"The article explores the case of Radio Ndeke Luka, a UN-backed peace radio in the Central African Republic. It investigates whether government intimidation influences the radio’s public watchdog role and, if so, in what ways and to what extent, and whether and how the support of a European NGO and the UN influence the impact of the intimidation. The conceptual framework for framing these questions is established by applying the media watchdog theory to processes of democratisation and interweaving it with peace-oriented media and Althusserian theory. The empirical data are gained through twelve semi-structured individual telephone interviews with journalists, an editorial delegate, local civil society representatives, a former diplomat and the Central African Minister of Justice. The study shows that government intimidation does not transform Radio Ndeke Luka into a lapdog but significantly reduces its bite. It is argued that protecting journalists from intimidation so that they can best act as watchdogs not only requires long-term efforts to change cultures and systems that breed press violence, but also necessitates new approaches that may lead to faster and smaller scale results." (Abstract)