IN today's Herald it emerged that the Zimbabwe Media Commission has approved applications from five media organisations that could start operating in Zimbabwe after full certification. This is a positive development to Zimbabwe media and the ZMC should be applauded for fostering media pluralism and diversity which the country has been longing for.
This reporter through the Herald understood that ZMC chairperson Mr Godfrey Majonga in Harare last night said that they had agreed to grant all the applicants registration.
The ANZ’s (Associated Newspapers of Zimbabwe) application to relaunch The Daily News, which was closed some years ago bounced back to life after the Majonga commission saw it fit for them to start publishing.
In addition, it is learnt that,"The ZCTU”, who applied to change the frequency for publication of their publication The Worker — which was a monthly publication — to a weekly, The mail and Alpha Media, The Financial Gazette's Daily Gazette also were given permission to resume operation.
Mr Majonga is quoted in the Herald saying that; the licences are going to be issued immediately and those who receive the licences can start publishing. This will improve the quality of the news production and foster media diversity and pluralism which will make the ordinary citizen to have a wide choice of news consumption.
Another positive development which if take seriously can be healthy to Zimbabwean media is the move to register all foreign publications which ZMC, including on-line media targeting Zimbabweans, must register with the commission.
Mr Majonga said ZMC’s mandate was to allow the public to have wide access to diverse views. Students from higher learning institution that produce media graduates such as Midlands State University , National University of Science and Technology, Harare Polytechnic and others will have opportunities to showcase their talent. This will enable the media fratenity to gain its muscles and recogition that has been always trailing behind
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