SABC board chairman Vincent Maphai on Friday said the public broadcaster’s editorial independence was not in jeopardy.
Speaking after a regular bi-monthly meeting with Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Cassaburri, Maphai said editorial independence from political and commercial pressures lay at the heart of public broadcasting.
His statement comes in the wake of concern regarding comments by SABC news programming chairman Thami Mazwai on the subject, and an outcry over the minister’s Broadcasting Amendment Bill which critics said would turn the SABC into a state propaganda tool.
”The Minister affirmed that the SABC’s editorial independence was never in jeopardy and would be protected and not compromised by the Broadcasting Amendment Bill.”
The meeting also affirmed the authority of the SABC board over all policy making processes and decisions at the broadcaster, Maphai said.
”It is the SABC’s role to reflect the values that unite our nation — we must broadcast programming that contributes to a sense of national identity, to a sense of shared experience. We are also charged to evaluate, analyse and critically appraise government policies and programmes.”
In its statement, the SABC said Maphai reaffirmed that the broadcaster would always do its best to present issues fairly and impartially, without taking sides and allow the viewer or listener access to the full range of views on any subject.
”We will also stand by and support our staff so that they can perform to the best of their abilities,” Maphai said.
The statement quoted Matsepe-Cassaburri as saying that all South Africans had to ”engage constructively and positively with the Broadcasting Amendment Bill through the parliamentary process.” – Sapa