At 25 U.S. cents, they are simply too expensive in a country where half the inhabitants live on less than a dollar a day. It is not uncommon to see people huddled in many newspaper vendors corners to read the front pages of newspapers and magazines. Many people would rather have a decent meal with that money, Hokororo says. The situation is worse outside Dar es Salaam, where money is even scarcer. TV and radio are middle-class playthings.
TV is full of ancient American soap operas or dancing Congolese musicians.
The urban youth are absorbing it with gusto, from dress to Western hairstyles. In urban areas, TV is for the tiny minority with bits of money. But the vast majority of Tanzanians are completely out of the picture. In the general elections last October, some rural folk were asked to register to vote for president and members of parliament. I know who the president is, said a peasant.