The 2000 parliamentary election was the first Zimbabwean election in which the media situationgave the opposition against ZANU PF president Robert Mugabe a fair possibility to inform thevoters about their politics. Radio and TV organised in ZBC was, to be sure, still controlled byZANU PF, but toward the end of the 1990s a few newspapers opposed to the regime had beenestablished. This paper will, based on my study of the 2000 election campaign (Waldahl 2004),discuss some of the political consequences of this new media situation. More specific I willaddress four questions: In which way did the new media situation influence the election campaignagenda? What did the media tell the voters about the two main opponents’ politics for thecoming years? How did the media present the violent aspects of the election campaign? Whatpicture did the media give of ZANU PF and MDC, and of their leading politicians? The paperwill then conclude with a few general comments about the consequences of a competitive mediasituation for the conduct of a free and fair election.e