The Press Freedom Commission (PFC) embarks on its Listening to SA Campaign this week which will comprise of public hearings in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg. The Listening to SA Campaign is an integral aspect of the PFC’s work, and is an opportunity for the public to assist in shaping the print regulatory system in South Africa.

The PFC has completed the process of receiving written submissions, which concluded on the 15th December 2011. Over 190 submissions have been received from political parties, trade unions, academics, civil society, individual members of South African society, religious organisations, media houses and Chapter 9 institutions.

All members of the SA public are invited to participate in the Listening to SA Campaign. Oral presentations will be made at the respective public hearings. The public hearings will be conducted by the PFC Commissioners, chaired by Judge Pius Langa.

Listening to SA Campaign details

Please note the hearings will commence from 10am until 5pm. The full scheduling of the presentations is available on the PFC website: www.pressfreedomcomm.org

It is emphasised that the PFC is an independent body of 9 Commissioners from different sectors of society, formed to investigate the best possible regulatory system for the South African print media which would be suitable for South Africa. The PFC is scheduled to complete its final report in March 2012.

The PFC has a facebook page (South African Press Freedom Commission) and twitter @PFCommission. Please keep an eye on these for regular updates and key information.

For further details please contact:

Dr. Phillip Mtimkulu

PFC Spokesperson

0723164899

PFC Office

(Tel) 011482-5706

(fax) 011482-6496

(email) sapresscomm01@gmail.com

(website) www.pressfreedomcomm.org

The African Media Initiative (AMI), the continent's largest association of media owners and operators, has announced a $1 million fund to spur innovation in the news industry.

The new African News Innovation Challenge (ANIC) is designed to encourage experimentation in digital technologies and support the best innovations that strengthen African news organizations.

AMI chief executive Amadou Mahtar Ba first announced the fund at the 4^th African Media Leaders Forum in Tunisia on November 10. This week, Ba confirmed that Omidyar Network, Google, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, and the U.S. Department of State have all pledged either funding or technical support for the initiative.

The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers has also committed expert business mentorship and marketing support for ANIC winners.

“Traditional media are still growing in Africa, but media organizations know that they need to go digital and mobile to prepare for the future. Many, however, don’t have the resources to experiment or take risks, especially in this economic climate,” said Ba. “This competition is our way of saying: ‘We’re here to help. If you come up with an innovative idea to improve the African media landscape, we’ll help make it happen.’”

Winners in the annual contest will get seed grants ranging from $12,500 to a maximum of $100,000 for more ambitious projects. To build robust business models, the grantees will also receive technical advice and start-up support, as well as one-on-one mentoring from some of the world’s leading media experts.

“We’re trying to nurture a culture of innovation in African media,” said AMI’s digital strategist and ANIC project manager Justin Arenstein. “We want the winners to get their products to the market quickly, and we want to remove as much risk as possible. These pioneers will have access to experts that most media simply do not have.”

Arenstein is working with AMI as part of a Knight International Journalism Fellowship administered by the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), with funds from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

The contest will target solutions to technology challenges facing African media, including ways to strengthen data-based investigative journalism, audience engagement, mobile news distribution, data visualization, revenue streams and workflow systems.

“We’re casting the net as wide as possible,” said Arenstein. “As long as the solution is scalable and appropriate to local market conditions, we’re happy to consider it.”

The competition is modeled after Knight Foundation’s highly successful Knight News Challenge, which has seeded news media innovation across the globe over the past five years. “We will work closely with Knight Foundation to incorporate the best practices and technology for a digital news contest designed to solve problems and stimulate new thinking,” said Joyce Barnathan, president of the International Center for Journalists.

AMI will launch the contest website in December 2011. In the first phase, African journalists and publishers will be asked to identify the most pressing challenges facing the industry. Once these have been identified, AMI will issue a call for applications targeting these issues in February 2012.

Winners will be chosen through a rigorous two-phase judging process, consisting of public voting and a review of finalists by a panel of experts. The top contenders will receive a combination of cash and technical support.

Winners will then test their innovations in AMI member-newsrooms and showcase projects at international media gatherings.

The African innovation contest is part of AMI’s broader initiative to build digital entrepreneurship within traditional media. AMI is also supporting a new network of HacksHackers.com chapters across Africa that will bring technologists together with journalists to help pilot projects in digital media. The chapters will run workshops and help incubate ideas for the African News Innovation Challenge.

