Accra, Ghana, November 5, 2026: A journalist can spend the day covering a ministerial press conference, rush to court for a hearing, conduct interviews for a radio bulletin and return to the newsroom to prepare the evening's headlines. The work may continue long after the broadcast ends. The salary, however, may not arrive when it is due.
For some media professionals in Ghana, the challenge is not finding enough work. It is earning enough from that work to live with dignity.
They report, present, produce, edit, photograph, film, investigate and publish. They travel to assignments, sometimes using their own phones, laptops, transport and money. They work weekends and public holidays. They may spend years building an audience for a media organisation, only to find that their own financial security remains uncertain.
Meanwhile, the media business continues to pursue new commercial opportunities. Media brands organise conferences, awards, festivals and sponsored events. They sell advertising, develop digital platforms, seek partnerships and extend their reach into new markets.
There is nothing inherently wrong with these ventures. Media organisations need money to survive, particularly in an industry facing competition, changing audience habits and declining traditional advertising opportunities.
But a difficult question remains: if the media business is finding new ways to make money, why are so many of the people who produce its journalism still struggling to earn a decent living?
The answer matters beyond employment conditions. It affects the quality of journalism, the independence of newsrooms and the public's right to reliable information.
Ghana's journalists are working without adequate security
The 2023 State of the Ghanaian Media Report, produced by the University of Ghana's Department of Communication Studies and the Media Foundation for West Africa, offers a troubling picture of employment conditions in the industry.
The report found that 40 per cent of media personnel surveyed had no contractual agreement with their employers. Nearly half of respondents, 47 per cent, earned monthly incomes of no more than GH¢1,000. Thirty per cent said they experienced frequent delays in salary payments.
The findings also showed that fewer than 40 per cent of respondents received healthcare coverage through their organisations. Provision for paid leave, family support and psychological care was limited.
These are not simply administrative shortcomings. An employment contract establishes the terms of work, the salary an employee should receive, the benefits available and the procedures to follow when disagreements arise. Without one, a journalist may have little certainty about their employment status or the conditions under which they are expected to work.
The report also identified weak structures for promotion and career progression. Recruitment and advancement were often influenced by personal connections, patronage and management discretion rather than transparent procedures.
The researchers described an industry in which professional media work often operates under conditions of precarious employment.
The findings are from the 2023 study and should not be treated as a current salary survey of every media organisation. But they provide evidence of structural problems that media owners, managers and professional associations cannot continue to dismiss as isolated complaints.
When experience does not translate into financial security
One of the uncomfortable features of the media industry is the gap between the value placed on experience and the financial rewards attached to it.
A journalist may spend years developing contacts, understanding institutions, building an audience and acquiring specialist knowledge. Yet professional experience does not always translate into better pay, job security or a clear route to promotion.
The 2023 report found that recruitment and salary arrangements were influenced by how individuals entered media organisations. People brought in through personal connections or headhunting could receive different conditions from colleagues who entered through other routes.
The research also identified gender differences in recruitment. Male media professionals were more than twice as likely as female colleagues to have been headhunted and, in many cases, received better salaries.
This raises questions about how women progress in media organisations, who gets considered for senior positions, whose experience is rewarded and whether women receive equal opportunities to negotiate better terms.
Women in media also navigate workplace pressures that do not always appear in formal employment statistics. Sexual harassment, discrimination, expectations around appearance and the demands of balancing professional and family responsibilities can shape their career experiences.
The 2023 report found that about 60 per cent of respondents' organisations did not appear to have institutionalised systems for preventing harassment and discrimination.
An industry that depends on women's reporting, presenting, production and editorial skills cannot continue to treat workplace protection as optional.
The question is not simply how many women work in the media. It is whether they have equal access to pay, leadership, career progression and safe working conditions.
The business is struggling too. But who carries the cost?
It would be unfair to suggest that every media organisation is making substantial profits while withholding salaries from employees.
The financial viability chapter of the 2023 report found that many Ghanaian media organisations were not profitable and were operating at break-even levels. It identified industry saturation, changing technology, competition from digital platforms and the disruption of traditional advertising as pressures on media businesses.
The COVID-19 pandemic had also damaged revenue and contributed to job losses in an industry already under financial strain.
Media organisations have responded by exploring new business models, including digitisation, conglomeration, events marketing, crowdfunding, facility rentals and content partnerships.
These are legitimate efforts to keep businesses alive.
But the difficult question is how the risks and rewards of those business decisions are distributed.
