News

• 2ND TMF CONTENT ANALYSIS
  June 29, 2014

  What defines quality in reporting is the content of your story. TMF’s objective is, among others, to increase the quality of reporting in Tanzania. Through mentorship and practical experience, TMF grantees have the opportunity to work on their skills as journalists. But does this TMF intervention really have an effect on the quality of reporting? In 2013 TMF started analyzing the work of its grantees and compared their work to that of Tanzanian journalists who had not received TMF funding. The first content analysis took place in the second half of 2013. The second and most recent content analysis was completed in April 2014.

  The TMF authors performed better than the non-TMF group in many areas, including:

  -          Rural focus

  -          Average number of sources

  -          Use of authorities and ordinary people as sources

  -          Use of ordinary perspective and, in general, a higher number of perspectives

  -          Providing opposing viewpoints

  -          Providing right to reply.

  TMF uses these findings to monitor the overall perfomance of its grant categories, and to identify areas in which training and mentoring needs to be increased. However, the findings are helpful to everyone in the Tanzanian media industry trying to improve the quality of journalistic work. Please find out more about the content analysis by reading the content analysis reports.

  Content Analysis Report (October 2013)

  Content Analysis Report (May 2014)

• TMF AUDIENCE SURVEY
  May 29, 2014

  Late 2013 TMF commissioned Synovate to carry out an audience survey. The survey itself was done between November 2013 and January 2014. The audience survey looked at the performance of various TMF grantees, as well as views of the public on media and accountability in general. The grantee-specific results of the audience survey are shared with TMF’s grantees so that they can use this information to improve their programming and reach a broader audience. The audience survey forms part of TMF’s monitoring and evaluation framework, and is used by TMF to measure the performance of its grantees and learn lessons for the future. The public section of the report is published here.

  Public version – TMF audience survey

  For those interested to know more about what Tanzanians think about their media, and how they consume media, have a look at our Public Perception Survey that was carried out late 2012:

  TMF Public Perception survey

   

   

• WOMEN BROADCASTERS FELLOWS 2014 ANNOUNCED
  May 23, 2014

  TMF would like to congratulate all overall  broadcast women journalists Excellence in Journalism Awards (EJAT)2013 winners who have been selected for the first ever  TMF Women Broadcasters Fellowship Programme. This is in response to TMF Director’s commitment to fund women winners during (EJAT) Gala at Mlimani City on 14/3/2014.

  The selected broadcasters will be the pioneers of the Women Broadcast Fellowship Programme which will be launched on 30th May, 2014 that will run for six months from June to November 2014.

  1.     Regina  Kulindwa, Afya Radio

  2.     Clara Patrick, Afya Radio

  3.     Peninah Kajura, Afya Radio

  4.     Grace Kiondo , Hits FM

  5.     Khadija  Mzee, Mlimani TV

  6.     Hawa Bihoga, Afya Radio

  7.     Mwamini Andrew, TBC Taifa

  8.     Hawa Halifa Msangi, Kili FM

  9.     Cecilia Ndabigeze, Afya Radio

  10.  Rose Pallangyo, Kilimanjaro Film Institute

  Other fellowships that will also be launched are Extractive Industries for Senior Journalists, Gender-Based Violence for Women, Combating Drugs Trafficking and Preventing Drug Abuse for Senior Journalists and Editors and Television Fellowship for Senior Producers.

• TMF KEEN TO TRANSFORM MEDIA HOUSES
  May 6, 2013

  The Tanzania Media Fund has expressed its readiness to cooperate with media houses in developing creative business models to enable media institutions to transform their operations so that they generate high quality media products.

  In his motivation remarks during the commemoration of the World Press Freedom Day in Arusha on May 3, 2013, the Director of TMF, Ernest Sungura, said TMF was equally willing to formulate strategic plans to see media institutions through growth and development.

  The Director challenged media owners to do soul-searching as to whether their media houses were highly appreciated by readers, viewers or listeners but had a weak professional approach or whether they had credible journalists and editors but were still unable to generate enough revenue.

  “You should go further by asking yourselves whether your media houses have existed long enough but still produce poor quality media products; whether they were alleged to lack editorial independence or lacking in organizational and financial capacity,” asked Mr. Sungura.

  He told the media stakeholders that TMF had established a transformation grant worth Tanzanian shillings 200 million for each media house, explaining that the amount was, however limited to 24 media houses until 2015.

  However, the director was quick to caution that the number one qualification for the transformation grant was not the money itself but that the applicants should be motivated by the transformation or structural change they wanted to bring about.

