Zimbabwean journalists discuss Uganda, Nigeria, polarization
The second of four peace journalism training sessions for Zimbabwean journalists was held last Friday via Zoom.

This presentation featured Prof. Samuel Odobo discussing the state of journalism in Nigeria, and the difficulty of practicing peace journalism while sandwiched between a censorship-prone government and the Boko Haram terrorist group, which intimidates and threatens journalists.

The second presenter, Gloria Laker from Uganda, related her extraordinary experiences reporting the LRA war in Northern Uganda. She confessed that some of the reporting about the conflict done by her and her colleagues helped to fuel the war. Laker said she “took it as a personal responsibility” to improve reporting about the conflict. Since the war, Laker has been instrumental in spreading peace journalism in Uganda, including launching the Peace Journalism Foundation and Refugees Online Network. The Zimbabwean participants found her presentation fascinating, and inspiring.

I concluded the session by talking about polarization and peace journalism. I discussed a study by Afrobarometer (disputed by one participant) that Zimbabwe is the most polarized country among those surveyed. I gave examples of media fueling polarization around the world in reporting about politics, civil unrest, and even the pandemic. I closed by discussing how PJ might reduce polarizing Covid coverage. These tips included not intruding on victims or their families; not sensationalizing; giving voice to the voiceless poor and marginalized who have been most impacted by the pandemic; and using real experts (virologists, epidemiologists, public health workers) as sources rather than politicians and faux-experts.

My session today was part of a peace journalism training program sponsored by the Rotary Peace Center at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. The project is headed up by Rotary Peace Fellow Patience Rusare. The project will continue with a session November 1, then conclude with a December 1 seminar.