The South African free-to-air broadcaster e.tv is plunging deeper and deeper into a massive management meltdown and its biggest existential reputational and credibility crisis ever as its decade long chief operating officer (COO) Bronwyn Keene-Young also suddenly resigned this morning.
e.tv and eNCA (DStv 403) are shocked while Bronwyn Keene-Young, who've been with e.tv for 15 years - 10 of which as COO and then lately as "chief corporate officer" - is following her husband Marcel Golding out the door who abruptly quit as CEO on Monday.
Marcel Golding, Bronwyn Keene-Young and e.tv chairperson John Copelyn founded e.tv as a difficult start-up which they've grown to a successful South African TV business but now Bronwyn Keene-Young who is taking years of TV experience with her, is slamming John Copelyn saying that he "doesn't understand that it is Marcel's vision, which has driven us to the success we enjoy today and that he believes that he can destroy Marcel's legacy".
Marcel Golding claims political interference with e.tv and its news brands eNews and eNCA, and now Bronwyn Keene-Young, married to Marcel Golding, slams John Copelyn confirming what Marcel Golding says.
Bronwyn Keene-Young writes that "John Copelyn doesn't tell you that he has told our exco that eNCA's news coverage is 'problematic' for Hosken Consolidated Investments' other interest and that our news had to be reined in so that it didn't affect HCI's ability to source gambling licences from government".
Bronwyn Keene-Young writes that "John Copelyn is silent on how he has attempted to manipulate this company from behind the scenes".
"He fails to tell that earlier this year, when I resisted editorial instructions from Yunis Shaik, he [John Copelyn] sought my removal from the company. After pushback from our exco, he agreed to let me stay on provided that I was sidelined into a new position in which news no longer reported to me."
"Copelyn doesn't tell you that he told me that the line of editorial independence was not one for the news editorial team to determine and nor was it for Sabido management to determine. That line would be determined by HCI."
"Copelyn doesn't tell you that he was fully aware of the 'Ellies shares' matter from early August and that he did nothing about it until early October until all other attempts and threats to get Marcel to resign had failed."
"He doesn't tell you that throughout this period, each time Marcel refused to acquiesce to Copelyn's demands and 'go quietly', that Marcel was threatened with disciplinary action on the Ellies matter.
"He doesn’t tell you that only in early October – a full two months after Copelyn had become aware of the details of the Ellies matter – did he raise this as a disciplinary issue with Marcel and all of a sudden the Ellies issue became serious enough for HCI to suspend Marcel for 'gross misconduct' and for Copelyn to lock Marcel out of his office."
"In his letter, Copelyn has gone to great lengths to misrepresent the facts and to hide his own unacceptable behavior in this entire matter. He does not understand this company, its people, and its DNA, and he never will."
"He does not understand the depth of love and loyalty, which staff have to a CEO who has carried them for 15 years from virtual bankruptcy to great success."
The shocking top management infighting and resignations has rocked e.tv and eNCA and engulfed e.tv, eNews and eNCA in a reputational and credibility crisis which is tarnishing e.tv, eNews and eNCA's news reputations and seriously denting not only e.tv's brand but also how viewers are now going to perceive eNCA's news coverage.
