June 22, 2021 4:44 pm
Journalism around the world has to deal with a crisis of confidence. The reasons for this phenomenon are numerous and varied. First of all, people who get elected to steal and steal public resources attack journalists to hide their misdeeds. In South Africa, politicians caught red-handed defend themselves by saying that it is “fake news”, to discredit journalists and divert public attention. There are also those who do not trust the media because they are convinced that they are themselves a journalist, just because they have a profile on social networks. Distrust increases when the media fail to reflect the life experiences and voices of ordinary citizens.
Sometimes, however, even journalists do not prove to be up to their job. Not all stories are easy to tell. Some are complex, depend on confidential information, have multiple points of view, various protagonists or come from sources from which one should not be manipulated. But there are stories that it is impossible to misunderstand, and among them should be the news of the birth of ten twins.
The “exclusive” news about the couple from Thembisa, a town near Pretoria, who would have celebrated the birth of ten babies was a resounding disaster: published by the newspaper Pretoria News and by the site IOL, both of the Independent Media group, then went to scene on a world stage. It was not journalism, but it will still have serious consequences on the relationship of trust between the media and the public, bringing to light deep rifts.
Meanwhile, we shouldn’t use the term fake news but to call things by their name. In this case we should be talking about a shameful lie.
More than ten days after breaking the news, the Independent Media group published various articles without providing a single proof that the woman was actually pregnant with ten children and that they were actually born.
Journalism means asking many questions, repeatedly, of different people, evaluating the evidence and coming to an independent conclusion. This is why the articles are checked in the editorial offices. There is a whole structure that serves to bring out the questions that the reporter may have left out, evaluating any biases. Equally important is questioning the motives of a source.
The first cracks
The first wake-up call is the strange coincidence with a similar event: the exceptional pregnancy popped up a month after the birth of nine twins in Mali. An extremely rare circumstance. Yet, in the entire month in which the newspaper waited to publish the news, no one looked for a single doctor who could confirm that he was treating the woman and give proof of the miraculous pregnancy and the consequent birth.
Then came a series of articles published to cover up the initial lie, devoid of empathy and only useful to add to the confusion.
One article accused the alleged mother of not wanting to reveal where she was and portrayed the father as a loving man who desperately wanted to see his children (and never mind if the same man, without worrying about covid-19, flew over 1,500 kilometers while to cash a million rand check, just as her babies, born premature after 29 weeks, were in theory struggling to survive).
In the aftermath of the publication of the first article, Pretoria News launched a fundraiser for the couple, complete with bank details, just as the first cracks in history began to appear. Then the father screwed everything up by declaring that he didn’t believe the children were really born. The Independent Media group tracked down the mother, who promised to show them to the world when she was ready. Then, as if the matter weren’t already confusing enough, the newspaper reiterated the veracity of the story and asked the authorities to know where the children were.
Remaining silent means allowing a lie not to be challenged and that no one is put in front of their responsibilities
Journalist Piet Rampedi, author of the initial scoop, asked the public to trust him and launched an investigation into the exclusive story that he himself had signed. Its newspaper has spread insinuations about alleged acts of neglect and incompetence in the hospital, about malfunctioning incubators, which could have caused the death of the children before or after birth. All of this is an insult to those poor South Africans who have really had to deal with the shortcomings of our health system.
Last week the health authorities of the province of Gauteng, where Tembisa is located, released a statement stating that they have no information regarding the birth of ten twins in a public or private facility in the province.
Furthermore, the affair does not pass a transparency test: once contacted, all interested parties invited journalists and even government officials to contact Rampedi, the journalist who wrote the first article.
It is evident that someone lied. In the best of cases, the journalist believed in a story made up from scratch, neglecting the basics of his profession. At worst, it is a scam against anyone who wanted to help a family in need.
Journalism is on the ropes, the circulation of newspapers is in decline (before the publication of the news, the circulation of Pretoria News was 1,800 copies per day), the competition for clicks on the net is ruthless and advertising revenues have significantly reduced. , creating an existential crisis for the media. But surely we will not be able to get out of it by lowering the level.
We certainly cannot blame the sources for the poor quality of journalism. The story in question has shown that the divisions within the sector, often fueled by parties, have involved part of the public opinion.
Social networks were carpeted with insults against journalists who had dared to raise doubts against Rampedi. These professionals have been denigrated and accused of being jealous of “the best journalist in the country”, who they said had dared to confront the establishment.
In this strange chapter there have been times when many journalists would have wanted to escape the debate to preserve their sanity, but staying silent means allowing a lie not to be challenged and that no one is put in front of their responsibilities.
But more than anything else we need an attentive audience, always ready to point out when journalism is insufficient and to defend professionals who are committed to offering an adequate service.
(Translation by Andrea Sparacino)
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