Zimpapers Logo

Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter
PRESIDENT Mugabe has urged the media to report truthfully and avoid being overly sensational so that they do not sully their credibility. The President was speaking at the National Sports Stadium in Harare at the 34th anniversary Independence Day celebrations.
“Now journalists: don’t create stories, don’t exaggerate stories, don’t be sensational unnecessarily in order for your stories to be read or your papers to be sold.

“Write truthfully, write honestly and your paper will be respected. If you are going to be writing chaff, creating stories which are untrue, the people will soon discover that your paper deserves to go to the bin, its rubbish for the bin and there are papers which are just rubbish for the bin,” President Mugabe said.

The President said there were many social issues and ills that needed attention and the media have an important role in bringing these to light.

“There are a lot of stories you can write, the negative side of our social life.

“Vanababa varikubata vana. Write those stories, make them more prominent because we want to kill that disease. Nyaya yekubata vana — we want to kill those rapes.

Nyaya yekuurayana — go and report those murders, we want to destroy those murders,” he said.

President Mugabe has previously chided media organisations that try to boost their sales by using his name.

Government, through the Ministry of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, has set up an Information and Media Panel of Inquiry to look into the operations of the media, including issues of ethics and values among other things.

The committee, chaired by journalist Geoffrey Nyarota is conducting meetings countrywide to record public views on how the media can be developed.