By Advocate Nyaradzo Mashayamombe
Women’s Rights Advocate and Media Entrepreneur
The rise of digital platforms in Zimbabwe, from podcasts and YouTube channels to blogs, livestreams, and online news outlets, has opened new spaces for storytelling, advocacy, and journalism. This evolution has created opportunities for citizen voices to be heard and for critical issues to find a platform. But it has also ushered in a dangerous gap, the absence of ethical and legal protections for the people whose stories are being told.
Recent developments in Zimbabwe’s digital media landscape have exposed this urgent gap. The widely watched podcast episode featuring Mai Jeremaya, a survivor of gender based violence who had just lost a high profile case in court, raised serious ethical questions. Rather than a platform of empathy and care, the interview unfolded like a public interrogation. At several moments, the guest appeared overwhelmed and caught off guard by questions that reopened deep wounds.
Even if she had requested the interview, the responsibility lies with the storyteller, whether podcaster, blogger, or journalist, to assess the survivor’s emotional readiness, provide safeguards, and most importantly, uphold ethical standards.
Survivors and Citizens Deserve Protection
Survivors of violence, as well as ordinary citizens who find themselves at the center of public interest, deserve more than just an invitation to speak. They deserve protection from exploitation. They deserve platforms that empower them rather than reduce them to tools for engagement and profit.
What made the situation more disturbing was the decision to host Cynthia, whose narrative was intertwined with that of Mai Jeremaya, immediately after the first interview. This amplified public drama and undermined the emotional and psychological safety of the original guest. It may have drawn views, but it also reopened trauma and left the survivor unsupported.
Ethics Must Apply Across All Platforms
Whether you are a podcaster, blogger, influencer, or trained journalist, ethics are not optional. Digital spaces are not free from responsibility simply because they are not traditional newsrooms. Anyone who publishes stories involving real people should be bound by the same principles of accuracy, consent, privacy, balance, and accountability.
Saying “this is what the audience wants” cannot be a license to harm. Sensational content should never override the humanity of the person at the center of the story.
The Need for a Legal and Ethical Framework
Zimbabwe now needs a clear legal and ethical framework that governs all forms of public storytelling, including:
• Podcasts and YouTube shows
• Online and citizen journalism
• Blogs and social media commentary
• Any digital space where personal stories are shared for public consumption
This framework should include:
• Documented informed consent for all interviews and features involving real individuals
• Protection for survivors of violence and vulnerable groups
• A trauma informed approach to interviewing
• The right to anonymity where needed
• Accountability measures for harm caused by reckless reporting
• Registration and oversight of digital platforms under a regulatory body
This is not an attack on freedom of expression, it is a call to protect the integrity of media and the dignity of the people it engages with.
Time for Media Leadership and Enforcement
While POTRAZ has begun conversations around digital regulation, it is time for the Zimbabwe Media Commission, the Censorship Board, and relevant legal authorities to take clear and proactive steps. Media must evolve, yes, but it must evolve with responsibility.
We cannot afford to stand by while public platforms become spaces of humiliation, exploitation, and trauma for those who trust us with their voices.
In Closing
This is a call to every storyteller in Zimbabwe. Whether you are trained or self taught, whether you work in a newsroom or from your phone, your platform holds power. With that power comes the duty to uphold dignity.
Survivors are not content. Citizens are not content. They are people with lives, with histories, and with rights. Let us honor their stories with the care they deserve.
Let Zimbabwe lead in setting the standard. Let us protect our people, not just from physical harm, but from the unseen wounds inflicted through digital carelessness.
Let our media inform, uplift, and heal.
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