Newspapers Should Give Progressive Activists a Fair Chance
Channel: SACSIS
Date: 2010-11-09

SACSIS columnist, Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen, argues that progressive activists should be given a fair chance to get their views into newspapers.

Hassen provides an example of how newspapers ignored civil society's views. As far back as the year 2000 when civil society raised concerns about aluminium smelters and their burden on South Africa's (SA's) electricity supply, they were ignored by the media. But recently when the CEO of a bank said that the way to solve SA's electricity crisis is to close down aluminium smelters, suddenly it became an issue that the media were interested in.

Hassen made these remarks at a roundtable discussion co-hosted by The South African Civil Society Information Service (www.sacsis.org.za) and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung South Africa Office (www.fes-southafrica.org). It took place on September 17, 2010.

The roundtable discussion examined the media's perspective of the South African economy.

Media speakers at the event included, Nic Dawes (Editor in Chief, Mail & Guardian), Alide Dasnois (Editor, Cape Times) and Reg Rumney (Head of the Centre for Economics Journalism in Africa, Rhodes University) and Mondli Makhanya, Editor in Chief of Avusa Media and Chairman of SANEF.

Editors were asked to answer the following questions: Is the economy on the right growth path? What are the prospects for making it more inclusive? How does the media report on the economy? Does the media have a vision for South Africa's economic development?