New Age2.png Has Steven Motale been captured too? Withdrawal of the Zuma apology letter means he's a 'scavenger' for white owners Andile Mngxitama, The New Age, Johannesburg, 14 July 2016 Dear Steve, Last August you wrote a public apology to President Jacob Zuma in relation to the raw deal he had suffered at the hands of the media. You courageously articulated the sins of the South African media. In that letter of apology, you took us down memory lane on how from the Shabir Schaik case up to the rape trial, the media had taken a predetermined hostile and unfair position against Zuma. Your letter was brave, honest and in many ways endearing, because you didn't point fingers at others, you took us into your confidence and acknowledged your own prejudices. I was sold. I thought here was one man who stood on journalistic principle when almost all his colleague had chosen to serve narrow interests at the expense of the ethics of journalism. How wrong was I? You see Steve, I took your letter seriously as a piece of honest journalism and a confession of a sinner who had repented. So when the new bout of selective concern for censorship hit us again, I googled your letter for perspective. This was two weeks ago. The result of the search shocked me. I nevertheless made the allowance for possible technical hitches. So I waited for two weeks. See, I believed in you, so I gave you the benefit of the doubt. I was in denial, Steve. You of all people would not do such a thing. You publicly stated that you are a man of your words. Well, when I saw that there were columns which are decades old, I had to conclude that you had quietly withdrawn the public apology to Zuma. Didn't you accuse City Press editor Ferial Haffajee of publicly apologising to Zuma and secretly and quietly withdrawing her apology? Why have you removed your letter of apology from The Citizen's website without an explanation? That courageous piece you penned got the nation talking on a very important topic of ethical breaches in the media. But now it has vanished without trace. A search for it on your website takes one to these words: "Welcome to the citizen.co.za Unfortunately, the page you are looking for is not available. You can use our search facility or browse the new site below." This is an insult, Steve. You owe your readers and the country an apology and an explanation. During these heightened times of censorship we are left to wonder if you have not been captured. Did the owners of the paper get to you Steve? Sir, you are after all the editor, the buck stops with you. After all, you had in your letter reminded us about the not-so-glorious origins of The Citizen. Have you been beaten back in line by the apartheid architects of the paper? I must ask you pointedly. What is the meaning of the removal of the letter from The Citizen website? Is it a withdrawal of your apology, Steve? I note the bravado of the follow-up column cockily titled "nothing to apologise about the apology" - it's still there. Why not remove it too? Clear your tracks completely, join the head. I read eNCA journalist Phakamile Hlubi's brave open letter to her colleagues about the censorship, the racism and general stifling atmosphere in the eNCA newsroom and wondered what shall become of her for taking a stand. Hopefully the allure to conform to the line shall not be so strong as to force her to make a Steven Motale on us - the new art of spinelessness in the media. In conclusion: when you chose to stand up and called upon your colleagues in the media to report fairly, many of us gained some trust in the media. But now you have lost your resolve and spinelessly followed the head like a coward. I'm afraid to tell you that in my eyes your credibility has sunk to the most possible lowest it can get. What the quiet removal of your apology indicates is that censorship in the white-owned private media is alive. This is the same media that has the audacity to accuse the public broadcaster of censorship. Clearly our media are allowed to report only the news that fits one agenda and Zuma is its target. You have joined the pack of wolves doing the scavenging for their white masters. It's disgusting to say the least. . Andile Mngxitama is the national convenor of Black First Land First From: http://tnaepaper.co.za/DRIVE/main%20edition/14072016/epaperpdf/18.pdf __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 13803 (20160714) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com -- -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. 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