In the earlier times, Ethiopian Emperors were very conscious of public opinion. They had tried to know the public sentiment through norms of popular voices; such as ‘እረኛ ምን አለ/Eregna min ale’ and ‘አዝማሪ ምን አለ/Azimari min ale’. Today, newspapers, magazines, radio, TV and the Internet are the media of the public sphere where social realities are described, debated, contested and advocated. This notion of public sphere becomes evident in newspaper op-eds that reflect public opinion and help shape it.
An op-ed is an informed expression of opinion in which attentive citizens interchange issues over general public interest. It is a page opposite to the editorial of the newspaper where public deliberation takes place and rational opinions are formed. Although it has a common purpose, it is known by different names in different newspapers such as ‘Op-Ed’, ‘Agenda’, ‘Viewpoint’, ‘Free Opinion’ and so on.
To understand the role and mission of op-ed page, first it is better to know its origin. The idea of an op-ed was first started in 1921 with Joseph Pulitzer’s “The New York World” newspaper. Its concept was different in many ways from the modern day op-ed that started by The New York Times on September 21, 1970. The New York Times started the social space of op-ed page as a way to include diverse perspectives and opinions from writers and thinkers who are not already affiliated with the paper.
An op-ed is the flagship of the newspaper journalism. It is created to be an open marketplace of ideas that constitutes the public sphere in which politicians, policy makers, opinion leaders, researchers, intellectuals, professors and other professionals present their ideas on issues of public agenda. To put it in another way, op-ed is an institutionalized site of citizen discourse in which mutual matters are made sense of.
In pluralistic democracies, op-eds are one of the most important sources of knowledge and information about public attitudes and opinions. As an influential outreach method, op-ed page provides a vehicle for experts and non-experts. Those who have made research on op-ed journalism underscore that op-ed writing is the act of public problem solving.
As a journalistic forum, newspaper op-ed section first appeared in Ethiopian press in times of political reform and democratizing discourse. For example, Berhanena Selam newspaper, which was established during the then regent Ras Teferi (later Haile Selassie I) regime in 1925, had become a public forum for airing progressive ideas and views by some of the young intellectuals of the country at that time. In similar vein, following the downfall of the Imperial regime, Addis Zemen entertained diverse views under its opinion columns, ‘እኔም አሳብ አለኝ/I have a Thought’ and ‘የአብዮት መድረክ/Revolution Forum’, about two years. The same happened during the transition period of Ethiopia, 1991-1995. It has to be mentioned that the watchword of Derg regime, ‘ኢትዮጵያ ትቅደም/Ethiopia First’, was widely announced on the op-ed page of Addis Zemen newspaper. In a related case, Meles Zenawi, the late Ethiopian Prime Minister, published consecutive articles in his name on The Ethiopian Herald op-ed page against the European Election Observation Mission (EU-EOM) report and U.S. Congress Statement on the 2005 infamous elections.
Op-ed page can be manipulated by varies interests. This is a common practice in undemocratic countries. For instance, in Ethiopia, the op-ed pages of state-owned newspapers were apparently limited to serve only the ruling party voices for the last two decades. Editors of the now defunct Addis Neger independent newspaper once exposed such practices when they fled Ethiopia by the government pressure in November 2009. In their interview with VOA Amharic, they disclosed that the op-eds in state-owned newspapers were not simple opinions from an ordinary person rather it was coming out of the government office hidden as public opinion. They added that op-ed pages of both Addis Zemen & The Ethiopian Herald were strategic spaces where party cadres with fake names defame, criminalize, label and accuse opposition figures and dissenters.
Unlike the last 27 years, the current reformist administration has ensured freedom of opinion expression in the country. The op-ed pages of state-owned newspapers are now in a position to entertain diverse views and perspectives. Taking into account the transition our country found in, it is the moral responsibility of all Ethiopians, who have knowledge, experience, expertise and/or concern, to opine on ongoing political, economic and social events so that the mass public could have common understanding on national matters.
Ed.’s note: The author is staff member at the Department of Journalism & Communication, Hawassa University. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in Media and Communication at AAU. He could be reached at batlast@gmail.com.
The Ethiopian Herald July 29, 2020
BY BELEW ANLEY
