This study explores Zimbabwe’s media legislation, the Freedom of Information Act (FIA), whichwas brought into effect in 2020 to replace previous repressive legislation, the 2002 Access toInformation and Protection of Privacy Act (AIPPA). While the new law has been presented underthe reform agenda of the post-Mugabe administration, this paper explores whether the FIA offersgenuine media freedoms or if it replicates the old law. The study was guided by a qualitativeresearch design, and data was obtained through document analysis and in-depth interviews. Akey finding from the study is that the FIA contains very few changes that differentiate it from therepressive policy that it is replacing. It thus appears that a dual legacy of democracy and mediaauthoritarianism still exists in the post-Mugabe administration, which presents itself as the “newdispensation”.