Maravi

(TALKZIMBABWE) Zimbabwe journalists and the race to the bottom

COMMENT - I e-mailed SW Radio Africa several times over a lie they printed in two of their articles. They didn't even return the e-mail, let alone issue a retraction. So much for professionalism integrity at SW Radio Africa.

Zimbabwe journalists and the race to the bottom
By: Tendai Midzi
Posted: Monday, September 27, 2010 10:30 pm

ZIMBABWEANS are constantly being bombarded with noisy, illiterate negative PR on Zimbabwe, Zanu-PF and President Mugabe. The story becomes more interesting when one 'journalist' throws a silly scrap about Zimbabwe, and all media joins the bandwagon.

It is mystifying just how tripe can make front page news; and how recycling of ignorance can often be passed off as journalism. Last week, a story that featured me as the protagonist made rounds in international media.

The story was based on a lie peddled by pirate radio station SW Radio 'Africa'. I was not surprised by the SW Radio story and would not have responded had it not attracted more attention than was necessary.

SW Radio is at the forefront of recycling ignorance and leads the dirty pack in the anti-Mugabe and anti Zanu-PF agenda. That is no longer a question for debate.

The story was picked up by United Kingdom's The Telegraph newspaper which recycled the lie that I was Zanu-PF former Cabinet minister Amos Midzi's son.

Another paper Global Post picked up on the ignorance and reported lies. Senior editor of that paper Andrew Meldrum ran amok with the story.

Even New Zimbabwe wanted a bite of the "rotten" cherry, lest it got left out in the international round of dirt and the mish mash of gutter journalism.

This is how gutter journalism works. It is parasitic.

This story was a microcosm of the disease found in our media today necessitated by the woeful mediocrity and unreliability of the unacknowledged sources on Zimbabwe. There is a widening network of illiterate and desperate commentators that feed these outlets.

The race to the bottom is astounding. It starts with one journalist waking up to "no bad news on Zimbabwe" and then scrapping for the minutest detail to blow up as news; then passing off that 'news' as more evidence that Zanu-PF does not have the best interests of Zimbabweans at heart.

This is what happened with one Alex Bell from SW Radio on the morning of September 21 2010.

It must be hard working at SW Radio because daily you have to come up with some dirt to dish on Zimbabwe. If there's no dirt on that particular day, you have to "create" it. You use your imagination.

This is done by inviting discredited professors, desperate journalists, pseudo-intellectuals and other "political and economic commentators" to create bad news for you. And they never disappoint.

This includes the likes of the ever ready and ever willing to 'dish the dirt on Zimbabwe', John Makumbe among others.

Alex Bell peddled the lie in a piece entitled, "ZANU PF lashes out at British billionaire over investment".

How I became a spokesman for Zanu-PF is anyone's guess. How my name changed from 'Tendai' to 'Zanu-PF' is shocking. That my opinion was misconstrued as 'lashing out' smarks of journalistic illiteracy and laziness.

How my parentage changed overnight is even more mind-boggling. My father (May his soul rest in peace) must be turning in his grave.

My opinion should never have been taken as Zanu-PF party position; and my parentage should not have mattered. In any case, my opinion is independent of my parentage.

When journalists lie like this, they perpetuate an endless recycling of ignorance and, in this case, this cat’s cradle of mock journalism short-circuited the entire anti-Mugabe media network and exposed its desperation for bad news on Zimbabwe.

Real journalists must resist the temptation of cynicism, ignorance and illiteracy and pursue a battle against journalistic dishonesty and the cognitive sterility it sustains.

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Tendai Midzi can be reached via t.midzi01@gmail.com

Labels: NEOCOLONIALISM, PROPAGANDA, SW RADIO

posted by MrK @ 1:18 PM