By Prosper Makene
In Tanzania’s sports media space, where press boxes are still dominated by men and the work is often misunderstood, journalist Magreth Jacob Mtanda has carved out a reputation for preparation, credibility, and thoughtful reporting. Her approach strips away the glamour of match days to reveal what the job really demands: research, judgment, and respect for the people behind the game.
Magreth didn’t fall into sports journalism by accident. Like many reporters in Tanzania, she started with a love for football and a curiosity about why certain stories never made it past the headlines. Over time, that curiosity turned into a method: show up early, read the data, talk to people off the record, and never assume you know the story before you hear it.
Women in sports media are still a minority in TZ. What’s been your experience navigating newsrooms and press boxes?
Walking into most press boxes in Tanzania still means being one of the few women in the room. For Magreth, that meant proving her knowledge of the game and the beats twice as fast. Early in her career, she found that people assumed she was there for lifestyle features or off-pitch stories, not for tactics or transfer details.
The skepticism wasn’t always hostile, but it was persistent. A question about formation would be met with surprise. A follow-up on a club’s finances would get a raised eyebrow. What changed the dynamic was preparation. “If you show up with stats, context, and the right questions, the room shifts,” she says.
Over the last few years, she’s noticed a shift. More female reporters are covering football, athletics, and basketball, and editors are beginning to assign them to main games rather than just sideline features. The change is slow, but it’s visible in newsrooms across Dar es Salaam and beyond. For Magreth, the lesson is simple: credibility comes from the work, not from arguing for a seat. “You earn the seat by making the coverage better.”
What’s the biggest misconception people have about sports journalism?
The public image of sports journalism rarely matches the reality. Many assume it’s just watching a match and describing what happened. In truth, the 90 minutes on TV is only about 10% of the job.
The rest is deadline reporting under pressure, fact-checking transfer rumors that circulate on WhatsApp, negotiating access issues and embargoes, and understanding the contracts, finance, and politics inside clubs. On a busy match day, a reporter might file three versions of a story: a live update, a post-match report, and an analysis piece for the next morning’s edition.
“You’re also dealing with athletes who don’t want to talk after a loss,” she explains. “The real work is source building, context, and making sure you’re not just repeating what the club’s media team wants you to say.” That means verifying a rumor with two sources, understanding why a coach avoids a topic, and knowing when to hold a story for accuracy rather than speed.
How do you balance being objective while still telling the human stories behind the game?
Balancing objectivity with human storytelling requires discipline. For Magreth, objectivity doesn’t mean being cold—it means separating what you feel from what you can verify.
When covering a player after a heavy loss or a coach after being fired, she starts with the facts: the scoreline, the timeline, what was said on record. The human story emerges in the details around those facts—how a captain stayed behind to thank fans, how a young player handled their first start, how a kit manager quietly packed up the bench after relegation.
“The balance comes from tone and structure,” she says. “Report the facts straight, then let the human details breathe in quotes, scenes, and context. You’re not there to be a fan or a therapist. You’re there to help readers understand why this moment mattered to the people in it, without making up motives or emotions.” That discipline matters in a market where rumors spread fast and emotions run high after derby matches.
What’s the hardest interview you’ve ever done, and why?
That judgment is tested most in the hardest interviews. The toughest moments usually come after a loss, a doping case, or when a player is dealing with something personal. Magreth recalls interviewing a coach 15 minutes after relegation was confirmed. The room was quiet. Players were leaving without speaking. The public wanted answers, but the person in front of her was still processing the result.
The challenge wasn’t finding the question, but deciding not to push for a soundbite about blame. “When the person in front of you is clearly upset and you know they don’t want to talk, but the public deserves answers, the skill is in knowing what you can’t ask, how to frame the question so it gives them an out, and when to stop,” she says.
She got a short, measured response that day. A fuller interview came a week later, when the coach had time to reflect. For Magreth, that’s the point: “You get more later if you respect the moment. The hardest interviews test your judgment more than your courage.”
For Magreth, sports journalism in Tanzania is evolving—slowly, but with more women taking center stage and more audiences understanding that the real story often starts long before kickoff. The work is less about being seen in the press box and more about what you bring to it.
And in a field where the loudest voice often wins, her approach is a reminder that preparation, restraint, and respect still carry weight.
