Media Tuesday - Hot topics and topics that make us hopping mad! 15th November 2011

Posted: 15 November 2011 | News - Newsletter | Categories:

  • Sex, lies and yet another Minister – is this really news?
  • So no news is good news, right? Wrong, if you’re Julius Malema
  • The Electronic Act Amendment Bill – Is this a ghost from the past?

 

First Mbalula, now Gigaba. Are these scandals worth the headlines?

“Gigaba sued over married woman” this was the scorching headline of the Sunday World on the 13th of November 2011. The story started of by explaining how ‘ANOTHER sitting cabinet minister and former ANC Youth League president is embroiled in a messy extra-marital affair controversy’.

 The ‘R 1, 7 million affair’ described by the Sunday World was of course referring to the ANC member and Public Enterprise Minister Malusi Gigaba, whose own public disclosure of sexual  activity comes swiftly after the recent sex scandal involving National Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula. This ‘insightful’ article  goes as far as to inform the readers of how Sandhlane [the poor husband that the wife cheated on with Gigaba] was shuttered [sic] when he discovered Gigaba had been bonking his wife.’

Much in the vein of Media Matters approach to the media treatment of Mbalula’s own sex scandal – we can throw up our hands and shrug our shoulders: so what?  While the story may be of interest to the public, the story makes no effort to show how it is in the public interest.  Unlike City Press in the story on Mbalula, where they sought to provide a public interest angle this story does not. Does this add to the ANC’s call fro a media appeal tribunal?

But what’s your opinion? Is the media right to expose an affair of a public official? Should private remain private – and, indeed – how far can the private stay private when one exists in the public? Is the media right to endorse the dark side of life in the public eye when they inherently endorse public figures through media coverage? What do we even care if “Gigaba is bonking” someone else’ wife? Tell us what you think. 

 

Julius Malema all over the news AGAIN!

This very Bulletin two weeks ago looked at how African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) leader staged a march that garnered extensive media attention, and how this attention was erroneously focusing on Malema’s proclivity towards the more luxurious things in life, rather than what exactly it is he does wrong, and more importantly, why it is wrong. This week, Malema’s face has been plastered across the media because finally the long and dreaded disciplinary hearing involving him and other members of the ANCYL executive committee was concluded. The catch 22 with such extensive media coverage is - whether or not it errs on the side of defamation or glorification- and in South African media it is no secret that Juju for sometime has made the news for all the wrong reasons. It’s as if the media waits for him to say something controversial- or he is just always controversial.  Mondli Makhanya Editor in chief of Avusa this week wrote an article in the Sunday World about the controversial Juju raising very interesting points.

The Mail and Guardian like the other media had their own opinion about the Political Science student, with a story titled, “Malema in exile”. With all the media coverage Malema has received this year, could this be the most balanced coverage Juju has received thus far? Even the worst enemy the ANCYL thought it had, the “City Press”, carried balanced views on the ruling and the way forward.

Is there more to come from Juju? Perhaps no news would be better news in this situation. Is it possible for the media to make something public without publicizing it, per se? What do you think?

 

The Electronic Act Amendment Bill – a lot of power for the Department of Communications, a little bit of coverage by the press…

Television and telecommunications industries aren’t a happy bunch, not with the proposed amendments to the Electronic Act Bill. The major bone of contention is that the proposed amendments have been perceived as threatening to the independence of Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, or, a bit less of a mouthful – ICASA, as the industry regulator.

In addition to this, another major concern is ‘that the ministry wants to have more power over the management of the radio frequency spectrum, a role that might result in a conflict of interest since the government has shares in companies that are interested in accessing the scarce and lucrative spectrum,’.

However, press coverage of the issue has largely been minimal –Business Day is one paper that seems to have taken the matter to task. Is the media really not bothered by this? Media Monitoring Africa has released a statement calling for the withdrawal of this Draft amendment bill and for a comprehensive policy review process on broadcasting.

 

How much did you, or do you, know about this proposed amendment bill? And what does it mean to you? Do you think the media should be talking to this issue? Let us know what you think via our Facebook and Twitter platforms…