1. Introduction: Contextualising Zimbabwe's Political Climate
             2. Taking Control: Propaganda and Legislation
             3. Press Coverage of the 2000 & 2002 Elections
             In Zimbabwe, the ruling party, Zanu PF, and particularly the President of Zimbabwe, Cde Robert Mugabe, have imposed many legislative and political strictures on the national press in recent years, and have made access to the country difficult and dangerous for foreign journalists.
             The purpose of this essay is to analyse and evaluate the government's intensifying control of the media, and manipulation of other mass communication tools, in Zimbabwe, and to examine the political, social and economic consequences that these measures of absolute control have rendered.
             Introduction: Contextualising Zimbabwe's Political Climate
             At this time, the people of Zimbabwe are faced with many hardships; the economy was, until recently, one of the strongest in Africa, but has been hugely undermined by political wrangling between the government and opposition parties. Massive inflation, escalating unemployment, and a marked decrease in GDP are having a direct effect on the day-to-day lives of the 12 million-strong population. As the government's position becomes more and more challenged, it response is one of unswerving subjugation of both the opposition, and the media which supports it.
             In order to fully appreciate the effects of politics on the Zimbabwean media, and vice versa, it is important to understand the way in which Zimbabwe has developed as a country, and the power that its government now holds over the populace. The remainder of this chapter, therefore, serves as a précis of Zimbabwe's history, and aims to create a context in which the relationship between the Zimbabwean government and the domestic (and to a lesser extent, international) press can be examined.
             The government of Zimbabwe (a former British colony know...