Media Monitoring Africa, Goethe-Institut Johannesburg and the German Embassy invites you to the first event of a landmark series of events where we deep-dive into what the Future of Journalism might look like. Over the last decade, the face of journalism has changed in significant and dramatic ways. In an era where digital media has become the first port of call for keeping up with the latest stories and where news comes from anywhere and in any form, what do these changes mean for the sector at large? Drawing on insights from local and international experts, we explore a variety of different issues such as credibility in the digital age, long-term financing of journalism and what global platforms such as Netflix mean for the media locally.

The rise of disinformation and misinformation poses a serious threat to media credibility and to our democracies. This threat comes at a time when many newsrooms are also decimated due to financial reasons. In this difficult context, how do we build media credibility – in South Africa, Germany and beyond? How do we ensure the existence of a strong, fair and independent journalism that is essential for the protection of our democracies?

Join us for a discussion with a panel of experts to help unpack these issues.

Date: 13 August 2019

Time: 18:00pm

Venue: Goethe-Institut Johannesburg, 119 Jan Smuts Avenue – Parkwood, 2193 Johannesburg

RSVP: fojcredibility.splashthat.com

More about the panelists:

Facilitator- Tsepiso Makwetla (SABC)

Makwetla is a broadcaster and journalist with more than 20 years’ experience in broadcasting and journalism. She has presented and produced prime time radio and television shows at Primedia (94.7) and the SABC ( SABC 3; SABC Africa; SAFM, Special Broadcast News and Current Affairs shows – including being among the first in the country to break the sad news of Tata Nelson Mandela’s passing). She’s currently Anchor of two Current Affairs Programs – Fullview and African Perspective – on DSTV Channel 404; a journalist who’s won awards for her work ( MTN Yello Roses; MTN top actuality program, Azwi development trust) and is an IVLP Edward Murrow Leadership in Journalism alumnae. She’s also spent decades as News and Current Affairs Anchor for SAFM radio and other SABC TV shows such Interface; experience that’s allowed her to be a sought after Media Trainer, Communications Consultant, Conference or Policy Dialogue facilitator and moderator. She is an International Visitor Leadership Program – Edward Murrow Journalism alumni for 2018.

Holger Stark (DIE ZEIT And ZEIT ONLINE- Germany)

Stark joined DER SPIEGEL in 2001 as a correspondent in Berlin, became deputy head of the Germany desk in 2006 and head of the Germany desk in 2010. In 2010, he ccordinated SPIEGEL’s coverage about the “Wikileaks-files”. Since 2013, he is working with Edward Snowden’s NSA archive and has been publishing numerous stories together with his collegaues, including the revelation about the surveillance of Angela Merkel’s cell phone through the NSA. He has been awarded with the Henri-Nannen-Price in 2011 and 2014 together with colleagues. In 2012 and 2013, he has been nominated for the Henri-Nannen-Price. In 2013, he was elected as Germany’s “Journalist of the Year” together with Marcel Rosenbach. Rosenbach and Stark published two bestsellers: “Staatsfeind Wikileaks” in 2011 about the Wikilekas affair and “Der NSA-Komplex” about the Snowden affair. In 2017, he became a member of the boards of executive editors of the German weekly DIE ZEIT. He is also leading DIE ZEIT’s investigative unit.

Dr Glenda Daniels (WITS Media Studies)

Daniels is an associate professor in Media Studies at Wits University. Daniels, also a writer a media freedom activist, completed her PhD in Political Studies at Wits in 2010 on the topic: The role of the media in a democracy: unraveling the politics between the media, the state and the ANC in South Africa after a 20-year career as a journalist in South Africa having worked for a variety of newspapers and magazines including:Weekly Mail, Work in Progress, Mail & Guardian, The Star, The Weekender, Enterprise magazine, and Sunday Times, among others. Her last position in the newsroom was advocacy coordinator at the M&G Centre for Investigative Centre (amaBhungane) in 2011 when she also served on to the first elected national working committee of the Right to Know (R2K), a campaign for access to information and media diversity and freedom. Her book, an academic monograph, Fight for Democracy: The ANC and the media in South Africa (Wits Press, 2012) has been referred to as the first book in post-apartheid SA that analyses the media and the ANC’s relationship using a radical democracy and psychoanalytical theoretical approach.Since 2014 she has served on the council of the South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) holding the position of chair of the diversity and ethics committee. Since 2019 she is a member of the Press Council of SA.

Chris Vick (Spin doctor and Media strategist)

Vick is a communications consultant. He is a director of Black, a Johannesburg-based consultancy specialising in reputation management and crisis communication. Chris trained as a journalist and worked on the Daily Dispatch, the Sunday Tribune and City Press during the 1980s. He also spent several years in the alternative media sector, working on the New Nation, Weekly Mail, New African and Work in Progress magazine.Chris was deployed into government in 1994 and has seven years’ experience as a government communicator: three years as head of provincial communications for then-Premier Tokyo Sexwale, two years at the Government Communication & Information Service (GCIS), and two years as Special Advisor to Tokyo Sexwale when he was Minister of Human Settlements. Chris has written extensively on politics and the media for the Daily Maverick and Business Day, and has dabbled in radio on PowerFM, SAfm and 702. Chris currently advises a number of large corporates and high-profile individuals.

Verashni Pillay (Power FM)

Pillay is the head of digital at POWER 98.7 and founder of www.explain.co.za, a portal aimed at reaching new audiences and making news more accessible. As part of this, she has a WhatsApp video channel where she breaks down current affairs for people, that is fast gaining in popularity. She was previously editor-in-chief of the Mail & Guardian and HuffPost South Africa. She worked as a senior reporter for years covering politics and general news, specialises in media management and relishes the task of putting together the right team to create compelling and principled journalism across multiple platforms. Verashni is a recipient of the CNN African Journalism Award in the digital category, several Standard Bank Sikuvile Awards, an Open Society Foundation journalism fellowship and the 2018 Mandela Washington Fellowship, a programme started by Barack Obama. She was chosen as one of the BBC top 100 global women in 2015, and presented a widely-lauded Tedx talk on cyberbullying in 2018.

Nikiwe Bikitsha (Broadcaster & Journalist)

Bikitsha is one of South Africa’s leading journalists and broadcasters. Her areas of expertise are South African and African politics, business and economic development. Nikiwe is the CEO and Cofounder of a media and communications company, Amargi Media, which conceptualises and creates compelling content; designs and implements effective communication strategies for its partners. During the span of her 22-year career in the media, she has worked as a reporter, producer, anchor and editor for some of the country’s leading broadcasters including Primedia, the SABC and eNCA. Nikiwe holds an MSc in African Studies, University of Oxford, B.A Honours and MA in Journalism and Media Studies, University of the Witwatersrand. In 2012, Nikiwe
was awarded the Fulbright Hubert Humphrey fellowship to the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism in the U.S. where she participated in professional development programmes and taught under-graduate classes. She has won awards for her work in radio, television, print and online journalism. Nikiwe serves as a trustee of the board of the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

Event will stream live on Twitter: @MediaMattersza and you can follow the conversation on Twitter using #FutureofJournalism

For more details, you can contact:
Nomshado Lubisi
Tel: 011 788 1278
Email: nomshadol@mma.org.za