Media Financing In South Africa

Through the effective use of broadcasting media the government can inform people, give them important warnings, educate and uplift them. Broadcasting media was traditionally used to even recruit soldiers for war, to create patriotism in people and to build a nation.

It’s highly effective in influencing perceptions and opinion and has therefore also been used incorrectly to drive political agendas of some political parties or politicians in the past.

Just think back to the beginnings of the Covid pandemic. Where and how did you find out about what Covid was and what steps or regulations the government was putting in place?

Through television broadcasts on television by the president, communication and adverts on radio stations, in newspapers or on social media?

These messages were imperative to protect the lives of South Africans and without media and the right communication mediums it would’ve been tricky, if not impossible, to reach people in-time.

During the Apartheid regime however, the National Party used media to drive and strengthen their own agenda. They owned the mass broadcasting media and censored anything that went against their political agenda to create separation.

Freedom of the press only became a reality when South Africa became a democracy in 1994, allowing each South African the freedom of speech and movement regardless of race, gender or religion. This also opened up the door for freedom in the media, allowing journalists to tell stories as truthfully as possible without the influence of political agendas.

Luckily Apartheid is something of the past, but the desire to use media to the benefit of a selected group of people is not. Across the globe we find that journalists still need to fight for their freedom of speech in the media because certain governments are still trying to control the narrative.

There is also a flip-side to the story where government intervention is required and a necessary service to the people. A government can pull the reigns in to protect society against the profit motives, fake news and exploitation by media corporations.

Let's explore the media landscape and the relevance of media funding in South Africa.

Who Funds the Media, Drives Their Agenda

Traditionally the person paying a salary was referred to as 'the boss'. Employees listen to their superiors as they want to get paid at the end of the day, right? The media makes their decisions in the same way. The people who pay call the shots.

If it’s government-owned in South Africa, the current ruling party will make all the important decisions while privately-owned organisations will have to ensure they make a profit for and listen to their shareholders.

The privatisation of state-owned assets has been very effective in some instances as it allows the ruling party to focus on running the country instead of managing resources with skills they aren't specialised in. But this exploitation of resources in the interest of profit will have some argue that the state should own most natural resources and even major institutions like banks and all public services.

Privatisation of state assets or placing assets into the ownership of government both have pros and cons, which is why this is a constant debate between politicians across the globe. You can read more about the ongoing debate around the privatisation of media in this article.

Advertising Revenue and Consumer Attention

The consumer is probably the most important part of the equation when we consider media funding. The sales of adverts on the various channels is the single biggest contributor of income within the media nowadays. Major broadcasting networks and publicly owned institutions will thus try and ensure they create engaging content to keep their viewers interested and attract more consumers.

But why would they want more viewers or listeners?

Advertising allows brands and companies the opportunity to reach out to their target audiences to garner a following or generate sales. It is thus in a media owner’s best interest to create programming that will gain millions of viewers so that they can sell advertising at a higher cost, making them more money. They also need to consistently and correctly measure the amount of viewers (television), readers (print and press) and listeners (radio).

AR’s (Average Ratings) is the measure used to determine the number of homes consuming a specific medium at a specific time.

Read this article to learn more about how media makes their money.

Who Funds Media Internationally?

The competition for people’s attention in the media is fierce. It is the need for more followers that makes them sometimes lean towards sensationalism and fads. We’re living in a global world and as such some broadcasting companies compete on an international level with others.

The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) is one of the most well-known television stations across the globe. This British Public Broadcaster is under government funding who provides as much as 50% of its funds, but also gets funding for media through grants (donations) and licensing fees.

In the United States of America the story is completely different where broadcasters receive no funding from government. They will receive exceptional tax breaks and rebates, but the biggest ones today (ABC, NBC and CBS), were never public broadcasting companies.

China on the other-hand has been known for tight regulations around its media. It is only recently that China allowed and awarded licenses to foreign broadcasters to enter the market. They are however under strict supervision and can get stiff penalties and even face expulsion if they don’t follow the rules as set by the Chinese government.

The Traditional South African Media Landscape

South African media is as diverse as its people. Our rainbow nation’s biggest broadcasting medium is radio, which reaches millions of people daily across South Africa in a variety of local languages. Other mediums like television and print, are generally in English and the core mediums for South Africans are:

• Radio
• Television
• Press
• Satellite television
• Digital Media

There are also other less obvious channels where people are reached through media which includes:

• Outdoor and signage media
• Books
• Magazines

The SABC (South African Broadcasting Corporation) in South Africa’s most regulated media channel. It is government owned and thus influenced heavily by the decisions the leading party makes. The SABC runs three national television stations and with 18 radio stations they have over 25 million listeners weekly.

In South Africa we also try to recognise and understand the amount of influence that cultural leaders have in smaller cities or settlements. These leaders will spread important news and speak on behalf of the community. It is important in far-reaching, remote or rural areas and especially where education and commercialisation hasn’t impacted tribes as much.

Most of these traditional media channels are still popular to many South Africans, but one cannot undermine the significant impact and effect that digital media is having on our society.

Digital Media in South Africa

With most people owning a cellular phone there has been a significant uptake in Social media across South Africa. Facebook remains the leading platform, but even the more modern ones like Tik-Tok has been garnering a great following over the recent years. Social media is so popular that many people are making a living from being a social media influencer.

Social media financing is of a private nature, and you might’ve heard that Elon Musk was interested in buying Twitter?

Social media has the ability to connect us across thousands of miles. We can share our thoughts in new ways by creating our own exciting content, delve into international content and instantly speak and respond to friends and family.

Unfortunately, this digital world also comes with risks: identity theft, cyber bullying, fraud and fake news to mention a few. Isn’t it thus the responsibility of the government to put measures in place that will protect people from those?

It's easy to say yes, but remember that it also needs to make economic sense for social media business to continue their operations; they need to make their money to survive. Funding by investors and advertising are the main contributors to capital, but they also have demographic research and information on their users that companies can access, at a cost, for their research and marketing efforts.

Unfortunately, the economic gain of these can sometimes be in conflict to the interests of communities and society.  The type of engagement an American company has with countries across the globe, each with different laws and cultural principles can be complex.

Social media is a good example of how global business decisions can have an economic and social impact on many countries and communities.

Social media is not the only form of digital media we consume today. We also have digital broadcasting with Multichoice and streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple TV and Disney PLUS bringing South Africans the latest international content.

Do you think the government has a responsibility to protect local communities and sensor the type of content allowed and streamed in our country?

If you choose to include economics in your education, you'll learn more about the type of conflicts on an international and global level as seen in the media.  Media is generally influenced by grants and monies from power-hungry organisations, but we need the government to monitor and support private projects in such a way that we provide safe access of media to all.

Do you think it is possible to strike this balance?