FAQ

MCZ is a virtual school of citizen journalism that offers training and mentoring in mobile phone reporting using Story Maker and other digital tools to empower young Zimbabweans to have a voice as well as contribute to the plurality and diversity of news in and from Zimbabwe. Trainees get to publish their stories and gain exposure on the MCZ site, which is patronised by an interested global audience. Following the completion of a training cycle, a participant will have a small portfolio of at least 12 videos that he or she can use to showcase the newly acquired skills. MCZ also regularly runs competitions for Best Citizen Video, which will see excelling contributors win prizes that range from tablets, cameras and laptops and the opportunity to meet with other media professionals among other things. If interested to take part in one of our trainings, simply send us a message by filling in the contact form.

• Accuracy: At MCZ, our trainees and reporters provide accurate and fact-based content that tells authentic stories of communities in and around Zimbabwe.
• Relevance: Our coverage focuses on issues important to the lives of ordinary people; therefore, the presentation of information in our reporting is clear and easily accessible. It is also of immediate value to the audience.
• Balance: The best reporting seeks to represent all sides of an issue, not just the one most aligned to the reporter’s views. Balance of views and perspectives is one of the tenets of MCZ’s editorial policy.
• Respect for diversity: MCZ exists as a platform to share all stories. As such, our reportage do not stand for reportage that stereotypes or biases subjects based on their gender, sexual orientation, age, race, religion, ethnicity, tribe, social status, occupation or any other traits.
• Plurality and diversity of opinions: The overall objective of the MCZ is to contribute to plurality and diversity of news and informational content in and from Zimbabwe by promoting citizen journalism that will empower young Zimbabweans to have a voice and engage local communities in discussions about issues that affect them.
• Professionalism and ethical conduct and reportage: Through a rigorous selection process, MCZ recruits trainees and reporters whose conduct is respectful to the communities they serve, as well as to their fellow community reporters. In our quest to provide informative content, we also emphasize professional journalistic conduct and regulations within the school.

MCZ uses a variety of apps, among which Storymaker and Viva Video. Both are video recording and editing apps enabling existing and aspiring journalists to produce and publish professional-grade video reports with their Android phone. The Storymaker application also comes with an interactive training guide, walkthroughs, and templates for users to follow as they plan their piece and capture media. For Viva Video there are also Youtube tutorials. For audio we currently use Wavepad, an editing app for audio recordings.

You can download the apps mentioned on this site from the Google App store. But there are many more out there. We only mention the ones we used during our trainings.

There will be no payment for stories submitted.