INFORMATION and Broadcasting Services Minister Joseph Katema has advised the media in the country against basing their news on gossip because it erodes the public confidence in them.
Dr Katema said the growing demand for information among the public had created fertile grounds for viability of the media in the country.
He said the onus now was on media institutions to take advantage of the growing demand for news by giving people factual information.
Dr Katema said this in Kitwe yesterday when he toured media houses to acquaint himself with their operations.
The minister who toured both the public and private institutions said the public was yearning for information but that it was up to the media to serve the people diligently by reporting factual information.
“If the caliber of information you are giving is gossip, people won’t take you seriously but if you are serious and meet their needs for factual information, they will take you seriously,” he said.
Dr Katema said Government was currently in the process of formulating a media policy on which it expected all stakeholders including the public to have an input on how they want the media regulated.
“We have already prepared questionnaires which we will be giving to all stakeholders to put their input on how they want the media to operate,” Dr Katema said.
He said it was Government’s intention to broaden the news source for the general populace because it believed information was power.
Dr Katema said for the nation to move forward and develop, there was need to have a well informed public.
He said this was why Government had put in place deliberate policies aimed at supporting community radio and television stations.
“Because of this, we are seeing various forms of media houses both private and public and this is good for the country,” he said.
And Information and Broadcasting Services Permanent Secretary Bert Mushala said Government remained committed to recapitalizing the public media but that for now, it had left the mandate to the boards of the respective public media houses to suggest how best to revamp the institutions.
Ministry of Information Director of Press and Media Development Isaac Chipampe accompanied the minister and his permanent secretary on the tour of media houses.
Among those he toured included Zambia National Broadcasting Services Kitwe studios, Catholic-owned Radio Icengelo, Christian Baptist Radio Station, Yar FM and Flava FM.
is this chap telling us that the 90 days promise for a new constitution gossip?
To hell with pf
The party itself is based on gossip, what is the evidence that MPs and Ministers are useless other than open gossip by the president. By the way Katema you are one of useless MPs from Chingola.
TRUE! I mean how can the State media source their news from what is written on someone’s Facebook page?
He is urging for politician friendly media, just like times
And daily mail, unfortunately those papers are too boring
and very predictable.
Is this the chap who was a young doctor at Kitwe Cent8ral in mid 80s after graduating from Russia?
The failure, no roads in chingola constituency. only drainages.
These policies are they sleeping gagging rights. The best way to deal with gossip is face to face discussion or debate not on line reactionary statements that inadvertently confirm that the gossip is true. With the law you are innocent till proven guilty, its media perogative to expose issues and as such without being slanderous etc., and if what media writes doesn’t conform to your standard then its you who needs to prove what they are reporting is wrong…and not by silencing them either. Thus gossip in Zambia usually has a ring of truth to it, particularly with what certain empowered and people in the position of trust are actually doing.