Dr Iqbal Survé: Consider the cost of silence when media freedom is at stake

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An independent media is vital to the lifeblood of democracy – even if the truth hurts, observes IqbalSurve, Chairman of IndyMediaSA and SekunjaloGroup.

Freedom of the press is roughly defined as having the ability to use various channels - print, digital and broadcast - to convey information, opinion and news, without the interference from the governing state. In other words, no government shall control what media can and cannot say save for, in this country, what is held in our Constitution as hate or racist speech.

In times of crisis, however, there is a tendency for those wielding power - whether economic or political - to want to control the narrative. This we have to safeguard against, at all costs, even if it means donning the metaphorical boxing gloves to resist the attacks on stifling our right to express reality.Attacks on media freedom

Ownership of the conversation was limited, with large swathes of the population excluded. It served to create a false reality which many, still today, find hard to grasp. This is not necessarily unusual, since media owners are generally given a hard time and especially in a highly competitive market with fewer publications fighting for share of voice, such as in South Africa. I’ve even heard it said: “When you become a media owner you lose all of your friends.” Since running a business is not a popularity contest, this is to be expected.

Since 2013, however, Independent Media has presented the populace with a far more representative view of what happens on the ground and in the boardroom. This has not always been welcomed by the establishment, as it challenges preconceived notions and hopefully, encourages readers to consider alternatives and to think beyond the flat pages or screens of their news feeds, to form their own opinions.

This still does not justify why it is that our platform for providing the many truths that comprise reality, needs to be eradicated.

 

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