There are serious deficiencies in our knowledge of the press in Botswana in terms of its
political economy, the professional practices of its journalists, and the editorial content of
newspapers. This paper analyses the newspapers in Botswana. It begins with a general
overview of Botswana and maps the newspaper landscape in the country. It then sets out
some of the key characteristics of the press in Botswana by answering three research
questions. (i) What are the characteristics of the editorial content in Botswana newspapers?
(ii) How does the state-controlled Daily News impact on the newspaper market generally?
(iii) What are the capacities of journalists in Botswana and where might there be areas for
improvement?
The paper utilizes a content analysis of the editorials of the country’s newspapers identifying
the main news agendas and also the sources of information that journalists rely on for their
reports.
It concludes that the Daily News distorts the newspaper market and undermines the private
press; that there is a diverse private press, but that all newspapers rely on powerful voices for
their editorial content to the exclusion of ordinary people; and that while there are many
attributes of the press to admire, there is a need for the capabilities of journalists to be
improved.