Senegalese private media observed a “day without press”, on August 13, 2024, to protest against the economic and fiscal difficulties which would threaten their survival. This mobilization comes after the blocking of the accounts of certain companies by the tax authorities. Faced with these growing financial difficulties and digital upheaval, the media sector appears to be entering a decisive turning point.
Journalist and researcher Abdou Diaw, who addressed these issues in his thesis Economic model and transformation of print media companies in Senegal: comparative study of adaptation processes in the digital ecosystem (the examples of Le Soleil and L’Observateur ), deciphers these challenges and proposes solutions and reforms to ensure a viable and resilient economic model.
How is the media sector doing in Senegal, particularly financially?
First of all, it seems important to me to recall the typology of the media sector made up of audiovisual, written press and online press. The operation of each of them is based on an economic model that is specific to it. Regarding audiovisual, its economic model is based on resources generated by advertising and state support through aid to the press.
For the written press, the model is based on single-issue sales, support from the Press Support and Development Fund (FADP) and advertising. The same goes for the online press which has an advantage over the written press with advertising on Google. The description of these economic models allows us to appreciate the financial situation of the media sector which, from my point of view, is far from rosy.
What explains this situation?
The situation facing media companies in Senegal provides ample information about their precariousness. It was enough to stop the agreements signed between certain press companies and administrative entities (ministries, executive agencies, general directorates, etc.) – for support in the popularization of their activities – and the control of the tax authorities to see the media come out of their reserve and warn about their situation.
Due to these tensions, some newspapers are suspended forcing journalists into unemployment. Other companies would be in a comparable situation. And the economic motive remains the main factor to explain this situation. It is very risky to rely all your sources of income on conventions and state aid. It is enough for the administration to cut off the tap to plunge these media into a financial crisis.
What are the challenges they face?
The media, as a whole, face enormous challenges of several types. There is the challenge of adapting to digital transformation. The media have not sufficiently anticipated the advent of digital technology in their ecosystem. They use it more for their organizational functioning. And the segment most affected is the written press which has suffered a major blow with competition from free news sites which have disrupted the tabloids. The level of integration of digital at the organizational and editorial levels seems very timid to me compared to the advanced level of evolution of digital.
The other challenge is that relating to the diversification of media in the digital field. If we take the example of press companies, few have succeeded in setting up other digital information channels such as YouTube channels, podcasts or pages on social networks (Facebook, Linkedin…), which have become real pools of information consumers.
This digital ecosystem where information actively circulates is also a favorite place for advertisers. In recent years, we have witnessed an active migration of a large part of the advertising market from traditional media to the online press. Unfortunately, traditional media did not follow suit, suffering a loss of revenue.
To carry out all these innovations, it is essential for press companies to equip themselves with competent, well-trained resource people capable of infusing this new dynamic into their operations. To do this, we must invest in human capital; without forgetting the logistics aspect with the acquisition of modern equipment.
Finally, let us mention the challenge relating to content which remains a major problem. Each medium must have its own specific content.
How do these challenges translate into practice?
First of all, on a financial level, the company continues to lose resources that it should have captured through other digital media and which should have enabled it to generate revenue. On an editorial level, the information offering does not fully meet the aspirations of consumers who are becoming more demanding and who want to read content on connected media (smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc.).
What reforms do you think are necessary to guarantee the survival of the media?
You must first rely on your own internal resources (sales, content monetization, sponsors), then the conventions will come in support. And I hope that at the end of this crisis, press owners will learn lessons in order to find lasting solutions to put in place a viable and resilient economic model capable of coping with shocks.
We must speed up the adoption of the advertising law. The latest texts date from 1983. This regulatory framework has become obsolete, no longer responding to the changes that have occurred in the press sector. For example, advertising on digital platforms is not taken into account by the old texts. A gap is noted regarding the regulations.
We must rethink the terms of granting the Press Support and Development Fund by setting up lines of credit that can serve as guarantees for press companies in order to allow them to take out loans from financial institutions.
It is also necessary to integrate adjustments into the tax code to establish taxation adapted to press companies which have a particularity in relation to the nature of their product.
In the same vein, it is appropriate to initiate a reflection to put in place a regulatory framework compelling GAFAM (the internet giants Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft) to remunerate press companies which provide a lot of content free of charge to these multinationals.
Finally, we must think about setting up a copyright system for journalists.
Is freedom of expression in Senegal in good shape, or is the press subject to political pressure?
Compared to other countries in the sub-region, in Senegal, the press enjoys a certain freedom. However, there is still a lot of work to be done. Arrests of journalists have become more and more frequent. They often lead to imprisonment. Added to this is economic pressure which does not encourage the promotion of press freedom.
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