Unethical Language and Politics: Print Media Coverage of the ZANU-PF Succession Conundrum in Zimbabwe (2014-2017)

Abstract

This article presents part of the findings of a broader study that was conducted to establish how the print media in Zimbabwe (The Herald, NewsDay and Daily News) appropriated and used tweets to cover the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) succession conundrum (2014-2017) and whether there were any ethical and professional violations. A purposive sampling method was used to select 45 articles for analysis. The selected sample of articles highlighted the specific ethical violations in the media coverage of the succession. At least 18 respondents (political journalists, political editors, editors, a politician, audience and political and media analysts) were purposively selected for in-depth interviews because of their direct involvement with the succession issue or as commentators. The study was underpinned by the Propaganda and Gatekeeping Theories, with the former playing a critical role in helping decipher how politicians used propaganda techniques to propagate their ideologies while the latter was constantly used by journalists to include and exclude certain stories through the media ‗gates‘ to suit certain narratives. The data collected were analysed using qualitative content analysis. The study established that journalists used hate speech in their stories – a language that attacks or diminishes, incites violence or hate against groups (Fortuna and Nunes, 2018, cited in Vrysis et al. 2021). Unethical language was also prevalent in screaming headlines such as ―‗Barking‘ Moyo tongue lashed‖ (The Herald, 29/06/17) and ―‗Childish‘ Jonathan Moyo under fire‖ (NewsDay, 25/09/15) and constant use of the word ―gukurahundists‖ mimicking hate speech employed by combined radio and television station RTLM in Rwanda which fanned genocide (Media Professionalism and Ethics in Zimbabwe, 2002). In Africa, unethical political language is often used as a catalyst to trigger genocides, war crimes and crimes against humanity (Gwara and Mare, 2023). This was evident in Rwanda in the years leading up to the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi when the then Rwandan government used all its propaganda machinery, including the media to spread bigotry and hatred against the Tutsi (Ndahiro, 2014). Similarly, during the harsh exchanges between the G402 and Lacoste3 factions, words such as ―gukurahundist‖, ―dissident‖, were often used to attack foes in ZANU-PF, evoking memories of the 1980s disturbances. Use of such language is unethical as media ethics dictate that journalists should desist from using defamatory statements. Such unprofessional conduct may result in journalists losing credibility. Hate language also propels political polarisation which has always existed in Zimbabwe, as the media and journalists are divide along political and tribal lines. The study also established that journalists fanned factionalism in ZANU-PF through publishing stories such as ―Wadyajena mocks G40 ministers‖ (NewsDay, 10/11/15) that constantly brought G404 and Lacoste at loggerheads hence the significance of this study to expose these malpractices and proffer solutions. Therefore, it was recommended that media houses develop an ethics guide for journalists to help them observe and uphold journalism ethics and conduct regular trainings on ethics for media practitioners and journalism students countrywide. The trainings will act as refresher courses for journalists and to bridge the knowledge gap among practitioners.