Grupo Medianova owns a portfolio of print newspapers and magazines, the most prominent of which is O Pais, the television station TV Zimbo, and Radio Mais.
Media assets
Television: TV Zimbo
Radio: Radio Mais
Print: O Pais, Exame
State Media Matrix Typology: Captured Public/State-Managed (CaPu)
Ownership and governance
Medianova was a privately owned media company in Angola hence it was always part of our privately owned media database. However, in 2020, the Angolan state took over the group, which prompted us to move it to the state-administered database. In July 2020, the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) of Angola announced its decision to hand over the private media companies belonging to the Medianova group to the Ministry of Telecommunications, IT and Social Communication.
The group was co-owned by army generals and a former vice president. The judicial body explained that the media outlets owned by Medianova had originally been established with state support, which was given as a reason for transferring the company’s assets to the state. Since then, various investors have expressed interest in taking over some of Medianova’s outlets.
In August 2023, the government announced its intention to privatize the group. However, no concrete plans were laid out. Local journalists say that the privatization of the Medianova group does not guarantee that its outlets will gain editorial independence from the state.
Source of funding and budget
According to local journalists and experts, Medianova has been funded primarily through commercial income. For the first time, the company received a government subsidy in 2022, a total of AOA 1.3bn (US$ 2.9m), according to a government budget document consulted for this project.
Editorial independence
After the government took over Medianova, local journalists began to express worries about the potential for the government’s interference in the editorial affairs of the group. Evidence and accusations of editorial interference and censorship started to appear soon after the takeover and continued to this day.
No statue, oversight, or assessment mechanism to validate the editorial independence of Medianova’s outlets have been identified.
June 2024