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About AMI

The African Media Initiative is the continent’s primary umbrella association of African media owners, top executives, and other industry stakeholders. AMI represents media across all traditional platforms plus newer digital formats. AMI’s mandate is to serve as a catalyst for strengthening African media, by building the tools, knowledge resources, and technical capacity for African media to overcome key constraints so that they can play an effective public interest role in society. This mandate includes assisting with the development of professional standards, financial sustainability, technological adaptability, and civic engagement. AMI seeks to achieve its mandate through partnerships, advocacy and strategic projects. For more information, visit www.africanmediainitiative.org.

About ICFJ

The International Center for Journalists is a non-profit organization that advances quality journalism worldwide. Our programs combine the best professional standards with the latest digital innovations. We believe that independent, vigorous media are crucial in improving the human condition. For more information, visit www.icfj.org.

Contact: Sonja Matanovic, Communications Director

Telephone: 202.349.7624, smatanovic@icfj.org

As stated in its submission to the ANC Information Bill Committee regarding the Protection of Information Bill B 6B – 2010, PMSA is certain that a number of the criminal offences set out in the Bill are unconstitutional in that they disproportionately limit the right of access to information and freedom of expression (including media freedom).  To this end, PMSA would like to announce its full support of Black Tuesday, coordinated by The National Press Club, which will take place countrywide on 22 November 2011.

On Thursday,  17 November 2011, the who’s who of the South African magazine industry descended on the Sandton Convention Centre to celebrate the exceptional talent of local writers, designers and publishers across the consumer, customer and business-to-business sectors. Says PICA 201l Chairperson Danielle Weakley: “We are thrilled that both well-known names and bylines were awarded kudos, along with new up and coming young talents. Congratulations to all the winners – competition was stiff this year as well had a 25% increase on submissions and winners had to work really hard to be ahead of the pack.”

 Top honours went to…

 Best Consumer Magazine

Rossi Trophy

Elle

Avusa Media

Best B2B Magazine

Watling Trophy

Risk SA

Cosa Communications

Best Customer Magazine

Taste

New Media Publishing

Consumer Editor of the Year

Jane Raphaely Trophy

Jackie Burger

Elle

Avusa Media

B2B Editor of the Year

Peta Krost-Maunder

Wits Business Review

Contact Media & Communications

Customer Editor of the Year

Sumien Brink

Woolworths Taste

New Media Publishing

Consumer Overall Magazine Design of the Year

Fairlady

Media 24 Women’s Interest

B2B Overall Magazine Design of the Year

Leadership

Cape Media Corporation

Customer Overall Magazine Design of the Year

Woolworths Taste

New Media Publishing

Consumer Cover of the Year

Visi

New Media Publishing

B2B Cover of the Year

Dairy Mail

Agri Connect

Customer Cover of the Year

Woolworths Taste

New Media Publishing

Annual Supplement of the Year

AdVantage Transit Media Guide

Media24 Business & Customer

Annual Supplement of the Year Special Award

Sarie Kos, Woon, Kreatief and Gesond

Media24 Women’s Interest

Columnist of the Year

Sipho Hlongwane

Dogs of War

The Big Issue

Feature Writer of the Year

Angus Powers

The Survivor

Sports Illustrated

Health & Wellness Writer of the Year

Mark Van Dijk

Inconceivable

Men’s Health

Non-Professional Writer of the Year

Mike Marsden

Resolving Cape Town’s Public Transport Crisis

IMESA

Profile Writer of the Year

Erns Grunding

Smooth Operator

Weg!/Go!

Public Interest Writer of the Year

Salome Delport

Ritalin se Nuwe (Onwettige) Gebruike

Rooi Rose

Trade & Technical Writer of the Year

Irma Venter

Fast Forward

Engineering News

Travel Writer of the Year

Toast Coetzee

Namibia: There’s Life in the Empty corner

Weg!/Go!

Visual Production of the Year

Vicki De Beer

Dis Kersfees

Rooi Rose

Photojournalism of the Year

Ruvan Boshoff and Le Roux Schoeman

Hoeked on Snoek

Weg!/Go!

Layout of the Year

Anton Sassenberg

Colour

Elle

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Notes to Editors

About PICA

The PICA Awards, held annually, are open to all Association of Magazine Media (Formerly MPASA) member publications. The Awards acknowledge standards of excellence in magazine publishing and journalism. Through the PICA Awards, AMM believes that member publishers will aspire to sustain and advance the quality of their titles for the benefit of their readers.

