Watchdog or Lapdog? South African Broadcasting Corporation News in the Coverage of the 2021 Local Government Elections

Abstract

ABSTRACT The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) post-1994 was transformed into a public service broadcaster, to advance the course of democracy. The SABC newsroom continued to navigate modern technology, although with challenges. Also, the heads of news at the SABC were mainly political deployees who promoted the African National Congress (ANC)-led government's mandate, ignoring the interests of the citizenry. Using the social responsibility theory, this paper argues that the appointment of the new head of news in 2018 revived the SABC’s mandate and the institution performed well in the 2021 local government elections. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with SABC journalists and recorded programmes for news and current affairs for six weeks during the election period, this qualitative study's findings attest that the journalists felt more protected from censorship and political interference, which promoted a culture of ethical performance. However, the SABC newsroom convergence process still appeals to the elite at the expense of its radio platforms. This paper argues that SABC needs to invest more in its radio platforms. Ethical leadership is another crucial ingredient for the SABC to perform its watchdog role, instead of operating as a lapdog of the ANC or politicians from other parties.