  “Use this gathering today to identify at least one structural obstacle that hinders quality journalism in your media house and that should be your motivation. It is no secret that when we transform our internal capacities, our media will stand firm and be enabled to do its rightful duty of serving and consequently transforming society,” he expounded.

  Mr. Sungura said the move would also go a long way to creating safer working conditions and enabling environment for journalists and editors to exercise freedom of the press.

  Earlier, in his opening remarks, the Secretary General of the East African Community, Dr Richard Sezibera, called on media stakeholders to invest in the promotion of peace in Tanzania and the entire region.

  “I urge all media practitioners to ensure the promotion of peace in the region. Invest in peace in Tanzania. It is possible to have vibrant debates, divergent views and acute differences but with harmony.

  “Invest in telling our own stories. For so long our region and the entire continent has been defined by others. Let us tell our own stories and tell the stories right. Desist from quoting CNN as your sources when you can tell the story from the ground,” Dr Sezibera advised.

  Over 200 media stakeholders attended the two-day commemoration that was punctuated by presentations and brainstorming under the theme: Safer and better working environment for journalists in East Africa. Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda sent representatives. Members of the diplomatic corps from the Swiss and Swedish embassies also attended the event.

• TMF MEDIA PUBLIC PERCEPTION SURVEY
  April 17, 2013

  TMF believes that good quality journalism and an independent media contribute to an increase in domestic accountability through creating an informed public. In order to find out more about the current public opinion about the media in Tanzania, TMF commissioned a media public perception survey in the last quarter of 2012. The survey questioned 2000 ordinary citizens and 200 community decision makers about their perceptions of the media.

  Overall,the public feels that the Tanzania’s media sector is growing and improving over time. The media sector is serving a news-hungry public that wants the media to keep those in positions of power accountable. However, the public perception survey also points to perceptions of shortcomings in the media, both in terms of the content it provides to the public and the quality of the services it provides. For example, citizens feel that politics is overrepresented in the Tanzanian media, while they are more interested in stories related to health and education. In terms of quality of the media, people were least positive about the quality of newspapers, followed by television. Radio was most appreciated. Nevertheless, even radio is felt to have ample room for improvement in terms of their professionality and diversity of content.

  The findings of the public perception survey serve to guide TMF’s strategy in the coming years, but TMF also encourages others to use this information when planning their media programmes or interventions.

  Full Media Public Perception Survey Report.

   

• TMF UNVEILS MEMBERS OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE
  February 25, 2013

  The Tanzania Media Fund has an eight-strong team of Advisory Committee members with Ms Pili Mtambalike as the chairperson and Mr. Alloyce Komba as the vice chairperson. According to the Director of TMF, Mr. Ernest Sungura, the members were selected on grounds of their independence on how they operate, availability of time, originality of thought, ability to express oneself clearly and decisively and experience and knowledge in their particular sectors. The key tasks of the committee include advising on strategic issues like development, positioning and sustainability of TMF and also to review and advise on the Fund’s semi and annual reports and plans.

  Ms Pili Mtambalike, as the chairperson of the committee, brings to TMF vast experience in journalism and legal issues. She is a founder member of the Tanzania Media Women Association (TAMWA) and its first secretary general for the first six years of its formation in 1987. Ms Mtambalike has also worked as a Communication Officer with UNICEF and the UNDP country offices in Dar es Salaam. She is currently the Regulations and Standards Manager of the Media Council of Tanzania.

  The vice chairperson Mr. Alloyce Komba, a trained teacher and lawyer, is a seasoned journalist with 10 years as a fulltime practicing journalist in print media and 10 years as a media critic, trainer, facilitator and consultant. He is currently employed as a Principal Investigation Officer at the Commission for Human Rights and Good Governance (CHRAGG) since 2006 and is an advocate of the High Court of Tanzania since 2010.

  Mr. Aidan Eyakuze who is a co-founder of Serengeti Advisers – a consultancy firm based in Dar es Salaam with expertise in banking, economic, public policy analysis, media and communications and corporate finance, is a member of the committee. Also on board as a member is Mr. Prudence Kaijage who has broad experience as a development worker with a background of having been the Principal of the Tanzania Centre for Development Cooperation (TCDC) in Arusha.

  A mentor with TMF in the formative years, Ms Vicky Ntetema also sits in the advisory committee to share her vast experience in the electronic media from the then Radio Tanzania Dar es Salaam and later the BBC. The other members are Mr. Ernest Sungura (Director of TMF), Ms Will Janssen (Hivos Regional Office – Kenya), Ms Marjan Besuijen (Hivos – Netherlands) and Ms Sonya Elmer (SDC – Dar es Salaam).

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