Media interest in an election does not stop with the announcement of the result. For them it is a continuing story, leading on to the inauguration of those who are newly elected, the selection of a new government and so on.
For the election authority, however, any formal regulation of the media ends with the announcement of the result. There is one area, however, where a formal media involvement may continue. If there are challenges to the results, this will be a legitimate story that media will no doubt cover. It should do this in accordance with the usual professional standards governing reporting of court proceedings.
An important twist, however, will be if the behaviour of the media itself forms a dimension of a challenge to results. This has been the case in some recent elections, such as Kenya in 1997. Findings of media monitoring projects may be used as evidence and the regulatory methods of the supervisory body may come under scrutiny.
