Media Release
For immediate release
19 October 2007
Is the media ignoring half the population?
On the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, 17 October 2007, media personnel in Johannesburg were asked to stand up and speak out against poverty, as part of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP). They met to discuss the role of the media in reporting on poverty and development: Is the media ignoring half the population?
In southern Africa, more than 40 percent of the population still lives in poverty. Anti-poverty activists argue that the media are not doing enough to put the plight of the poor at the forefront of news coverage because stories about poverty and efforts to overcome it do not sell newspapers and other media.
The panel discussion was organised by the Mail and Guardian newspaper and the Southern Africa Trust. It was moderated by Professor Anton Harber from WITS University, with panelists Themba Khumalo, editor of the Daily Sun newspaper; Jackie Hobbs, Inter Press Service (IPS) Africa regional editor; David Barnard, executive director of Sangonet; and Nicole Johnston, Mail and Guardian development news editor.
“The media lack depth in their coverage of issues as they just report on events and not the process,” said David Barnard.
“The media need to be more analytical in their reporting in order to provide objective information to the masses,” he said.
Nicole Johnston said, “most of the development stories we get are from NGOs and it becomes difficult to understand the jargon used by development organisations.”
Themba Khumalo urged journalists to endeavor to put a human face to stories so that readers can relate to the experience of real people who live in poverty.
Jackie Hobbs noted that there is need for journalists to stop repeating the same stories over and over again. They should try to advance the debate on poverty by doing things differently and returning to previous stories with greater depth over a period of time, she said.
The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty has been commemorated annually since 17 October 1987 when thousands of people gathered to declare poverty a human rights violation. This year, the day encouraged people around the world to stand up and speak out against poverty and set a world record for the largest number of people throughout the world to participate in a campaign action on one day.
The Southern Africa Trust is an independent, regional, non-profit agency established to deepen and widen engagement in policy dialogue to overcome poverty in southern Africa.
For more information contact:
Mpho Kgosidintsi
Tel: +27 12 657 9292
Cell: +27 78 459 0152
E-mail: communications@southernafricatrust.org
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