US embassy cable - 05GABORONE154

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 GABORONE 000154 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
AF/S FOR DIFFILY, AF/PD FOR DALTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, BC 
SUBJECT: CHALLENGES FACING BOTSWANA'S MEDIA 
 
REF: (A) 04 GABORONE 1506 (B) GABORONE 56 
 
1. (U)  SUMMARY:  While Botswana enjoys a relatively free 
press, public and privately-owned media face a number of 
challenges.  State-owned outlets, the primary source of news 
for most Batswana, generally feature uncritical reporting on 
the government and are susceptible to political 
interference.  Independent news sources struggle with slim 
resources, low professional standards, and strict government 
controls on access to information.  Public and private media 
institutions have made attempts to address these 
difficulties with limited success.  U.S. assistance in the 
form of funding to train journalists, sponsoring exchange 
programs, or advocating press freedom, remains important to 
sustain and expand this pillar of democracy in Botswana. 
END SUMMARY 
 
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PUBLIC MEDIA DOMINATE 
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2. (U)  The public media dominate the supply of news and 
information in Botswana.  The GOB-owned Radio Botswana 
covers almost all of the country and is the primary source 
of news for most Batswana.  Radio Botswana 2 provides sports 
and entertainment programming.  The government distributes 
the Daily News newspaper (circulation 65,000) free of charge 
Monday through Friday.  In 2000, the GOB established 
Botswana Television, which produces its own news and current 
events programming. 
 
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PUBLIC MEDIA PERCEIVED AS PRO-GOVERNMENT 
---------------------------------------- 
 
3. (U)  While the state-owned media enjoy greater resources 
than their private-sector counterparts, they are often seen 
as providing pro-government reporting.  In June 2002, then 
Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration 
Daniel Kwelagobe remarked that Radio Botswana "is there to 
broadcast and disseminate government policies and programs." 
Critics dubbed BTV "BDP-TV" for its tendency to favor the 
ruling Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) in its coverage of 
the 2004 election campaign.  Other recent complaints 
involved the cancellation of programs or columns that were 
perceived to give greater voice to dissenting opinions (Ref 
A). 
 
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PUBLIC MEDIA SUSCEPTIBLE TO POLITICAL MANIPULATION 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
4. (U)  Contacts in and out of government report a concern 
about the potential for political manipulation.  In August 
2004, then Minister for Communications, Science and 
Technology (MCST) Boyce Sebetela told the press that the 
state-owned media were "government departments falling under 
the direct control of a minister."  This attitude of tight 
control over the state-owned media appears to have cost BTV 
some talented young journalists who reportedly resigned in 
frustration with perceived mismanagement by the Government. 
A contact at the MCST indicated that, during the 2004 
electoral campaign, reporters frequently expressed anxiety 
about whether their coverage would offend a member of 
parliament or minister.  Another official at a state-owned 
medium indicated that before the Mogae administration, 
ministers had routinely interfered in editorial decisions. 
While President Mogae is generally perceived as appreciating 
the importance of a free press, contacts expressed some 
apprehension about what might happen after he resigns, 
probably during the next three years. 
 
5. (U)  The independence of state-owned media, or lack 
thereof, is not uniform, however.  The MCST exercises less 
control over editorial decisions at the Daily News, for 
example, than at BTV.  While the Ministry established a 
policy governing BTV's coverage of political rallies during 
the 2004 electoral campaign, the Daily News was not hampered 
by such restrictions. 
 
6. (SBU Noforn)  In an interview with the independent 
Monitor newspaper published on January 10, 2005, former MCST 
Minister Sebetela depicted some of his more controversial 
decisions as coming from the cabinet rather than himself. 
Sebetela refused to say whether he agreed with the December 
2003 cancellation of the radio call-in show Masa-a-sele, in 
which callers frequently criticized the government, for use 
of profanity.  He stated that he merely implemented a 
cabinet decision.  Although this interview's objective was 
probably to improve his own image, Sebetela's account 
accords with other reports that senior cabinet officals, not 
Sebetela, were the source of tension between the government 
and the media (Ref B).  This suggests that skepticism about 
thoroughgoing freedom of the press is not limited to a few 
aberrant ministers. 
 
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INDEPENDENT PRESS: RELATIVELY FREE BUT FLAWED 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
7. (U)  Although Botswana's independent media enjoy relative 
freedom, they generally do not provide high- quality 
reporting.  Botswana's ten privately-owned newspapers are 
the primary source of independent news in Botswana.  Their 
combined circulation, according to the publications 
themselves, exceeds 183,000-and, as everywhere on this 
continent, one edition has multiple readers.  Despite 
complaints that the GOB has withheld advertising to punish 
dissent, they did not shy away from criticizing government 
policies and personalities.  Their article, however, 
frequently included grammatical mistakes, factual errors, 
and insufficient distinction between reporting and 
editorializing.  Since little investigative journalism 
occurs, most articles are based on press releases, press 
conferences, hearsay and/or speculation. 
 
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LACK OF RESOURCES COMPOUNDS PROBLEMS 
------------------------------------ 
 
8. (U)  Funding is the biggest difficulty facing privately- 
owned newspapers.  Aside from South African chain-stores 
with branches in Gaborone, there is relatively little 
commercial demand for advertising.  Consequently, government 
agencies have been the most important buyers of advertising 
space.  The 2003 decision to begin selling advertising space 
in the Daily News created new pressure on these papers 
because the state-owned publication could easily underbid 
them.  According to the Managing Editor of Mmegi, the 
leading independent paper, revenues from government ads fell 
from 25 percent to 2 percent of Mmegi's advertisement income 
in the last twelve months. 
 
