BREAKING. US cable: 'The South African press relishes its role as a watchdog' although there's a 'lack of depth in reporting' - WikiLeaks

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What does America really think of the South African press?

''The South African press is diverse, politically engaged and relished its role as a watchdog. It has been referred to by numerous South African analysts as the real political opposition,'' comments a confidential US diplomatic cable in April 2009 from the US Embassy in Pretoria – one in the new batch of the tens of thousands of cables that has been released by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks.

Looking at the 2009 elections in South Africa and the South African press, the diplomatic cable says South African media ''is largely focused on personalities, scandals and events in South African politics, rather than policies, issues and initiatives.''

The cable says ''there is a lack of depth and diversity in reporting due in large part to young, poorly-trained journalists, who must cover a wide array of issues. Additionally, the South Africa media is experiencing the same economic hardship as American media.''

The cable quotes William Bird from Media Monitoring Africa (MMA), noting, ''The media need to realize that part of their agenda as South Africans that enjoy constitutional guarantees to freedom of expression, is that [the media] has a duty and responsibility to devote time and space to reporting issues that enable citizen participation.''

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