Democracy is fragile, media must wake up

THOMAS NKHOMA | Monday November 10, 2025 06:00

Let us be honest. The world feels a little shaky nowadays. Democracy, that word we used to say with such pride, now feels fragile. Since 2019, the global democratic landscape has seen six straight years of decline. Think about that. Six years of backsliding. Elections are more contested, parliaments weaker, and public trust dangerously low. Across the world, the press -that once mighty pillar of democracy - is under siege. And here at home, we would be naïve to think Botswana is immune. I remember covering one of the past general elections in a rural area. It was dusty, hot, but full of hope. An elderly woman would say to me, “Ke batla gore bana ba me ba nne le bokamoso jo bo botoka.” She did not speak about politicians or parties. She spoke about faith in the process. The belief that democracy worked because it allowed her to dream for her children. That faith is what sustains a democracy. But lately, one can feel it slipping, not through violence or coups but through something quieter, the corrosion of trust. Something that we must not lose sight of is that democracy runs on trust. Trust that institutions are fair, that the ballot counts, and that the media tells the truth. But today, that trust is under assault. It is, therefore, because of this assault that I always find myself repeating this: that on social media, misinformation moves faster than our newsrooms can respond. Imagine how artificial intelligence (brilliant but dangerous) can now generate fake statements, images and even voices that sound real.

One deepfake video can spread across WhatsApp groups before a journalist can even open their laptop. By the time truth catches up, the damage is done. On the other hand, sadly so, it has now become common to overhear young voters say, “I don’t read newspapers anymore. Everything is online anyway.” But the “online” they usually speak of is not credible journalism. It is Facebook rumours, TikTok clips and anonymous posts shared without context. That is the new battlefield. And we, as Botswana journalists, are often arriving late to the fight. For years, our media has operated in a space of relative calm. We have not faced the outright repression seen in some countries. No violent newsroom raids and journalists vanishing into thin air. However, we have laws that sometimes make our work difficult, notwithstanding that we have had the freedom to question, probe and tell our stories. Yet perhaps this stability has made us too comfortable. Comfort, after all, breeds complacency and complacency in journalism is deadly. While we debate newsroom budgets and lament the rise of citizen journalism, something deeper is happening. People are no longer sure whether to believe what they read or hear.

WhatsApp “forwards” now set national conversations. Rumours become facts overnight. And by the time the media steps in to clarify, readers have already decided whom to believe. It is tempting to blame technology but the problem is not just digital. It is ethical and professional. Somewhere along the way, our craft lost its edge. We began to chase clicks instead of context, quotes instead of truth. We started attending press conferences as if they were the only sources of news. Conversely, democracy needs more from us than recycled statements. It needs journalists who question, who verify, who dare.

Botswana is often praised as a beacon of stability in Africa and rightly so. However, a stable democracy can still become shallow if citizens are not properly informed. A democracy without an informed public is like a body without oxygen. It looks alive but suffocates from within. If we, the media, fail to give citizens reliable information, we are slowly starving our democracy. I sometimes think of the early newsroom days at the Daily News, when an editor would glance at your story and simply ask, “Are you sure?” It was a gentle but powerful reminder that journalism is not about being first. It is about being right. In today’s social media rush, we have lost that discipline. Perhaps it is time to bring it back. This is not the time for passive journalism. It is a time for purposeful journalism. A journalism that does not just repeat what politicians say but explains what it means for ordinary people in Mahalapye, Gumare or Kanye. Journalism that does not just cover corruption scandals but connects them to how they affect schools, clinics and jobs. Journalism that sees beyond headlines and into the heart of the matter. If democracy is in decline, then journalists must be its first line of defence, not through activism but through accuracy, fairness and courage. Our strength lies not in noise but in truth. Our loyalty is not to the powerful but to the public. That said, the media in Botswana has a proud history. From Kutlwano and Daily News to the emergence of independent voices such as Mmegi and others, we have always found ways to tell our truth, even in difficult times. That spirit must not fade. Not now. Because when democracy trembles, the media must stand taller. Yes, democracy feels fragile, but it is not beyond saving. The antidote is not despair. It is a responsibility. Every story we write, every headline we craft, every fact we verify, these are small acts of democratic defence. We are not just storytellers. We are custodians of public truth. Let us live up to that calling - for our readers, our country and the democracy that still, despite its cracks, deserves our protection.

*Thomas Thos Nkhoma is MISA-Botswana chaiperson