Sources within the Johnnic Communications (Johncom) media stable have confirmed that Business Day editor Peter Bruce has terminated the column of controversial commentator David Gleason. Bruce’s decision is attributed to the columnist’s refusal – after repeated requests — to ‘stop writing political pieces”, as well as to his seemingly overt support for mining magnate Brett Kebble.
‘I didn’t feel that [Gleason] should be writing the column,” said a senior editorial staffer within Johncom. ‘He was totally pro-Kebble. Recently I wanted to call Gleason up and congratulate him on another brilliant piece that Kebble wrote [under Gleason’s byline]. Also, he had been asked to stop writing political stuff, and he didn’t.”
The ‘final straw”, according to two independent sources within Johncom, came with Gleason’s column last week, titled ‘It’s a perilous course when political ends are reached by judicial means”. Gleason had written in the piece that the ‘[Schabir Shaik] trial was all about the leadership succession stakes within the African National Congress”. He had also questioned the motives and Rhodesian background of Judge Hillary Squires, pointing out the ‘apparent” R3,5-million that was paid to Squires for his troubles.
Wrote Gleason: ‘Zuma has been charged and found guilty without ever having been inside a courtroom. And I am mystified by the egregious phrase employed by Judge Hillary Squires, that ‘a generally corrupt relationship existed’ between Zuma and Shaik. I do not know what that means — and I doubt that it carries any legal validity whatever.”
Bruce could not be reached at the time of writing, but Gleason told eMedia this morning: ‘There was no contract, but the column has been terminated.” Gleason had no further comment on whether he felt the decision was unjust.
eMedia notes that relations between Business Day and Gleason have been strained for some time. In a column for Business Report in 2001, Gleason alleged that Business Day ‘selectively edited” JCI CE Brett Kebble’s response to a Business Day article.
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