About AMM

In 1999 the MPA (Magazine Publishers Association) and the (SPA) Specialist Press Association merged to form the MPASA, now known as AMM, Association for Magazine Media. The former SPA served the needs of the technical and trade publishers. The mandate of the new organisation was to address the needs of all magazine sectors in SA. AMM is the association of publishers of customer, business-to-business and consumer magazines in South Africa. AMM works closely with strategic partners to attain its vision of elevating the industry by providing relevant research data and information, conferencing opportunities and awards, thus being a repository of industry knowledge for members, a networking vehicle and a means of marketing and promoting members’ achievements to advertisers, readers and the community at large. Our current strategic partners are: the ABC, PMSA, MCC, AIP, ASA and the Press Council of South Africa.

South Africa’s largest print media companies presented their transformation statistics to the Parliamentary Portfolio on Committee on Communications (PCC) this week, and painted a picture of an industry that is constantly transforming despite enormous pressures brought to bear by falling advertising revenues coupled with competition from other media channels.

Representatives from the ‘big four’ media companies – Media24, Avusa, Independent News and Media, and the Caxton/CTP Group – took part in the discussions, as did Rhodes journalism professor, Jane Duncan, and the Mail&Guardian.

President of Print Media South Africa, Hoosain Karjieker, said the “dialogue was open, honest and transparent” and that transformation was a “work in progress”. He said the next step was to set targets that would be developed through a strategic workshop looking at ways to accelerate transformation.

“It is intended that the strategic interventions will be communicated to government, in a participative forum. We aim to have this done by February 2012,” he said.

Karjieker said the print media industry had “on an individual company basis, been complying with and aligning their organisations with the Department of Trade and Industry’s BEE Codes”. A study for PMSA undertaken by Transcend found the print media industry presents as a Level 5 BEE contributor to broad based BEE with a score of 62.92 points.

Caxton’s non executive chairman, Paul Jenkins, told the PCC that while it is a “matter of enlightened self-interest” that the print media engage with government over the issue of diversity, “debate also has to be informed by the state of the entire media landscape, and a focus on diversity in print media alone is unhelpful. TV, radio, and the internet are other major parts of the mix”.

Karjieker said the “ownership landscape has seen significant changes in recent years. More than 50% of the collective size of four largest print media groups in South Africa has a percentage of black ownership, ranging in size from 15% to 51.38% black ownership.

He added that while there were important issues that the industry needed to earnestly engage on, he was satisfied with the discussions and was looking forward to further interaction with the PCC as well as a closer working relationship with key stakeholders like the MDDA.

Some key statistics:

• Media24: Has an empowerment entity, Welkom Yizani, through which 15 percent of shares are owned by 107 000 black South Africans. Upper management has transformed from 100% white males to 46% now, 23% white females, 16% black males and 15% black females in 2011.
• Independent: There has been steady re-alignment of the newsrooms of INL’s newspapers to better reflect the changing demographics of the markets served: Just over 57.5%% of all editorial staff are black; females represent just under 50% of the company’s editorial structure (a 55.6% black representation). Of the company’s 19 titles (including the community stable), 14 are edited by black editors, of which five are female.
• Caxton: The company spent R49m on training last year, of which 70 percent had been spent on skills development for black employees. It is currently certified as a level 5 contributor with a score of 62.23%. This is up from 56% in 2009 and 60% in 2010. It is recognised as a value-added vendor and has a 100% procurement recognition status.
• Mail&Guardian: In terms of a study undertaken by BEE Online, M&G Media presents as a Level 5 BEE contributor to broad based BEE with a score of 62.77 points. Its Internship Programme has bee in existence for 16 years and trains average of four journalists every year, 80% black. Graduates include Mondli Makhanya, Ferial Haffajee, Phil Molefe and Wally Mbhele.
• Avusa: Top management has changed and now stands at four black males, four white males, one white and one black female.
• Where control of newsrooms is concerned, PMSA says editors are in charge of the content, not the owners of media houses. PMSA noted that since 1994, the number of black editors of newspapers in South Africa has risen from 7% to 65% in 2011.
• It has also been noted that although extensive amounts are invested in skills development on an annual basis (around R60 million for the largest 4 media houses), this fell just short of the BEE Codes target of 5% of total basic payroll.
• Gender diversity remains a challenge. There are no significant numbers of women in top management and on the boards of the 4 largest media houses. The actual percentage is low at 4,44%.

