President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s spokesman George Charamba says editors should remember the media is the Fourth Estate – after the executive, legislature and the judiciary – and assume that responsibility during the course of playing its watchdog role.
Charamba was speaking at a Zimbabwe Media Commission breakfast meeting for editors at Rainbow Towers in Harare this morning.
Media is sometimes generally called the “Fourth Estate” or fourth branch of government in democracies.
While constitutions only provide for the executive, legislative and judicial branches, the term fourth estate reflects the unofficial but widely accepted role the media plays in society, especially providing citizens with useful information they can use to check government power.
Reasonably free, independent and credible media allows the public to hear a wide diversity and plurality of perspectives – free of government influence – make informed decisions and hold authorities accountable.
Information and knowledge are powerful tools which citizens can use to hold government and public officials accountable to ensure good governance and economic development.
