The media in Tanzania covers varied topics. Development issues (education, health, agriculture, environment, water) have emerged as the most covered topic (30%), followed by contentious issues (conflicts, social problems, corruption, good governance, Gender Based Violence (GBV), which accounts for 25%, and economic issues (infrastructure, oil and gas, employment, trade) for 22%. On the other hand, political issues play a minor role, as it accounts for only 10% of the coverage, with research findings hardly covered by the media (1%). The media mainly cover development largely because it is the main topic preoccupying government leaders and officials as part of the socio-economic agenda. Since the media’s coverage is largely based on official information these leaders provide, the likelihood of the media prioritising such issues is high. Political coverage attracted less coverage in this study because there were few political activities in the country during the period under review. Nevertheless, political discussions are a permanent feature on lively online platforms such as Twitter space and clubhouse.
