyarira was quoted on ZTV denying such allegations.

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