ANC spokesperson Jackson Mthembu accuses the media of refusing to debate concerns raised about the ineffectiveness of its self-regulation mechanism.
According to Mthembu the (print) media is behaving in this manner because it wants to write malicious stories about the country's law-abiding citizens.
The media, Mthembu wants us to believe, writes these malicious stories because it sells newspapers.
So, according to him, the malice with which the media write about law-abiding citizens is driven by the profit motive.
Mthembu either does not understand or deliberately ignores the importance of credibility in the media industry.
A newspaper that loses its credibility with readers cannot sustain itself. Ignoring this fact is a serious affront to the readers, because it is based on the assumption that readers do not know or care about quality of content. Unhappy readers will vote with their feet. This is why some newspapers lose readership while others gain them.
In an article published in Sowetan yesterday Mthembu wrote: "The Media Appeals Tribunal proposed in the ANC discussion document is a means to ensure access to recourse for any South African who is unfairly or maliciously reported on by the media.
"It will complement the existing self-regulatory Press Ombudsman and the SA Press Council, to introduce punitive measures by disaggregating the crimes that can be committed by journalists or media houses within the universally agreed on Press Code of Ethics."
The ANC's proposal is that the tribunal should be a statutory body that will be accountable to parliament.
If the media is to account to politicians, what will become of the truism that in a democracy tension between the media and the government is a necessity?
The SA Press Council has a Press Code of Ethics that the media is obliged to uphold. So what then is this "universally agreed-on Press Code of Ethics" Mthembu is talking about?
If the ANC is indeed unhappy with the sanctions imposed by the ombudsman, why does it then want to tinker with the code of ethics that the press has developed for itself?
This is why the media believes that the ANC's motives for proposing the establishment of Media Appeals Tribunal are sinister.
This perception is aggravated by the manner in which the likes of Mthembu have been responding to the media's rejection of the idea.
Mthembu has argued that instead of contributing to the debate about strengthening the existing self-regulatory mechanism, the media has responded by crying foul and accusing the ANC of trying to undermine press freedom.
The reality is that the media cannot contribute to a debate about the establishment of an institution that seeks to undermine its freedom. A colleague said the ANC's argument that the media did not want to contribute to a debate about how to hold them accountable reminded him of a story he heard in his youth.
The story is about 10 men who are trapped in a mine after a rockfall. To stave off dehydration they every now and then drink their own urine.
But after some days they realise that to survive they need protein.
Late one night while the youngest man among them is asleep the others decide that they will have to kill and eat him. They decide that the process should be as democratic as possible.
The next morning they decide that there should be a secret ballot as to who will be killed and eaten.
They conclude that each man should write the name of whoever he thinks should be the victim. A helmet is used as a ballot box. When the votes are eventually counted all nine have voted for the young man to be killed.
Being a democrat himself, the young man accepts the outcome of the secret ballot.
Last weekend ANCYL president Julius Malema once again called on newspaper editors to contribute to the debate about the establishment of a Media Appeals Tribunal.
Malema said the editors should do so because "whether they like it or not" the Media Appeals Tribunal is going to happen.
His ominous words reminded me of the story my colleague told me. But this time the nine tell the young man the voting will be on how he should be killed.
Knowing Malema's propensity to make accurate "predictions" about the ANC's decisions - who can forget his chilling words on TV in 2008 when he said that Mbeki would not be president of this country the following Monday - Mthembu must know that the media takes his call for an open debate with a pinch of salt.
Is media being asked to contribute to its own muzzling?
ANC spokesperson Jackson Mthembu accuses the media of refusing to debate concerns raised about the ineffectiveness of its self-regulation mechanism.
According to Mthembu the (print) media is behaving in this manner because it wants to write malicious stories about the country's law-abiding citizens.
The media, Mthembu wants us to believe, writes these malicious stories because it sells newspapers.
So, according to him, the malice with which the media write about law-abiding citizens is driven by the profit motive.
Mthembu either does not understand or deliberately ignores the importance of credibility in the media industry.
A newspaper that loses its credibility with readers cannot sustain itself. Ignoring this fact is a serious affront to the readers, because it is based on the assumption that readers do not know or care about quality of content. Unhappy readers will vote with their feet. This is why some newspapers lose readership while others gain them.
In an article published in Sowetan yesterday Mthembu wrote: "The Media Appeals Tribunal proposed in the ANC discussion document is a means to ensure access to recourse for any South African who is unfairly or maliciously reported on by the media.
"It will complement the existing self-regulatory Press Ombudsman and the SA Press Council, to introduce punitive measures by disaggregating the crimes that can be committed by journalists or media houses within the universally agreed on Press Code of Ethics."
The ANC's proposal is that the tribunal should be a statutory body that will be accountable to parliament.
If the media is to account to politicians, what will become of the truism that in a democracy tension between the media and the government is a necessity?
The SA Press Council has a Press Code of Ethics that the media is obliged to uphold. So what then is this "universally agreed-on Press Code of Ethics" Mthembu is talking about?
If the ANC is indeed unhappy with the sanctions imposed by the ombudsman, why does it then want to tinker with the code of ethics that the press has developed for itself?
This is why the media believes that the ANC's motives for proposing the establishment of Media Appeals Tribunal are sinister.
This perception is aggravated by the manner in which the likes of Mthembu have been responding to the media's rejection of the idea.
Mthembu has argued that instead of contributing to the debate about strengthening the existing self-regulatory mechanism, the media has responded by crying foul and accusing the ANC of trying to undermine press freedom.
The reality is that the media cannot contribute to a debate about the establishment of an institution that seeks to undermine its freedom. A colleague said the ANC's argument that the media did not want to contribute to a debate about how to hold them accountable reminded him of a story he heard in his youth.
The story is about 10 men who are trapped in a mine after a rockfall. To stave off dehydration they every now and then drink their own urine.
But after some days they realise that to survive they need protein.
Late one night while the youngest man among them is asleep the others decide that they will have to kill and eat him. They decide that the process should be as democratic as possible.
The next morning they decide that there should be a secret ballot as to who will be killed and eaten.
They conclude that each man should write the name of whoever he thinks should be the victim. A helmet is used as a ballot box. When the votes are eventually counted all nine have voted for the young man to be killed.
Being a democrat himself, the young man accepts the outcome of the secret ballot.
Last weekend ANCYL president Julius Malema once again called on newspaper editors to contribute to the debate about the establishment of a Media Appeals Tribunal.
Malema said the editors should do so because "whether they like it or not" the Media Appeals Tribunal is going to happen.
His ominous words reminded me of the story my colleague told me. But this time the nine tell the young man the voting will be on how he should be killed.
Knowing Malema's propensity to make accurate "predictions" about the ANC's decisions - who can forget his chilling words on TV in 2008 when he said that Mbeki would not be president of this country the following Monday - Mthembu must know that the media takes his call for an open debate with a pinch of salt.
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