Beeld’s new editor, Johan de Wet, will not bow to politics, but claims he will be led by the news, writes Jacquie Golding-Duffy
He is not arrogant, but soft-spoken, seemingly quite laid-back. As a senior managing director from a rival publishing house put it: “He was never a gutsy type of journalist; nor is he the proverbial ranting editor.
“But don’t let Johan De Wet’s placid outlook fool you. He’s a man with a pair of iron balls.”
De Wet is the new editor of Beeld, an established Afrikaans daily with an average circulation of 110 220 for January to June this year. He will fill the shoes of outgoing editor Willie Kuhn from September 1.
Commonly referred to as a “decent ol’ chap”, De Wet has been a journalist for 39 years. By his own admission, he is “not a political animal … I think only about five politicians know me or of me. I do not believe in getting too close to them,” he says, smiling, adding that a “respectful distance” has to be kept from politicians and their politics.
He will not allow himself to be led by politics. “As Beeld’s editor, I will let myself be led by the news. If it is fair, true and correct it will be published. Politics will not dictate what goes into the newspaper.”
Beeld has a strong political history as a publication which aligned itself with the National Party and defended its policies. But with De Wet at the helm, politics in the newspaper may be diluted, even though the newspaper, for years now, has slowly shifted towards the middle-of-the-road, with some industry observers arguing that it has moved left of centre.
De Wet’s somewhat liberal views are reflected in the newspaper he is about to head. While Die Burger, the sister newspaper of Beeld, is seen by some as a more conservative publication which sometimes still espouses the values of the old, pre-FW de Klerk days. It is understood that Die Burger although critical of the NP, does reluctantly remain an NP supporter.
Others argue that both Die Burger and Beeld are critical of the NP, and seem supportive of the Democratic Party — particularly Beeld, which often carries outspoken editorials applauding the DP’s feistiness.
Beeld’s move away from the NP is supported by a statement from Nasper’s executive chairman, Ton Vosloo, a couple of months ago. He said the newspaper had adopted a “value approach” towards party politics.
Afrikaans newspapers, Vosloo said, had learnt that being “too close to a political party is no longer expedient”.
De Wet agrees with this view and takes it further, saying none of the stable’s newspapers are NP mouthpieces.
Newspapers, he argues, should not repeat the mistakes of the past. “Newspapers should not do what they did under the old government and old guard. They should maintain their independence,” he says, adding that government, in turn, should not attempt to control newspapers and resort to press-bashing.
De Wet is adamant that the Naspers board does not dictate to editors and one’s first impression is he is not one who will allow anyone or any party to dictate what goes into his newspaper.
As one colleague put it: “He is a man held in high regard, a man with principles who will not push any particular political party agenda.”
Fifty-eight-year-old De Wet has kept such a substantial distance from reporting on politics that the only time he conceded the need for it was when he was a foreign correspondent in Washington DC and was forced to cover the United States’ intention to impose sanctions on South Africa.
When asked where he sees Beeld’s political position in relation to other dailies, he refuses to allow himself or the newspaper to be placed in a political context.
What is Beeld’s target audience? “Anyone who reads Afrikaans,” is his curt response.
He flicks on his steel-rimmed glasses, clasps his hands together, pauses and attempts to contextualise his position as an Afrikaans male about to head an Afrikaans daily:
“I think the government takes seriously what Afrikaans newspapers have to say” is his throwaway comment, followed by: “Newspapers should therefore maintain their editorial independence.”
De Wet cut his journalistic teeth before the advent of television. He started his career in 1957 at a small-town newspaper in Pietersburg in the then Northern Transvaal. He then joined Die Volksblad, part of the Naspers stable in the early Sixties.
He did several stints at Naspers newspapers from the Sixties through to the Nineties, including working as a journalist for Rapport and Die Burger. In 1992, he returned to Die Volksblad as editor.
During his two-year tenure, the newspaper won the McCall trophy for typographical excellence — the first award the paper had ever won. The award is aimed at local newspapers with a circulation of less than 40 000.
Die Volksblad is clearly dear to de Wet’s heart, and he believes he made a difference as editor. He explains how he started an English column in this small-town paper to allow black editors an opportunity to have a voice in the conservative Free State through his newspaper.
He left the daily to become an editorial consultant at City Press, assisting with the overall design and look of the newspaper.
De Wet’s appointment came as no surprise to those colleagues who see him as a “pleasant guy”. In fact, the only person really surprised was De Wet. He was “thrilled” at being appointed editor, he says, but at the same time his “legs are shaking”.
“Maybe they could not find anyone else to take the position,” he says, jokingly.
With a dry sense of humour, he attributes the success of the Afrikaans press to the new South African Broadcasting Corporation: “A better quality of journalism evident in Afrikaans newspapers is courtesy of the SABC as Afrikaners feel they have been marginalised” by the public broadcaster.
He says Afrikaans-speaking people read Beeld not only to keep abreast of the news but also to see their views reflected in the newspaper’s pages.
He also credits the African National Congress: Afrikaans newspapers, he says, are being discovered by the “new South Africa”.
But the honeymoon period, he warns, will not last forever. Beeld, he says, has to keep abreast with the changes in South Africa if it is to survive.
He displays no fears about the possibility that his editorship could be usurped in the future by a black candidate. On the contrary, he says, there is “absolutely nothing” stopping a black editor from heading the newspaper “as long as the potential candidate speaks Afrikaans”.
“Anyway, I will only be editor for two-and-a-half years before I have to retire. You see, at Naspers, editors retire at 61.”
Black empowerment, he says, is important. It was started at Naspers “more than 20 years ago”. How? “Through an array of things like the offering of shares, partnerships with black consortiums and so on,” he argues.
Black empowerment has also taken place in a more subtle way.
“For example, we do not believe in importing editors like other stables and our potential development [a euphemism for affirmative action] starts within our own company.”
“We have people of colour working for us,” he says, but adds that it is not an issue of skin colour but whether the potential reporter has the abilities to do his job competently and fulfil the task at hand.
It works both ways. “When I started at City Press five months ago, I told editor-in-chief Khulu Sibiya not to see me as a white person but as a professional journalist.”
While colleagues see him as a Mr Average who keeps a low profile, others again say he is a “bit of a disciplinarian from the old school of journalism”. Whatever you may think of De Wet, he is a modest chap who does not regard himself as having iron balls.