It’s hard being a South African right now. For decades we’ve been the darlings of the world. Lauded for our peaceful transition and held up as a shining example of democracy at work. But the last few months in particular have seen many of us question our place in the world, and what we should be doing to protect and bolster our international reputation – especially when it comes to our place on the global business stage.  

While we battle almost non-existent economic growth and our power utility fights to keep the lights on, one glimmer of hope (in what would otherwise feel like a very grim time), has been how the country’s media have maintained their position when it comes to freedom of the press.

In May, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) rated South Africa fairly highly, coming in at 25 out of 180 on their World Press Freedom Index. Ahead of the US, which came in at 45, but behind Namibia which is at the top of the African cohort at 22. 

The RSF pointed out that media freedom was all the more fragile this year with the Secretary General of the organisation, Christophe Deloire, saying in a statement: 

“The World Press Freedom Index shows enormous volatility…This instability is the result of  increased aggressiveness on the part of the authorities in many countries and growing animosity towards journalists on social media and in the physical world. The volatility is also the consequence of growth in the fake content industry, which produces and distributes disinformation and provides the tools for manufacturing it.”

Must be seen and believed to be effective 

For the real power of a free press to be felt, news mustn’t just be available for the public, but it must also be believed by the public. And it’s here that we face an additional challenge. 

In another of his excellent Financial Mail columns, Chris Roper discusses the findings of another report on the global media – this time the “Digital News Report” of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. One of the trends highlighted is our growing propensity for burying our heads in the sand. 

The report shows that more than a third of people surveyed actively avoid the news. Another trend is that people are getting their news from social media, rather than directly from news sources. In South Africa’s case, 38%, with just 19% getting their information directly from news sites. This is in stark contrast to Finland, where 63% get their news directly from news platforms and just 13% from social media. 

This trend is worrying because we are either actively avoiding informing ourselves, or we are not properly engaging with the news sources. And if we consume news from social media, it means we often see news pieces prefaced by opinions of others which can taint our perception. 

That our kids are believing news from influencers rather than journalists should be deeply unsettling.  

The Reuters study also found that more people are worried about fake news than ever before, with 56% across all surveyed markets indicating that they were worried that they may be exposed to fake content. South Africa, it seems, still has a fairly high trust in our media with 57% saying they trusted the news they consumed, although Roper also points out that trust is down 4 percentage points since last year’s survey.  

Teaching our kids how to consume and interrogate media

If we are going to have a conversation about press freedom and how to protect it, we can’t ignore the proliferation of fake news. It has become an insidious constant in our lives. From AI generated deep fakes on social media to bold as brass political speeches spewing misinformation, deliberate falsehoods are as abundant as the rogue algorithms used to spread them. Perhaps philosopher Bertrand Russell had a direct line to the future when, back in 1932 he wrote: “There are those who blame the Press, but in this I think they are mistaken. The Press is such as the public demands, and the public demands bad newspapers because it has been badly educated.“ 

And this points to another piece of the puzzle. There is no way to look at press freedom and its future without looking at the future of those who need to consume and produce content in the future. Our catastrophic slide down the Progress on International Reading Literacy Study (PILS) to last position is a damning indictment on our education system. And, for anyone seriously interested in the state of the media in South Africa, we have to first pay attention to our readers and future journalists. When our ten year-olds are struggling to read for comprehension, we have to doubt (unless there is urgent intervention), their ability to spot fake news when they reach voting age. 

Why we need to fiercely protect South Africa’s press freedom 

While South Africa’s Constitution still guarantees our right to a free and independent media, we must guard against complacency. Recent trends of attacking the integrity of journalists who pen pieces which portray various individuals and organisations unfavourably, not to mention the threats of physical violence that some journos have faced, all point to a worrying trend. We are not alone in this with daily attacks on the media now commonplace in many countries, both on social media and on tv and radio talk shows.   

Relying on a free press to accurately report on matters, whether business or social, is a given in robust democracies. We can count on investigative journalists to question the actions (and motives) of big business, government and individuals. The threat of being exposed and the consequences of that negative publicity act as a powerful detractor for potential bad actors. And, while crime and corruption still happen in abundance, a robust media can act as a speed bump in the road of those looking to take advantage. 

Having a watchdog that is self-funded and free of government interference creates an environment where business can flourish. Having journalists who can interrogate the decisions and transactions of both public and private organisations protects shareholders, consumers and the general public. It gives us the information we need in order to make good decisions about where to invest our money and who to vote for to keep our country growing and its citizens flourishing. 

And if we truly want to influence the many challenges we are facing as an economy and a country, we have to be particularly vigilant as we enter a new round of electioneering ahead of the 2024 ballots. We have seen just how easily outside actors can shift the online narrative and we will be relying on journalists, editors and publishers to help us quickly identify that meddling when it happens.

As Daily Maverick 168 Editor, Heather Robertson, wrote in her Letter from the Editor in May, “Our work as journalists holding all political parties to account is going to be cut out for us. Day and night. Because the stakes are high. Our very future depends on it.”

Making a difference as individuals to drive systemic change

So, what can we do to help support press freedom in the country? There are a myriad of ways we can help, both as individuals and as organisations. 

First, we can continue to read. Just by consuming and engaging with publications helps them keep the lights on. Media buyers pour over data before they decide on ad spend and every eyeball counts. We can also call out social media commentary that is blatantly promoting fake news. We can’t fight bots, but when more of us make it known that posting dangerous nonsense is not acceptable, people we follow might think before they share it. 

Supporting investigative journalism and the publications that are breaking stories on corruption, crime, government overreach and private sector shenanigans should be a priority for us. Disabling ad blockers for trusted news sites is a small thing, but makes a big difference to those sites that depend on advertising. 

Similarly, setting up recurring payments, however small, to initiatives like Maverick Insider can keep vital investigations going and help broaden their efforts and even train new journos to take the fight to the people who are hoping to get away with corrupt, criminal or unethical behaviour. It’s also vital that we support initiatives like The Outlier, which focuses on data as a means to visualise the world around us, as well as helping and teaching young journos how to effectively use data. Because the best way we can fight fake news is to expose it and that needs irrefutable evidence that only data can give us. 

As PR professionals we can also take a moment to counsel clients, to ensure that they are properly and regularly briefed on the media landscape so they can make more informed decisions. 

We can ensure we deliver relevant, good copy that journos can easily use. As news desks come under increasing pressure we are often the primary producers of copy. We also have a duty to ensure we are sharing copy that doesn’t constitute misinformation. Fact checking is a vital part of the editorial process, and when we add to the job – even by resorting to hyperbole to appease clients – we are adding to the burden. 

We can’t overhaul the education system or single handedly end corruption. But as individuals we can make sure we do everything in our power to protect a free press, and to help those who do have a platform to speak truth to power. We CAN influence the businesses, civil society organisations and even our preferred political parties to take a stand. Because we need them to protect our fragile democracy and secure a future where we can once again be proud of being South African.