The Perils Facing Investigative Journalism in Ethiopia: Media Capture, Deep Polarization, and Government Oppression

In Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous country, investigative journalism currently faces a series of severe challenges: a public mired in ethnic and religious extremism, a sharply partisan private media market with little tolerance for independent reporting, oppressive government regulation, and, not least of all, routine threats, intimidation, and arrests of members of the press. Despite this perilous situation, some journalists still see some “sparks of hope” for watchdog reporting in the country.

After nearly two decades of state media control and propaganda, Ethiopia entered a new era after the overthrow of its longtime military dictatorship, the Derg, in 1991. In the aftermath, a new, privately owned press with diversity of opinions arose, but critical reporting of the powerful still faced numerous obstacles. Two major legal impediments — a 2009 anti-terrorism law and a 2020 hate speech and disinformation proclamation — have made publishing investigations increasingly perilous. There were glimmers of hope for the press when Nobel Peace Prize winner Abiy Ahmed Ali, perceived as a reformer, became prime minister in 2018. Jailed journalists were released, and the media environment briefly improved. However, this optimism was short-lived, and conditions quickly deteriorated.

Indeed, the current state of journalism in Ethiopia remains dire. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked the country 141st out of 180 in its 2024 World Press Freedom Index, a drop of 11 places since just the year before and a 42 spots since 2020. This dire situation has been accompanied by an alarming trend of physically detaining members of the press. A 2022 Center for Advancement of Rights and Democracy report found that, between 2020 and 2022, nearly 60 journalists were arbitrarily detained inside Ethiopia and two were killed. Likewise, a 2023 prison census conducted by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) ranked Ethiopia as second-worst jailer of journalists in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Red Terror Martyrs’ Memorial Museum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, is dedicated to the victims of the Derg government and its brutal campaign to eradicate opposition. Image: Shutterstock

This anti-press hostility and a recent outbreak of regional violence have combined to drive dozens of journalists — including many independent reporters — into exile, according to a 2024 joint report from RSF and CPJ. And for those in the media who have remained, “self-censorship is widespread, including among journalists,” RSF noted in its 2024 World Press Freedom Index analysis of the country. “Ethnic, regionalist and political considerations are a major concern at many Ethiopian media outlets to the detriment of independent, pluralistic and balanced journalism.”

Media Capture

One former editor-in-chief of a well-known radio channel lays out a major obstacle to true, independent reporting in the country. He explains that state or party-owned TV channels routinely produce content that appears investigative, but is really politically motivated and aims to attack certain political groups, individuals, or systems. He adds that media owners, fearful of government repercussions, don’t respect editorial independence and often pressure newsrooms to remove critical news from websites and other platforms.

“Professional integrity among journalists is a significant weakness contributing to the shrinking of investigative journalism,” he says, offering a frank critique of the deep level of state capture across the Ethiopian media landscape. (GIJN is withholding this person’s name out of concern for government reprisals against him for speaking candidly.) This former editor recounted his experience during the conflict between the federal government and the paramilitary Tigray People’s Liberation Front, in which his own plans for investigative reporting were thwarted by government intimidation of his superiors. The prospect of pursuing accountability stories that expose wrongdoing by the ruling government or the powerful is “unthinkable” in most newsrooms, he adds.

Need for Educational Infrastructure

Investigative journalism in Ethiopia is also underserved by the country’s educational system. The first locally written textbook on journalism in Ethiopia was only published early this year by Getachew Dinku and Abdissa Zerai, with support from Fojo Media Institute (FOJO) facilitating its free distribution to the country’s 24 journalism schools.

The Reporter, a private newspaper published in Addis Ababa, is one of the few news site willing to do independent watchdog reporting in the country. Image: Shutterstock

However, it’s worth noting that Addis Ababa University’s School of Journalism and Communication, the country’s largest, offers only one course on investigative journalism at the undergraduate level. While students may pursue papers on investigative journalism independently, the school lacks a distinct and focused field or curriculum dedicated to watchdog reporting.

“Investigative journalism is one of the undiscovered or uncontacted fields of study,” a long-serving journalism professor at Addis Ababa University tells me. “I always wish that the university would at least take the initiative to open an investigative journalism department at the postgraduate level. But for various reasons: lack of skilled teachers, interest of students, potential backlash from the government and so many more factors, the field is overshadowed.”

Dinku, the former director of the Ethiopian Media Authority and a veteran university professor, also notes in an interview with GIJN the ongoing challenges facing the establishment of investigative journalism within educational curricula. “The government begins to label experts as ‘neo-liberal’ and dismisses investigative journalism as a Western construct. There is a clear aversion to the content itself,” he explains. This environment, he adds, offers little tolerance for diverse viewpoints or critical reporting.

Without any changes, Dinku warns that the government will continue to utilize the media predominantly as a tool for propaganda, and render true investigative journalism increasingly difficult.

‘Sparks of Hope’

Maya Misikir, a freelance journalist featured in various international news outlets and a regular speaker at the annual African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC) also acknowledges that “the polarized media landscape hampers basic journalism work, let alone investigative reporting.”

But helping to push back against this trend, Misikir says, have been journalism training organizations with local offices, like FOJO and IMS, although both no longer have a presence on the ground there. In addition, she says regional and international events like the African Investigative Journalism Conference (AIJC) and Global Investigative Journalism Conference (GIJC) can begin to build the next generation of investigators. (As part of this outreach, GIJN has translated some of its resources into Amharic, the official language of Ethiopia.)

She says these forums allow for critical knowledge sharing and even cross-border collaborations between journalists from across the region and the world. They have played a pivotal role in trying to support and rekindle investigative journalism in Ethiopia, despite the many challenges facing it. And she adds: “There are sparks of hope.”

For instance, she notes a recent, detailed investigation by The Reporter, which dug into illicit gold mining activities in the war-torn Tigray region. The report focused on the destination of the contraband gold, primarily the UAE, drawing parallels between the mining sites in Tigray and the infamous blood diamond sites in Congo. This comparison underscored the presence of armed militants and the control allegedly exerted by military officials over these mining operations.

The Reporter’s investigation into illicit gold mining in the Tigray region. Image: Screenshot, The Reporter

Still, she acknowledges some structural issues continue to stand in the way of watchdog journalism, from a highly partisan public quick to dismiss critical reporting, to an opaque government that refuses to release key data and statistics, to the extra costs associated with long-term reporting. Speaking personally, she cites a current investigation she’s been working on for six months with several colleagues. They have yet to publish it, however, due to a frustrating lack of access to information and unresponsive potential informants who fear repercussions.

Going Forward

It’s clear the polarized media landscape in Ethiopia has placed the profession — and investigative journalism, specifically — in a very challenging position. Despite this, some professionals strive to maintain integrity and balance in their work. International events and training in investigative journalism are providing these journalists with new techniques, which they are attempting to implement despite the hostile environment. However, journalists still fear being unfairly labeled based on ethnicity or religion, which deters them from engaging in investigative reporting. The government exacerbates this polarization.

Resurrecting and empowering investigative journalism in Ethiopia will require substantial investment and multifaceted interventions. More rigorous education, stronger efforts to curb polarization, and intensive media literacy training — both on and off the job — are essential to create conditions for improved press freedom and accountability reporting. For a country that will play an instrumental role in the future of the continent, it’s vital that investigative journalism survives.

Ermias Mulugeta is an independent journalist and trainer based in Addis Ababa. His experience includes a tenure as editor-in-chief of the weekly newspaper Addis Maleda, and he participated as a fellow and research presenter at the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in 2023 in Gothenburg, Sweden.