The impact of censorship by silence on journalism

This week, I listened to ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula reintroducing the party national spokesperson, Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri, to the media.

She had been absent from the public for some time and it was great to see her again.

But this is not about Mahlengi. It is about how the ANC has been dealing with the media in recent years.

Perhaps it’s important to include the DA and the EFF. These parties appear to have been cut from the same cloth.

No journalist is their friend unless you are willing to kneel down and polish their dirty shoes, to put it mildly.

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Since the dawn of democracy in 1994 under an ANC government, the media enjoyed unmitigated freedom in line with the Bill of Rights.

This was in contrast to harassment, including detention without trial, telephones bugged and being spied upon by the state under apartheid rule.

That’s not to mention regular crackdown against publications under its strict censorship laws.

But when the ANC took over in 1994, it was a relief for journalists. We began to enjoy unmitigated media freedom. We operated without having to look over the shoulder.

We continued to criticise authorities without fear. We guarded our media freedom jealously. We rejected an ANC attempt to introduce a media tribunal to regulate the media.

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Today, the ANC still respects media freedom, but there is subtle censorship by some of its individuals. Some officials adopt censorship by silence, or selectively speaking to certain journalists and media houses.

All the top political parties prioritise news TV stations over the print media, which they dread to deal with.

Censorship by silence was practised by Pule Mabe and mastered by his successor Bhengu-Motsiri. They would ignore queries from journalists who report critically about the party.

We are not surprised when politicians avoid reporters, because they often have something to hide. One ANC politician and former diplomat once told my colleague Brian Sokutu: “I no longer read your articles because you always criticise us.”

ANC national chair Gwede Mantashe is notorious for calling journalists to correct them about how they “missed the point” in a particular story. You can forgive him because his confrontation is always friendly and, sometimes, he has a point.

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With the EFF, one doesn’t doubt that if they ever tasted power, we will have the worst form of media censorship. Party leader Julius Malema loathes bad press and does not spare his tongue-lashing against the culprits.

He will dress them down during a press conference. Topping his target list is always Pauli van Wyk, obviously for her exposes about the EFF leadership’s alleged graft shenanigans.

Next would be TV journalists Xoli Mngambi and Samkele Maseko, former TV and print journalist Ranjeni Munusamy and, occasionally, senior writer Ferial Haffajee.

The Citizen was also once in Malema’s firing line despite us being one of few newspapers that published opinion pieces by EFF members.

The DA is okay with you as long as you dare not to report negatively about them, otherwise party chief Helen Zille will just brush you aside, if not to tell you where to get off when you call. Later, a grumpy John Steenhuisen would pass you without looking on the way to a TV interview.

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However, these are not scary incidents, unlike in some parts of the world such as Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia.

Media freedom is not a problem in South Africa except for uneducated attitudes of officials who don’t understand that in a democracy, transparency and freedom of the press are key.