The Value of Independence: Making the Connection Between Quality Journalism and Editorial Control in Rwanda

This study evaluates which type of news outlets—independent or government aligned—produce higher quality stories in the East African country of Rwanda. A number of quality indicators are discussed in context, and hypotheses are proposed based largely on Scott, Gobetz, and Chanslor’s (2008) investment model. The data come from a global project —the Journalistic Role Performance Project— and specifically from a content analysis of 2,644 news stories published by Rwandan media in 2020. Findings reveal that independent news outlets outperform government-aligned outlets on the majority of quality indicators included in the study, especially in regard to story sourcing.