Abstract:
This article reflects on a troubling resemblance between
the times of apartheid-era journalist Nat Nakasa and the
SABC 8, a group of post-apartheid journalists who robustly
challenged a Protest Policy introduced by the SABC’s
Chief Operating Officer in May 2016. The policy in question
restricted media coverage of public protests involving the
destruction of state property and was arguably introduced
as a way to limit public dissent and public participation
in service delivery woes and corruption. I argue that the
implementation of policies aiming to curb public criticism
of the government strongly recalls the National Party
censorship laws aimed at preventing condemnation of its
apartheid policies. Similar to the conditions that defined
the times of Nat Nakasa, a culture of fear and silence is
once again being instilled in journalists at the state-owned
SABC. I further show that apart from the SABC being seen
as a threat to journalists, the introduction of the Protection
of State Information Bill B6D-2010 and the proposed
introduction of the Media Appeals Board are also prominent
examples of the disappointing resemblance between the
current South African governmnet’s actions and apartheid
censorship laws. I conclude the article by arguing that
we are witnessing the emergence of an authoritarian
democracy and that the current relationship between the
media and the state indeed reflect a post-democracy.
