…as digital news takes centre stage
By Daniel Phiri
NATIONAL Aids Council (NAC) says it has decided to hold an HIV and Aids media workshop for digital and online journalists because it has realised that their articles have a wider reach.
New media has literally taken over the way information is communicated with the world slowly turning to the digital space for almost everything including news.
Zimbabwe has many online newspapers operating in and outside the country, owing to huge operational costs involved in running print media.
Addressing the media at the workshop, NAC communications officer Tadiwa Pfupa said the workshop’s objective is to furnish Online journalists with skills that will lead to increased, positive, constructive and accurate coverage of HIV/ Aids issues.
“With online, there is need for accurate information because your stories can go far and wide as compared to print newspapers which can only circulate within the country.
“The other objective is to equip journalists with skills that enable them to positively, constructively and accurately handle HIV and Aids issues. To highlight Zimbabwe’s position with regards to the 90 by 90 targets and ending Aids,” she said.
Zimbabwe like many other countries on the African continent and the world has seen an increasing in internet users since 2010 when the country adopted the multi-currency regime and removed duty on ICT related products.
According to Potraz statistics, Zimbabwe which has a population of around13 million people currently stands at 41.1 percent in terms of national internet penetration rate.
However social network has been the major mover of internet usage thanks to affordable promotional bundles that are periodically offered by networks and this has seen the facebook usage in Zimbabwe jumping from 146 637 in 2016 to 850 000 in 2017 according to a report by Internet World Stats.
