Media

There are generally three types of people who read the news.  I guess “read” may also mean hear/overhear and watch. These all being forms of getting information. We will disregard those who dream about the news.

The first type or category of people is the one that media people love. It is this group who readily suck up every little bit of information being fed as being holier than the gospel. They cannot or will not discern what is written and will not consider what is being written as perhaps biased, sensationalist and/or twisted. The journalist will no doubt argue that what is being written is the truth and they are not lying. You are thinking that perhaps I am contradicting myself. And maybe I want you to think that. But really what I want you to consider the way in which the story is being presented, be it in print or audio or visual newsclips. Presentation is such that the desired outcome is achieved by being selective and/or economical with the truth.

The second group of people are those that are phlegmatic in their approach. They are agreeable to what is being presented will not at first question a news article unless confronted by someone who object to the same article. These people have no clear views or perhaps have a problem making their views known. They too help sales and viewership because they are unlikely to challenge the status quo.

It is this third category which treats the main media with at least scepticism but most likely find it revolting. These people have an alternative media and sources. Do they not also have their own agendas? We live in a time where everything is an agenda item so it is perhaps derogatory to question their motives in the same light. But they too have an obligation to publish the truth. Unfortunately the world populace are like sheep and are gullible to the bigger money spent by mainstream media to get their point across and the bigger propaganda machine. Thus whatever is presented by the alternative media is viewed as conspiracy theory. So instead of the case being made for a conspiracy, the word theory is added as if it unlikely that a certain “crime” could have been committed.

I remember in the lead up to the Gulf war or what we more commonly call the “Iraqi invasion” how many backed a war to topple Saddam Hussein. For the record, none of these people looked at the bigger picture but gulped up everything that was fed to them of propaganda. They certainly believed every word and there was no alternative or to put it more accurately their sense of justice failed them. One cannot have a complete picture from a few printed words or a few visual clips. So in accepting everything from the media, one assumes that the media is fully informed and is the torchbearers for justice.

Each one has a choice to make, and if you believe blindly then that is your choice. Apathy is a choice. Whatever choice you make regarding the media, unless it is informed by more than just the media, it is best to keep quiet for truth in all probably will evade you.

 

 

Zuma will not survive second term

2014 is the likely to be the worst year, in many ways, since South Africa became a democracy. The economy, too put it mildly, does not look good and there is much discontent with the President, Mr Jacob Zuma, if not with politics in general. Yet it is highly unlikely that the ruling party will be toppled or will lose too many votes.

The fiasco around the merger of Agang and the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the DA’s initial publicising of its presidential candidate did these parties no good and indeed did South African politics no good. The reality is that such a merger was not going to garner too many new votes from the black electorate. The liberal white voter thought that this was a good move to get someone like Dr Ramphele into the DA set-up. This is not uncommon for liberals to think in a way to always protect themselves and their base while supposedly being welcoming of others. To be truly meaningful to their aspirations and be part of a real solution, white liberals will have to move beyond their “race”. This is the only way to create a truly non-racial platform where the policies of the party attract people from a wide range of backgrounds. The DA is generally seen as a “white” party  which makes it extremely unlikely that they will ever topple the ANC. For the latter to happen, another broad-based party of strength has to emerge and then perhaps, if the DA survives, they can form some form of coalition.

Considering all of this, the only concern the leadership of the ANC has to maintain power is the challenge from within, i.e. the ANC is likely to remain in power for some time, but the leadership will change with the challenge from the various factions that exist.

Mr Jacob Zuma is not the popular choice for president of South Africa, but the voters will give little indication of that later this year with general elections take place. There is a level of politics that is not always easy to analyse because like good strategists these things are kept tight, but one thing is for certain that people within the ANC are plotting the downfall of JZ – how soon remains to be seen but I would hazard a guess that he too is unlikely to serve a full second term.


http://www.news24.com/Elections/News/SA-voters-to-make-their-mark-on-7-May-20140207