Debora Patta and 3rd Degree, e.tv's weekly investigative magazine show, had to apologize in Tuesday night's broadcast for a Metrorail story - a very difficult thing for a journalistic-based media outlet, especially an investigative TV show, to have to do.
Debora Patta had to apologize on the air for a producer who messed up in a July episode about Metrorail and in which 3rd Degree stated as a fact that a Metrorail victim had not received his money from a lawyer's firm - while in fact Metrorail had not yet paid the lawyer's firm the victim's money yet.
"In our 3rd Degree programme about Metrorail aired in the week of 9 July, we focused some of our attention on the plight on Bongani Mojafe whose leg had to be amputated after a Metrorail accident. In the programme 3rd Degree stated as fact certain allegations which were incorrect about the law firm Raphael Kurganoff Incorporated, the lawyers handling Bongani's case."
"We stated that that the law firm had been paid by Metrorail and had not paid the money to Bongani. It had also been stated that the law firm had been in posession of the money since April. It has been brought to our attention that at the time of broadcasting that programme, the money from Bongani's case had not been paid to the lawyers by Metrorail, and that the money was only paid to them on Friday, 20 July."
Debora Patta said "3rd Degree takes this opportunity to apologize to the staff of Raphael Kurganoff for the ascertion of incorrect facts. If we had ascertained these facts at the time, we could have presented the true position in relation to this matter. We regret the error and apologize for any embarrassement caused to the firm."