When an organisation launches a new event, who works behind the scenes to secure sponsors, prepare publicity, coordinate guests, produce content and cover the programme? When a media house expands its digital presence, who creates and manages the content? When advertising revenue falls, whose salaries are delayed? When the business needs to reduce costs, are senior executives and owners affected in the same way as reporters and production staff?
A media organisation cannot demand loyalty, long hours and professional commitment from employees while treating their remuneration as an expense that can be postponed indefinitely.
Commercial survival should not depend on the financial insecurity of the people doing the work.
The hidden cost of poor pay: soli and editorial independence
Low remuneration has consequences beyond household budgets.
In Ghana's media industry, the practice known as soli has long been debated. The term refers to money or other payments given to journalists, often by event organisers or institutions, ostensibly to cover transport or provide an honorarium for attending an event.
The practice is controversial because it can blur the line between legitimate support for reporting expenses and inducements intended to influence coverage.
The 2023 State of the Ghanaian Media Report discussed the relationship between poor pay and journalists' reliance on soli. It noted that professional views on the practice were divided, while few newsrooms had written policies to guide journalists.
This creates a difficult ethical environment.
A journalist who is poorly paid and expected to travel to assignments without adequate transport support may find an event organiser's payment difficult to refuse. But when payments are made by people who expect favourable coverage, the journalist's independence can be compromised.
The public may see a news report without knowing that the reporter received money from the institution being covered.
That is a problem for journalism, but it is also a problem for media management. Employers cannot condemn journalists for accepting inducements while failing to provide the basic resources needed to perform their work.
The solution is not to normalise soli. It is to pay journalists properly, reimburse legitimate reporting expenses and establish transparent policies that protect both journalists and the public.
A newsroom that leaves its employees financially exposed creates conditions in which conflicts of interest become harder to manage.
The journalist pays to do the job
The 2020 Reuters Institute examination of Ghana's media environment also described journalists working with inadequate equipment and resources.
Some journalists reported using personal phones and laptops to carry out assignments. Others described paying their own transport costs to reach news sites and relying on personal resources when their organisations could not provide what they needed.
This raises a basic question about the nature of media employment.
If a journalist is required to travel to cover a story, should the journalist be expected to finance the assignment? If a reporter needs a reliable device to record interviews, should the organisation expect them to provide it personally? If an employee must work late to prepare a programme, what provisions exist for transport home?
These are not extravagant demands. They are basic operational requirements.
Poor resources also affect the quality of journalism. A reporter who must rush between assignments without adequate transport or research support has less time to investigate. A newsroom that cannot provide equipment may struggle to produce strong visual and multimedia journalism. A journalist who is constantly worried about personal expenses may find it difficult to pursue longer investigations that require time and additional resources.
The public may blame journalists for shallow reporting without considering the conditions under which some of that reporting is produced.
That does not remove journalists' responsibility to verify information, respect privacy and uphold professional standards. But quality journalism requires more than individual commitment. It requires institutions willing to invest in the people who produce it.
The risks of being a journalist do not end when the story is published
Journalists face physical, professional and psychological risks in the course of their work. They may be threatened, attacked, harassed online or subjected to intimidation for reporting on powerful individuals and institutions.
The 2023 State of the Ghanaian Media Report found that three in ten respondents had experienced some form of safety or security violation while carrying out their duties. Almost 70 per cent said they knew colleagues who had experienced violations.
The most frequently reported incidents included verbal abuse, intimidation, physical abuse, threats and online harassment.
Yet the report also identified gaps in workplace protection. Half of respondents indicated that their organisations did not provide medical care for journalists who experienced trauma in the line of duty. A significant minority reported having no medical coverage.
A journalist who is attacked while covering an assignment should not have to navigate the financial consequences alone. An employee who experiences trauma should not be expected to return to work without support. A reporter facing legal threats because of a public-interest investigation should know what assistance their employer can provide.
The responsibility to protect journalists does not rest solely with the state or professional associations. Media owners and managers also have obligations to their employees.
A hungry watchdog is a vulnerable watchdog
There is a reason the working conditions of journalists matter to the wider debate about media freedom.
The journalist is expected to investigate politicians, challenge business interests, scrutinise public spending and expose wrongdoing. But what happens when that journalist depends on the same powerful people for financial support, transport, access, accommodation or other forms of assistance?
The Reuters Institute's 2020 account of Ghana's media described how poor remuneration and dependence on inducements could compromise reporting. The 2023 State of the Ghanaian Media Report similarly identified weak employment conditions as a factor that can make journalists vulnerable to influence.
This does not mean that every poorly paid journalist accepts inducements or that every journalist who receives soli produces compromised work. Many journalists continue to demonstrate professionalism under difficult circumstances.
