No matter what tactics are used to muzzle, restrict, limit, or censor information, trustworthy information that serves the public good can still find its way to those who matter most: the citizens.
The sustainability of the news media is a precondition for good journalism in the public interest. Thus, economic questions should form part of discussions of press freedom.
South African investigative journalists and civil society played a crucial role in bringing a country in the clutches of patronage networks back from the brink.
While some African countries have shown an improvement in press freedom and freedom of expression ratings, others, including South Africa, are seeing worrying trends and a drop in rankings.
Press freedom has changed little in the past decade. If the African Union is to commit to the principles of democracy, it needs to do more to uphold freedom of expression and protects its journalists.
Namibia’s rise in the World Press Freedom rankings is stunning. The media environment in Africa, too, has improved. But media closures and the harassment of journalists are not yet things of the past.
Global Director of Research, International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) and Research Associate, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ), University of Oxford