9. (U)  Lack of resources contributes to problems in the 
quality of reporting these independent media can provide. 
Budgets for travel and training typically are limited, 
restricting opportunities to investigate stories or upgrade 
skills.  Given Botswana's small and tightly interwoven 
elite, journalists are reluctant to investigate stories that 
might offend individuals in a position to cut off access to 
advertising revenue or information. 
 
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GOB GENERALLY NOT FORTHCOMING 
----------------------------- 
 
10. (U)  While the GOB generally respects freedom of the 
press, its tendency toward secrecy limits the degree to 
which the press can act as a watchdog.  Despite a 
recommendation by the Ombudsman in 1999, the GOB has yet to 
implement freedom of information legislation.  When a 
controversy concerning defense spending arose in the mid- 
1990s, then Minister for Presidential Affairs Ponatshego 
Kedikilwe asserted that it was "unacceptable" to expect him 
to answer a question about reported military purchases from 
other countries.  A series of corruption scandals in the 
early 1990s produced no ironclad protection for 
whistleblowers but enhanced controls on official 
information. 
 
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MASS MEDIA BILL: THE CUDGEL BEHIND THE DOOR 
------------------------------------------- 
 
11. (U)  In addition to its reluctance to share information 
with the press, the Government has been weighing a proposed 
mass media bill that would increase its power to regulate 
the media.  The prospect of a legislative clampdown has 
loomed over the media since 1997.  Former Minister Sebetela, 
himself no friend of the private media, described the bill's 
provisions, including the registration of newspapers and 
searches of newspaper offices by police officers, as 
"draconian."  The Media Advisory Committee, chaired by the 
MCST Minister, has begun work on a new draft bill acceptable 
to the private press.  This has led some insiders to 
conclude that the immediate threat has passed.  The 
Government resurrected the bill in 2001 when it appeared to 
be dead, however, and could do so again if the media push 
their rights too far. 
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CONCENTRATED OWNERSHIP A LIABILITY 
---------------------------------- 
 
12. (U)  Concentration of ownership characterizes the 
private media.  The Mmegi Publishing Trust, which owns 
leading independent newspapers Mmegi and Monitor, also owns 
Setswana-language weekly Mokgosi and has a majority stake in 
the firm that owns the Midweek Sun and the Guardian.  In 
addition, it is part owner of independent radio station Gabz 
FM.  According to a senior manager at a paper owned by Mmegi 
Publishing Trust, the former MCST Minister had indicated the 
GOB's intention to enact anti-trust legislation targeting 
this company in an effort to undermine its dominant position 
in the private media sector.  He had not heard whether the 
current minister intended to pursue this tactic as well. 
 
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NEW MINISTER FOR COMMUNICATION 
------------------------------ 
 
13. (U)  After the October 30, 2004 parliamentary election, 
Pelonomi Venson replaced Sebetela as Minister of 
Communication, Science and Technology.  Minister Venson 
began her tenure by hosting a series of consultations with 
stakeholders in the various sectors she oversees.  While 
some welcomed this gesture of openness, other contacts were 
confident that she would eventually adopt an adversarial 
mode like her predecessor.  Nonetheless, one media 
interlocutor noted that the Minister had expressed concern 
to her about the lack of trust between politicians and 
journalists and had sought her ideas on how to bridge that 
gap, suggesting that her outreach might be more than just a 
gesture. 
 
14. (U)  An incident of alleged editorial interference in 
late January illustrated the sensitivity surrounding the 
operations of the state media.  After viewing a television 
news bulletin, Minister Venson reportedly contacted the news 
editors over her concerns that a particular story might 
expose BTV to liability for defamation.  She denied any 
intention to interfere with the public media but conceded 
that her ministry is responsible for "gate-keeping".  As 
long as a cabinet minister exercises such direct oversight, 
suspicions that she will abuse that authority to bias media 
coverage personal or partisan political interests will be 
inevitable. 
 
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EFFORTS TO IMPROVE STATE AND PRIVATE MEDIA 
------------------------------------------ 
 
15. (U)  The public and private media took steps in 2004 to 
address their respective shortcomings.  On December 21, the 
National Broadcasting Board (NBB), an autonomous body 
composed of members from civil society and the private 
sector, licensed Radio Botswana.  The NBB will now monitor 
the content of the state-owned broadcaster to ensure that it 
adheres to the provisions of the license.  It plans to 
license Radio Botswana 2 and BTV, perhaps as early as 2006. 
Earlier in 2004, the independent media established a Media 
Complaints and Appeals Committee to provide a mechanism by 
which media professionals themselves can deal with 
accusations of unethical behavior. 
 
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ENDURING CHALLENGES 
------------------- 
 
16. (U)  Better training is a key ingredient to improving 
the quality of journalism in Botswana.  Unfortunately, the 
state of media education is poor.  The University of 
Botswana's Media Studies Department is only three years old. 
It has relied on several American Fulbright professors and 
journalists on Knight and McGee fellowships to fill its many 
vacant teaching positions. The department also has suffered 
a lack of leadership after one chairperson died suddenly and 
was replaced by an acting head from another country who will 
soon give way to a successor who lacks a background in 
journalism.  The fledgling department struggles to teach 
young people the nuts and bolts of print and broadcast 
journalism. 
 
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COMMENT 
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17. (U)  Botswana's media sector clearly needs assistance. 
The challenges facing the public and private media are 
complex, entrenched and long-term.  U.S. assistance through 
PD programs has nurtured freedom of the press and its 
attendant responsibilities in this country.  The U.S. should 
continue to sustain and help to expand press freedom in 
Botswana.  More exchanges involving journalists, funds for 
training and speaker programs, digital video conferences, 
and continued free press advocacy can fill crucial voids in 
supporting an effective media that can deepen the roots of 
democracy in Botswana. 
 
HUGGINS