(MISA/IFEX) – The editor of the main state-owned daily newspaper “The Herald”, Bornwell Chakaodza, has been dismissed from his post effective 31 October 2000. It is widely believed his dismissal is due to his editorial stance of wanting to move away from open and unquestioning support for the government. “The Standard” newspaper reports that Chakaodza […]
(MISA/IFEX) – The editor of the main state-owned daily newspaper “The Herald”, Bornwell Chakaodza, has been dismissed from his post effective 31 October 2000. It is widely believed his dismissal is due to his editorial stance of wanting to move away from open and unquestioning support for the government.
“The Standard” newspaper reports that Chakaodza was given a letter terminating his services with the Zimpapers Group. No reasons were given in the letter for his dismissal. Chakaodza has been away from the paper since the beginning of September when he was asked to go on leave pending redeployment.
In an interview with “The Standard”, Chakaodza said that after the elections in June, he felt it was time to return the paper to a position of credibility and objectivity, but that he clashed with “power drunk political nonentities who wanted ‘The Herald’ to remain fossiled in the pre-election campaign mode.”
Referring to the pre-election period, during which he admitted that the paper had slanted its editorial to ensure a ruling party victory, he said, “We went out of our way and abandoned all professional ethics as you know them.
“It was not an easy period for us because the journalists – true to their profession – were actually bringing in factual, objective and well written stories. But they did not see the light of day because of the stance we had decided to take in support of the government. The reporters were just as frustrated as we were in the pre-election period.”
Chakaodza said that soon after the elections, he felt strongly that there was no longer any need to continue with a one-sided view of things since the ruling party had won the elections, and the period of irrationality was over. Also, because of the stance that the paper had adopted during the election, circulation had nosedived, resulting in the flight of advertisers.
