While print media, electronic media and other TV news channels lead with coverage of Jacob Zuma being boo-ed by the crowds at Nelson Mandela's memorial service on Tuesday, the SABC scrambled to keep the scenes off television, while the SABC's primetime news bulletins, as well as SABC News - the public broadcaster's 24-hour TV news channel - didn't give it any coverage in reportage.
The shocking censorship follows after the SABC's Morning Live anchor Leanne Manas, covering the memorial service from the FNB Stadium as one of several SABC reporters at the stadium, earlier on Tuesday proudly proclaimed that "we have cameras everywhere; all the angles, to bring you this event".
"What was striking about the SABC's coverage of the Nelson Mandela memorial service was the way in which it was censored with the omission of the booing of Jacob Zuma," says an observer.
The sudden ongoing censorship from the SABC could be the explanation for the bad sound, odd video, strange video angles and bad sound and video quality from the SABC pool cameras which other TV news channels and international broadcasters were forced to use and instantly led to complaints regarding quality such as CNN International (DSTV 401) apologising to viewers for the weird and bad video and sound as the SABC tried to omit certain things from being seen and heard.
While TV news channels like CNN International, Sky News and eNCA immediately picked up on the story of Jacob Zuma being boo-ed - as well as print publications which had stories online as well as analysis pieces from the afternoon - the SABC had no news reporting on it online until much later in the evening and only as a side-reference in another story regarding Desmond Tutu.
There was no coverage of the booing incidents on SABC News and the crowds making the rolling of hands as the soccer substitute sign for "time for a new player", and nothing in primetime bulletins on the SABC - although it was the lead story on Tuesday evening on eNews Prime Time and eNCA.
It is the second booing incident of Jacob Zuma's government censored and not shown by SABC News, following the incident in 2005 when the deputy president Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka at the time was boo-ed although an SABC camera was present and captured the event.
Insider sources at the SABC tell TV with Thinus the booing was unexpected and "the first reaction was to somehow veer away from it and not give it attention to maintain the decorum of the memorial service".
"It wasn't deliberate until everyone realised the crowds are doing it deliberately and everytime he [Jacob Zuma] comes up [on the giant screens in the stadium]. The screens were turned off inside [the stadium] to minimise the jeering but that wasn't the SABC."
"The decree was not to show or do anything that would detract from the event. That was broadly the understanding but everyone knew it meant in effect to not show or say or do anything to embarrass the ruling party and especially not the leadership of the current ruling party, meaning him [Jacob Zuma]," said another source.
According to sources Nyana Molete, the SABC's national TV news editor ordered the control room to "cut away" from booing coverage. Later during the day, according to SABC news staff, Jimi Matthews, the SABC's head of news ordered the booing news be downplayed and not to be mentioned in the primetime news output.
SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago says "the millions of South Africans and people all over the world including the media expected us to show the memorial service of Madiba as it is, and the SABC heeded to this call and showed the 'booing' or the said incident as we carried it as a live broadcast."
"It is the prerogative of the SABC to decide to use its discretion in line with its editorial codes and what it deems as the top story of the day. The memorial of Madiba and how his life was celebrated with various people around the world sharing their moments and experiences with Madiba remains important to the world and not the incident."
Kaizer Kganyago says "the international media organisations that had access to SABC material complimented the quality of the coverage with some describing it as exciting, colourful and excellent."
The SABC didn't specifically answer questions TV with Thinus made regarding SABC editorial policy, what parts of policy the SABC used to direct live and news coverage, and whether and who ordered the booing censorship and footage ban.
Media Monitoring Africa (MMA) viewed the primetime bulletins on Tuesday on SABC1, SABC2 and SABC3 and confirms that no mention of the booing incident was made in any of the bulletins.
"If we consider the stature of the speaker, the president of South Africa, and the importance of his speech, there can be little doubt that the story was newsworthy," says MMA, saying the SABC's decisions to censor and ban the booing coverage "constitutes a clear violation of the SABC's editorial code".
"The code of conduct for broadcasters also requires the SABC to report news truthfully, accurately and objectively." The MMA says the SABC's cenorship "feeds allegations of political interference at our public broadcaster and undermine its credibility."
"The MMA calls on the SABC editor-in-chief, the group CEO Lulama Mokhobo, to carry out an urgent investigation and to brief the public on its terms, progress and outcomes, and we call on SABC News management to ensure it not only adheres to its editorial policies but practices the highest standards of ethical professional journalism."
