Mugabe's downfall: A new era for Zimbabwe's media?

The media story behind the downfall of Robert Mugabe after 37 years in power. Plus, police vs the press in Uganda.

When the moment finally came, it caught many Zimbabweans - their media included - by surprise: After 37 years in power culminating in a week-long struggle, 93-year-old Robert Mugabe resigned as Zimbabwe's president.

The transition began when tanks rolled onto the streets of the capital, Harare, and a man in a military uniform appeared on the state-owned TV channel assuring everyone that what looked like a coup and sounded like a coup was, in fact, not a coup.

During seven days of constitutional limbo, the country's mainstream journalists - many of whom had spent decades toeing the government line - seemed unsure who they were taking their orders from, or what line they were supposed to take.