Image matters most to any right thinking human being. Worse one that wields the levers of power and seeks to manufacture consent.
There’s an opportunity to improve the media sector in Zimbabwe, at least on the basis of positive policy pronouncements and legislative intent.
To put things into perspective, in a free market, journalism is supposed to mainly be funded through sales or subscriptions and advertising revenue. With the latter being the main source. 
That some of them do so from the misinformed view that whoever appears on television is powerful and by extension has some extra coins, is neither here nor there.