EDITOR – Many years ago when the Caxton Group and subsequently Tabloid Media House launched their publications of community newspapers, the general public did not respond to the new concept positively.
Many saw this as more an advertorial business and did not pay much attention. Today these very community newspapers are the most read and have played an extremely significant role in keeping the masses informed of local and international events and community happenings. It has also provided a voice to the voiceless.
In Performance Management there is a cardinal saying: “what gets measured gets done” and for us to measure the significance of the role that these very widely read publications have had on the communities that are serving it would be opportune to take stock of how these newspapers have fared bi-annually.
Over the past six months of the year, 2016, there were a plethora of issues raised either by the journalists who investigate and report of matters of local interest or by the many interesting and sometimes provocative letters that the esteemed editorial team publish. These articles have a wide range from political to educational and matters that affect or daily lives. Articles ranged from the municipal elections. university crises, taxation matters, financial issues, medical school woes to the more local issues like noisy vehicles, speed calming measure, crime and even the cutting of grass on the verges.
A cross section of matters that affect our daily lives and these would not have received the attention of the local municipal authorities if not for the local community newspapers. Today with the high cost of living where the majority of people are barely making ends meet the cost of our daily newspapers makes it impossible for the man in the street to buy and its for this reason that these local community newspapers are snapped up from the shopping malls and Service Station Quick Shops. One has to move fast when these newspapers hit the stands to get your free copy.
Its now appropriate to look at issues raised in the past six months and measure the success of the outcome. You will note that some issues have been attended to whilst others have not – the verges in the precinct have been neatly trimmed and cleaned of litter, leaking fire hydrants have been repaired, damaged pedestrian pavements are in the process of being repaired, trees have been pruned, people have become more aware of crime hot-spots, there has been a significant drop in the excessive revving -up of modified cars with modified exhaust systems, the speed claiming devices that were removed by the Municipality and which were supposed to be replaced with the Municipal approved calming measures are seven months overdue, the security at The Gateway Shopping Centre has proven to be ineffective with a recent spate of criminal incidents ( pick-pocketing, theft from cars) and one brazen armed robbery of a jewellery store and the number of beggars and vagrants in the Gateway Complex has increased and this has to be attributed to the lack of effective security.
I've chosen just a few items and one can see that whilst there have been success in getting things sorted there are issues that still need attention. If this process of evaluation can be done from time-to-time we would be in a position to gauge whether the reporting of critical matters is in fact getting the attention of the people who should be addressing these matters.
A quick guesstimate indicates that the reporting through these community newspapers has proven to be invaluable in giving a voice to the voiceless.
Sicario
Durban
