The Historicity of Media Regulation in Zambia; Examining the Proposed Statutory Self-Regulation

Bibliographic Data

ID7513429
AuthorsYoungson Ndawana (0000-0002-1893-8190, Liverpool John Moores University, corresponding author), Joanne Knowles (0000-0001-7192-8023, Liverpool John Moores University), Christopher Vaughan (0000-0002-2126-4537, Liverpool John Moores University)
Year2021
Volume42
Issue2
Pages59-76
Publication date2021-04-03
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican Journalism Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2374-3670 • E-ISSN: 2374-3689
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/23743670.2021.1939749
OpenAlexW3187281790
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited20

The media in Zambia have been in a state of uncertainty since Zambia reinstated democratic governance in the early 1990s. Despite promising initial steps to deregulate the media that started under President Chiluba’s government in the mid-1990s, achieving these objectives in successive years has proved difficult. Successive governments have exhibited increasing aversion towards free and independent media, instead increasing efforts to regulate. This is significant, because comparisons with Kaunda’s autocratic era before 1991 cast the state in a friendlier light towards the media, defying normative theories. After both the Media Ethics Council of Zambia and Zambia Media Ethics Council (ZAMEC) failed as self-regulatory mechanisms in the mid to late 2000s, current state efforts have turned to create a hybrid statutory self-regulatory framework. This is a challenge because Zambia’s democracy has come under pressure from increasing political intolerance. Furthermore, while media professionals support the idea of regulation to strengthen professionalism, they often disagree on the value of statutory self-regulation and its implications. This study used the In-Depth Interview approach on 23 media professionals and documentary analysis to sketch the history and future implications of media regulation efforts in Zambia. Results show a checkered past but present an even more complicated future. The history of the Independent Broadcasting Authority shows that the proposed statutory self-regulatory framework presents more challenges to the media than ever before. This paper aims to contribute to global media studies and specifically the problems of regulation, the state, and media freedom in an African context

Context (archaeology · Democracy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Sociology · State (computer science · Statutory law · Media Influence and Politics · Media Studies and Communication · Social Media and Politics · Law · Public Administration

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