Institutionalizing A Media Self-Regulatory Body in Ethiopia: Challenges and Prospects

Abstract

The study has attempted to unearth the challenges and prospects of institutionalizing a media self-regulatory body in Ethiopia. media in-house code of conduct is also a subset of this study. In addition, the study discusses how media self-regulation is strongly attached to freedom of expression. As outlined in chapter two of the study various literatures and the experiences of some countries were taken as a bench mark and nucleus of discussion.

The study employed qualitative, individual in-depth interview and document analysis, and quantitative, structured questionnaires, research methods. Data were thematically analyzed based on related literature reviews, in-depth interviews and findings from questionnaires. Journalism is a profession that highly demands freedom of expression. Freedom to seek, receive and impart information is the backbones or the cornerstones for every single activities of the profession. Freedom of expression is clearly stipulated in the constitution of FDRE and subsequent press proclamations. The outcome of the study illustrates that, there are inhibiting factors which strangled the establishment of an independent and Inclusive media self-regulatory body in Ethiopia. The polarization of the government and the private press, the existence of weak and fragile journalists’ associations, the disagreement among the private press, financial deficiency and little awareness about media self-regulation has made the establishment of a media self-regulatory body in Ethiopia very remote. The findings of the study also indicate that in-house codes of conduct do exist in many media organizations, but they are not put into practice and neither there is an enforcing mechanism. As individual in-depth interviews revealed in-house regulation of media houses is very poor and the codes do remain only on paper. Still codes of conducts are violated and even do not referred while producing any form of journalistic outputs.