But an industry cannot ignore the conditions that make ethical compromises more likely.
The consequences may include favourable coverage for commercial clients, reluctance to investigate people who provide financial support, uncritical reporting of sponsored events and the suppression of stories that could threaten important business relationships.
It also connects directly to the question raised in Part One of this series: who has the power to kill a story?
A journalist who is financially dependent on an employer, has no secure contract and fears losing their income may find it difficult to resist editorial interference. The problem is not simply that a story may be stopped. It is that the person expected to defend the public interest may have very little protection when doing so threatens their livelihood.
Ghana News Agency: a public-interest institution under financial strain
The financial challenges are not limited to private media organisations.
In September 2025, the Ghana News Agency's management appealed for urgent support, citing severe financial difficulties, high staff attrition and delays in government budgetary releases.
Management told Parliament's Information and Communication Committee that journalists who had financed news coverage themselves were still awaiting reimbursement. The agency's Director of Editorial, Beatrice Asamani Savage, also raised concerns about the inadequacy of the allowances available for journalists travelling on assignments.
The situation illustrates how financial constraints can affect even an institution with an important national public-information role.
The Ghana News Agency supplies news to media organisations and other subscribers. Its ability to maintain a strong reporting network matters to the wider media ecosystem, particularly for coverage beyond Accra.
When its journalists are unable to travel adequately, receive timely reimbursement or remain in the organisation because of poor conditions, the consequences extend beyond the agency itself.
Regional reporting suffers. Newsrooms have fewer reliable sources of original reporting. Communities outside the major cities risk receiving less attention.
A media landscape can have hundreds of radio and television stations and still struggle to sustain the reporting infrastructure that feeds reliable journalism.
What media owners and managers must change
The problems identified in the 2023 report cannot be addressed by telling journalists to be more professional, more ethical or more resilient.
Professional responsibility matters. Journalists must verify facts, declare conflicts of interest, avoid bribery, respect the people they report on and uphold their professional codes.
But media owners and managers must also accept responsibility for the conditions they create.
At a minimum, media organisations should:
Provide written employment contracts that clearly state salaries, benefits, responsibilities and working hours.
Pay salaries on time and establish transparent procedures for resolving payment disputes.
Provide healthcare coverage and reasonable support for work-related injuries and trauma.
Reimburse legitimate reporting expenses rather than expecting journalists to finance assignments.
Establish clear policies on soli, gifts, sponsored coverage and commercial conflicts of interest.
Create transparent recruitment and promotion processes that give women and men equal opportunities.
Establish and enforce policies against sexual harassment, discrimination and workplace retaliation.
Protect journalists who pursue public-interest stories from intimidation and improper interference.
Professional associations, including the Ghana Journalists Association, also need to keep employment conditions on the agenda, not only press freedom, awards and professional recognition.
The public has a role too. Audiences increasingly expect media organisations to provide high-quality journalism, but quality journalism requires investment. Supporting credible outlets through subscriptions, memberships, events and other legitimate revenue models can help strengthen the business case for independent reporting.
That support must be matched by transparency and accountability from the media organisations receiving it.
Who takes care of the people who keep the public informed?
The Ghanaian media industry has grown considerably. It has more platforms, more voices and more commercial opportunities than it did when the Fourth Republic began.
But growth in the number of outlets does not automatically translate into better conditions for the people who work in them.
A media organisation can build a successful brand while its journalists struggle to pay rent. It can organise a well-sponsored conference while reporters wait for salaries. It can celebrate its presenters and award its most visible personalities while the producers, researchers, camera operators and support staff who make its programmes possible remain largely invisible.
The industry must confront that contradiction.
Journalists cannot be expected to hold powerful people accountable while remaining financially vulnerable to the institutions that employ them. They cannot be expected to resist inducements when their employers fail to cover basic work expenses. They cannot be expected to pursue dangerous investigations without meaningful protection.
The Fourth Estate is not sustained by transmitters, studios, microphones, websites or logos alone. It is sustained by people.
If the business grows but the people who produce the journalism remain insecure, the industry must ask what kind of success it is celebrating.
A media organisation's success should not be measured only by its audience reach, advertising revenue, events or brand value. It should also be measured by how it treats the people whose work makes that success possible. The journalist is not a disposable cost of doing business. The journalist is the reason the business has a public purpose.
This is the second part of Gender Lens Africa's series, The Fourth Estate on Sale?, examining media ownership, commercial influence, political pressure, newsroom conditions and the public's right to independent journalism.