For further comment please contact:
Hoosain Karjieker    PMSA President    011 250 7302
Ingrid Louw             PMSA CEO           011 551 9600

Issued by Print Media South Africa (PMSA)

Print Media South Africa (PMSA) and the SANEF earlier this year brought an application to the High Court challenging the constitutionality of recent amendments to the Films and Publication Act. The amendments introduce a system of pre-publication classification for publications other than bona fide newspapers where such publication contains "sexual conduct which:

(i) violates or shows disrespect for the right to human dignity of any person;
(ii) degrades a person; or
(iii) constitutes incitement to cause harm".

The process is also backed up by a criminal penalty for non-compliance.

The specific complaints are that the compulsory submission to the Films and Publication Board of large numbers of mainstream publications dealing with matters of substantial public interest before distribution is unconstitutional, mainly because the said provisions are a limitation of the entrenched constitutional right to freedom of expression. The complaint is that the process will have severe negative consequences for the publication as well as the public.

Curiously the amendments exempt newspapers from this process but not magazines. The Minister of Home Affairs and the Board tried to justify this distinction on the basis that newspapers have a long history of responsible compliance with their code of conduct through self-regulation unlike magazines which are randomly published, sometimes by persons who do not fall within the codes of conduct that regulate members of Print Media South Africa and SANEF. The judge found these distinctions untenable especially considering publications such as the Mail & Guardian and Financial Mail, both of which are weekly publications, which deal with hard and sometimes sensitive issues manifestly in the public interest. They are also subject to the same system of self-regulation and comply with the code of conduct.

Sexual conduct is broadly defined by the Act and if a publication contains sexual conduct falling within the definition then submission for classification is required whether or not the article in question merely reports on the conduct or in fact advocates or promotes it. The classification committee is then required to examine the publication, page by page, from cover page to last page. Each page will have to be scrutinised by examining the visual presentation and text, allocate a rating for the publication and compile a report. That delay is potentially catastrophic for any publication.

It was argued by Print Media South Africa and SANEF that the practical implications of the section will lead to self-censorship by publishers, thus affecting freedom of expression. The court agreed that where one publication contains only one article that might contain sexual conduct then the entire publication must be submitted. The concern is that the resultant delay in publication caused by the classification requirements causes damages to freedom of expression and amounts to a limitation of section 16 of the Constitution.

The Court found that news is a perishable commodity and to delay even a short period may well deprive it of its value and interest. The consequences of this delay also affects magazines. Apart from fulfilling the public needs, the media usually provide full and detailed news coverage of topical, cultural, political and economic issues and this service is to the community as a whole rather than individual persons. It is for this reason that the public or citizenry should be fully aware of the advantages and disadvantages involved in free press.

The judge remarked that "it is probably no exaggeration to say that in all probability democracy cannot survive in the absence of freedom of expression"..."I have no doubt that timeous communication is essential in a democratic system, for absent the right to receive, impart and give expression to information and ideas, there can be no meaningful talk or debates of liberal democracy. Consequently in a democratic society a system of prior restraint based on executive approval will operate as greater deterrent to freedom of expression and cause damage to fundamental democratic rights".

A further factor that resonated with the judge was that he was not referred to any example of any democracy where a mainstream publication has to be submitted to a censor or a classification committee before publication. The judge accordingly found that the amendments are unconstitutional and that to remedy the defect, the section can only be applied where a publication advocates or promotes sexual conduct as opposed to merely containing it. The court also held that the amendments are inconsistent with the Constitution and thus invalid to the extent that they exclude magazines from the protection afforded to newspapers. The orders made by the Court in this matter must now go to the Constitutional Court for confirmation. Finally the Minister of Home Affairs and the Board were ordered to pay the costs of the application.

Hoosain Karjieker, President of PMSA, said that the industry was pleased with the positive outcome of the court challenge which was the culmination of five years of engagement with this piece of legislation. “It is not only a win for the print media industry but also for freedom of expression and democracy”.
For further comment please contact:

Hoosain Karjieker    PMSA President    011 250 7302
Ingrid Louw            PMSA CEO           011 551 9600

Issued by Print Media South Africa (PMSA)