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Of Superman ministers and developmentally-aligned broadcasters
17 Nov 2010
There seems to be a lot of frightening legislation doing the rounds, which naturally means some drafts don't get the attention they deserve. But, not to be alarmist or anything, you need to have a look at the proposed new law on public broadcasting. Seriously.
A rough reading of the Draft Public Services Broadcasting Bill is one of those exercises that makes one wonder who writes these things. How is it actually done? Does a minister say, "I want to do this and this, now you go and put it into legal language"? Is there a brainstorming session with a whiteboard and shouted ideas? Is there a process; is there any kind of thought at all?
At a recent press conference, Cabinet spokesperson Themba Maseko was asked how some clauses get into bills. It was a question really aimed at the "Protection" of Information Bill. His answer, clearly put, was that "no clause gets into a Bill by accident", it's there for a reason. Well, dear reader, if that is the case, the following is going to make for some chilling reading.
Continue reading the full article on www.thedailymaverick.co.za.
See also:
- Bizcommunity special section: special focus on media freedom
- Bizcommunity Twitterfall: #ZAmediafreedom
- Press Council of South Africa: Help make journalism in South Africa better
- Right2Know petition: www.right2know.org.za
- Avaaz.org petition: South Africa: democracy at risk
- MediaMattersZA: www.Facebook.com/MediaMattersZa and @MediaMattersZA
- Keep South Africa's Media Free: Facebook and @safreemedia
- SANEF: Media Freedom
- Freedomhouse.org: Freedom in the world
- Google News Search: Protection of Information Bill media appeals tribunal
- Twitter Search: ZAmediafreedom
- Google Blog Search: Protection of Information Bill media appeals tribunal
Source: Daily Maverick
Daily Maverick is a unique blend of news, information, analysis and opinion delivered from our newsrooms in Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa. There are many ways to describe exactly what we do (and for the price of a cup of coffee we’re capable of talking your ears off about it), but the best way to understand the end result is to experience it. Every part of Daily Maverick is free-to-air and no payment is required, although free registration is required for a small subset of functions and pages.
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Go to: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/
About Stephen Grootes: @StephenGrootes
Stephen Grootes is political reporter for Eyewitness News (www.ewn.co.za) and contributing editor for Business Day (www.businessday.co.za). He used to write for The Daily Maverick (www.thedailymaverick.co.za). Follow him on Twitter at @StephenGrootes.
