CURTAIN COMES DOWN ON JOY TV

Zimbabwe's only privately owned broadcasting station, Joy TV, started in July
1998, closed down on 31 May 2002, bringing down the curtain on Zimbabwe's
botched experiment with broadcasting diversity and carrying the same dream
down with it.

Joy TV closed down after a lease agreement it had with the Zimbabwe
Broadcasting Corporation was cancelled on the grounds that it violated the
Broadcasting Services Act, which was enacted in 2001. Joy TV was leasing ZBC
's second station generally known as TV 2.

The closure of Joy TV leaves the state controlled ZBC as the sole
broadcasting voice in Zimbabwe. Although the Broadcasting Services Act was
enacted in 2001, purportedly to regulate the entry of other players into the
industry, no private station is yet to be licensed to date. The ZBC
therefore maintains its "monopoly".

The short but eventful life of Joy TV faced stern challenges especially
direct interference from the government. This manifested itself in a
"direct" order for the station to drop the BBC news bulletin it broadcast
everyday. Joy TV was also never to allowed to flight local news except
musicals and apolitical documentaries. The reliance of the station on the
ZBC for transmission is largely as seen as having contributed to its failure
to survive as the government could cut it off at any time. The closure of
Joy TV strengthens the calls for the licensing of other players to enter the
broadcasting industry. MISA-Zimbabwe views the Broadcasting Act itself as
needing major amendments if private players are to survive in the industry.
The government has largely ignored the calls to amend the Act, which
virtually makes it impossible for private players to enter the industry. No
foreign investment is allowed into the broadcasting industry and would be
broadcasters would be required to stick to a strictly defined programme
content among many blemishes of the act.

Background

Check alerts of 29 April and 21 May 2002.

END