Balanced ReportingBalanced Reporting

Grocott’s Policy for Today and Grocott’s Policy for Today and TomorrowTomorrow

Goals and ObjectivesGoals and Objectives

To generate policy that will positively To generate policy that will positively influence and direct reporting at influence and direct reporting at Grocott’s MailGrocott’s Mail

An analysis of the media An analysis of the media environment that Grocott’s Mail environment that Grocott’s Mail exists within, with regard to Balanced exists within, with regard to Balanced Reporting.Reporting.

Balanced ReportingBalanced Reporting

What is What is itit?? What is What is it it notnot Challenges to JournalistsChallenges to Journalists The HowThe How Balance and DiversityBalance and Diversity

ResearchResearch

SamplingSampling MethodologyMethodology Results: Results: a) Quantitative a) Quantitative

b) Qualitative b) Qualitative

1-18 18-25 25-40 40-50 50 on AGE

10 6 10 4 2 Male Female

SEX: 20 12 Single Divorced Married Marital

Status 22 3 7 Afrikaans English Xhosa Other Home

Language 7 7 16 2 1-3 3-6 No. of

Dependants 10 4 1-3 3-6 6-9 9-11 # of papers

per week 22 10 0 1 Never Sometimes Weekly # of

Grocott’s 1 16 15 Pay Public Other Pay vs

Public 23 7 1 1-3 3-6 6-9 Family

readership 19 9 4 News Human

Interest Sport Entertain Youth Feature Crime Finance Story most

interesting 16 12 12 8 6 5 9 2 Yes No Maybe G Sep

Language 12 13 7 Yes No Maybe G Sep Area

publications 13 12 6 Yes No Maybe Active Role

Community 25 0 1 Yes No Maybe Training

local ppl 30 2 Human Interest

Hard News

Maybe Human Interest vs Hard News 19 0 4

Yes No Maybe Is Political Bias? 6 20 6

Yes No Maybe Represent all parties? 18 4 6

Qualitative DataQualitative Data

What are the needs of the people of the Makana What are the needs of the people of the Makana Municipality, and do you think they are being Municipality, and do you think they are being fairly represented in Grocott’s?fairly represented in Grocott’s?

Are you being represented. What do you want to Are you being represented. What do you want to see?see?

Picture Quality?Picture Quality? How do you feel about Temporary Staff?How do you feel about Temporary Staff? Rhodes owning part of paper?Rhodes owning part of paper?

The HRCThe HRC

Investigation of allegations of racist Investigation of allegations of racist reporting in the mediareporting in the media

Bad Newsroom diversityBad Newsroom diversity White top-down media ownership White top-down media ownership

ensured people felt marginalised ensured people felt marginalised Gender lines meant woman at the Gender lines meant woman at the

bottom and controlled by menbottom and controlled by men

The HRC (cont.)The HRC (cont.)

Stereotypical racialisation of media Stereotypical racialisation of media subjectssubjects

No plurality in media informationNo plurality in media information Black lives were seen to be either tragic or Black lives were seen to be either tragic or

threatening ... and less worthy then white threatening ... and less worthy then white liveslives

Not deliberate use of stereotyping or Not deliberate use of stereotyping or racialisation ... but instead unconscious racialisation ... but instead unconscious self-censorship from apartheid areaself-censorship from apartheid area

The HRC (cont.)The HRC (cont.)

White paranoia about Black areas, White paranoia about Black areas, resulting in black people doing 'black resulting in black people doing 'black area' stories … and then white area' stories … and then white people getting credit and by-line.people getting credit and by-line.

RecommendationsRecommendations

Ensure newsroom diversity through Ensure newsroom diversity through employment of a diverse range of employment of a diverse range of gender, culture and racially different gender, culture and racially different demographicsdemographics

Ensure that racism and racialisations Ensure that racism and racialisations don't enter the newsroom by being don't enter the newsroom by being aware of terminology and focuses aware of terminology and focuses usedused

Recommendations (cont.)Recommendations (cont.) Should create a balance between negative Should create a balance between negative

and positive storiesand positive stories Should have an active role and Should have an active role and

understanding in community development understanding in community development and issuesand issues

Should ensure training and employment of Should ensure training and employment of local people so that local issues and the local people so that local issues and the understanding of local issues goes beyond understanding of local issues goes beyond Rhodes studentsRhodes students

Should look into either creating a separate Should look into either creating a separate language publication, or incorporating language publication, or incorporating languages into the publication.languages into the publication.

Recommendations (cont.)Recommendations (cont.)

Submission only printing was Submission only printing was problematic if medium is English so problematic if medium is English so allow reporters to do Vox Pops to allow reporters to do Vox Pops to allow for different languages and allow for different languages and illiterate people to have their sayilliterate people to have their say