The role of the mass media in the implementation of Tanzania's foreign policy

This article surveys the relationship between the mass media and the government in Tanzania with respect to the implementation of the country's foreign policy. It argues that although there is a unanimous acknowledgement of mass media's role in the conduct of foreign affairs worldwide and even among Tanzania's leadership, a lingering suspicion of journalists persits among most government officials which makes them withhold vital information from the country's local mass media. It recommends, among other things, an open dialogue between the officials of the Foreign Ministry and the press in the effort to forge a working relationship that would facilitate wide debate in the conduct of foreign affairs and international issues as it is the case in a socialist democracy.