Investigative journalism and the South African government: publishing strategies of newspaper editors from Muldergate to the present

[摘要] The relationship between governments and the media has historically been an antagonisticone, and investigative journalism – the material manifestation of the role of the press asfourth estate – is central to this antagonism. In their capacity as the fourth estate, thosenewspapers that pursue and publish investigative journalism stand in opposition togovernment. Governments have responded to this opposition in a variety of ways; mostly,however, by way of legislated censorship of the press. In South Africa, the legislation thatregulated what newspapers could print under apartheid was unusually vast. In spite ofthis, major exposés of government corruption – and worse – were seen on the front pagesof those publications that pursue investigations into political malfeasance. In SouthAfrica’s post-apartheid democracy, with constitutional protection of the freedom ofexpression, there has been increasing evidence of what Jackson has called the 'embeddedqualities of intolerance and secrecy” (1993: 164) in the state’s response to revelations ofcorruption in the press, culminating in the Protection of State Information Bill that waspassed in Parliament in November 2011. The passing of the Bill has resulted in widespreadconcern about the possibility of legislated, apartheid-style censorship of the mediaand freedom of expression. I interviewed five editors who were part of exposing statecorruption during and after apartheid, in order to establish what motivates their decisionsto keep on printing stories that brings them into conflict with the political powers of theday, in spite of the financial consequences for their publications. Regardless of the differentpolitical landscapes, the strategies that they followed in order to keep on publishing wereremarkably similar, as is their reason for continuing to publish investigative stories: theybelieve it embodies the role of the press in a democracy. Indicators are that editors willkeep on publishing, in spite of attempts by the government to gag the press.

[发布机构] University of the Witwatersrand