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Bias and unfairness work against media freedom and do not qualify to be called ethical or objective journalism

Principles to protect African journalism

If we don’t want unethical behaviour to infect African journalism, we should urge media houses to embrace the AMI Principles, says Guy Berger.

One final honk

The 200th edition of Converse is also its last: a swansong timed to coincide with South Africa’s National Press Freedom Day.

Getting to the heart of free speech

What do the following have in common: A cartoon about rape, a song about killing boers, and a photo mash-up of teachers and gay bodybuilders.

Pluralism is a bigger priority than press ownership

There’s renewed focus on newspaper ownership by the ANC, even as they’re becoming less hardline about the Media Appeals Tribunal and the Secrecy Bill.

You can’t fix public broadcasting with flawed law-making

Imagine a forum on agriculture without the farmers present. The same logic applies to a bunch of people discussing a new law for the SABC.

Healing journalism, one beat at a time

Wouldn’t it be grand if health journalism became the healthiest trend-setter for the whole family of journalism?

Surmounting deadlock over the state of South African media freedom

National Press Freedom Day on October 19 is a fitting anniversary to take stock of threats to South African journalism.

Losing Mandela, but winning a second liberation

Many people don’t want to talk about it. Newspapers have been hammered for featuring an artist’s musings on it.

Tribunal seems like an easy ANC victory, but here’s the lie

Faced with mega-messes in education and joblessness, the ANC conference this week thought it could make easy headway with regard to media freedom.

To fix SABC, break it up

It’s a re-run: rather than only reporting on South Africa, the SABC is itself once again a news story. And for all the wrong reasons.

How the ANC can break the press impasse

The ANC’s control-oriented steps have unleashed an even greater cacophony. So where to from here for the ruling party?

Press freedom: From daylight to nightmare?

Pinch me, somebody! Are the unprecedented protests by newspaper editors unnecessary hysteria? Is the press watchdog crying wolf?

I was a Weekly Mail mole

I was a Weekly Mail mole

<b>Guy Berger</b> is now a professor of journalism. Part of his early training for the job was a mission for <i>The Weekly Mail</i>.

Four lessons on the media tribunal

Everyone, each ANC tendency included, needs a space where news that is officially out-of-favour is free to try its luck within the arena of public opinion.

Should journalism education conquer the world?

We all stand to benefit from direct and ongoing exposure to journalism education — and not least about the reporting of Africa.

Taking journalists and their persecutors into the 21st century

Four months in jail with hard labour is hardly the kind of punishment you’d expect to be meted out to a mere journalist.

Stealing World Cup coverage

Hundreds of thousands of viewers will be watching the World Cup kick-off on a pirate basis, and there’s not much that Fifa can do about it.

Fifa should embrace coverage, not curb it

At root, Fifa wants to protect its mega-revenue flow of selling live broadcast rights to TV networks, writes <b>Guy Berger</b>.

Needed: The media’s own Malema

The media helped make Julius Malema a celebrity. What the media now needs is to make its own star who can champion the cause of media freedom.

Ei-ash, it’s been an Eyjafjallajökull of a volcano

As one of the many stranded by the ash cloud over Europe, and unable to get home for five days, <b>Guy Berger</b> found himself on the internet a lot.