eNCA reporter Samkele Maseko abruptly gone after resignation, apologises to colleagues for not saying goodbye.

by Thinus Ferreira

The eNCA (DStv 403) political reporter Samkele Maseko is abruptly gone from the TV news channel where he was a rising star and apologised to his now-former eNCA colleagues for not saying goodbye after handing in his resignation on Tuesday.

Samkele Maseko isn't serving a notice period but left the Hyde Park based TV newsroom immediately after resigning on Tuesday since he's leaving eNCA "for greener pastures".

There's been no statement from eNCA about Samkele Maseko's exit.

It's not yet clear where he's going to although rival channels like SABC News (DStv 404) and Newzroom Afrika (DStv 405) are options and have been headhunting eNCA staffers, especially Newzroom Africa that has been expanding its own operations.

"To my former eNCA colleagues I apologize for not staying goodbye," said Samkele Maseko on social media on Tuesday. "Such is the nature of such things, just continue kicking ass. We shall meet again somewhere soon," he said on Twitter.

"To cut the speculation, this is what happened. I resigned from eNCA today for greener pastures. There was no sinister motive or agenda. It had nothing to do with their decision to no longer broad the EFF conference. I couldn’t serve notice as per their decision."

To my former Colleagues @eNCA I apologize for not staying goodbye. Such is the nature of such things , just continue kicking ass. We shall meet again somewhere soon.... pic.twitter.com/vme8hrQTeP

— #TheLordOfTheMedia (@samkelemaseko) December 17, 2019

To cut the speculation, this is what happened. I resigned from @eNCA today for greener pastures. There was no sinister motive or agenda. It had nothing to do with their decision to no longer broad the @EFFSouthAfrica conference. I couldn’t serve notice as per their decision.

— #TheLordOfTheMedia (@samkelemaseko) December 17, 2019

In April 2019 the reporter briefly became part of the news cycle when the ANC politician Jessie Duarte lashed out at him in an ugly rant at a press briefing with her verbal tirade directed at him and the media that went viral.

The SABC's SABC News division, broadcasting the shocking incident from its own camera angle, revealed how Jessie Duarte told the SABC to turn its camera off before she launched into her attack on eNCA and Samkele Maseko.

The SABC not only kept its camera rolling but also broadcast how Jessie Duarte told the SABC to switch its camera off.

At the ANC press briefing Jessie Duarte laid into Samkele Maseko, slamming him as "the worst bully I've ever come across", saying he was "arrogantly disposed" and that he believes he is "the lord of media" - a moniker which has become Samkele Maseko's nickname of sorts the past few months.

eNCA meets with ANC political party after Jessie Duarte's outburst at reporter Samkele Maseko; says it will 'continue to ask tough and interrogative questions of all political parties' and refuses to 'put up with verbal abuse or bullying from politicians'.

Senior executives of the eNCA (DStv 403) TV news channel met with representatives of the ANC political party in South Africa today, with eNCA that says the news media outlet will "continue to ask tough and interrogative questions of all political parties in this election period" and that eNCA won't "put up with verbal abuse or bullying from any politician".

The meeting comes after Jessie Duarte, the deputy secretary-general of the ANC, on Tuesday unleashed a verbal assault on the eNCA political reporter Samkele Maseko at a press briefing, that instantly made headlines for her ugly rant at eNCA after telling SABC News (DStv 404) to switch their camera off and which they refused to do.

Jessie Duarte in her tirade criticised Samkele Maseko for trying to "defend freedom of speech you've never fought for".

"Mr Samkele, you have a habit of intimidating everybody, you have a habit of making people feel that you are the lord of the media, you are one journalist, you work for one eNCA and you think all of us must shiver and shake," said a finger-waving Jessie Duarte.

"You call me a bully but you are the worst bully I've ever come across. I've never met anyone as arrogantly disposed as you are and you want to defend freedom of speech you've never fought for."

"And you don't defend freedom of speech because your particular TV station has decided the direction it will go on as it did in 2016 you followed the DA slogan of 'vote for change'."

"So what do you want us to do? To bow and scrape every time you walk into a room and call you my lord, the lord of the media? You are just a journalist just as I am just a citizen, nothing more, nothing less. Yes, this is personal," said Jessie Duarte.

In today's meeting between eNCA and the ANC, eNCA told the political party that the eMedia Investments TV news channel "would not put up with verbal abuse or bullying from any politician".

eNCA says it reminded the ANC of the "rules of engagement" between the media and political parties as prescribed by the Electoral Code of Conduct "which allows for reporters to question politicians on any issues without fear of intimidation"

Jeremy Maggs, eNCA editor-in-chief, in a press statement late on Wednesday said that "After a frank and robust discussion, the channel welcomes the ANC's commitment to media freedom and it agreeing to move on from the incident".

"We also appreciate the ANC's concern that journalists should be allowed to operate unhindered and without fear in the field as well as the party's acknowledgement that it is the undisputed right of the media to ask tough questions".

Jeremy Maggs says "clarification was also given to the ANC that there was no later editing of the live 8-minute interview to show an anti-ANC bias".

"The ANC was told claims by Jessie Duarte that the channel's 2016 election payoff-line urging political change was incorrect. The line was 'Your Independent Election Channel'."

ANC politician Jessie Duarte lashes out at eNCA reporter Samkele Maseko in an ugly rant at a press briefing after telling SABC News to switch their camera off.

Jessie Duarte, the ANC political party's deputy secretary-general in South Africa, on Tuesday afternoon lashed out in an ugly rant at the eNCA (DStv 403) reporter Samkele Maseko with the shocking verbal tirade that immediately went viral and lead to massive coverage on eNCA as well as SABC News (DStv 404) and across other media in the country.

The SABC's SABC News division, broadcasting the shocking incident from its own camera angle, revealed how Jessie Duarte told the SABC to turn its camera off before she launched into her attack on eNCA and Samkele Maseko.

The SABC not only kept its camera rolling but also broadcast how Jessie Duarte told the SABC to switch its camera off on Tuesday evening.

At the ANC press briefing Jessie Duarte laid into Samkele Maseko, slamming him as "the worst bully I've ever come across", saying he was "arrogantly disposed" and that he believes he is "the lord of media".

Jessie Duarte in her tirade criticised Samkele Maseko for trying to "defend freedom of speech you've never fought for".

"Mr Samkele, you have a habit of intimidating everybody, you have a habit of making people feel that you are the lord of the media, you are one journalist, you work for one eNCA and you think all of us must shiver and shake," said a finger-waving Jessie Duarte.

"You call me me a bully but you are the worst bully I've ever come across. I've never met anyone as arrogantly disposed as you are and you want to defend freedom of speech you've never fought for."

"And you don't defend freedom of speech because your particular TV station has decided the direction it will go on as it did in 2016 you followed the DA slogan of 'vote for change'."

"So what do you want us to do? To bow and scrape every time you walk into a room and call you my lord, the lord of the media? You are just a journalist just as I am just a citizen, nothing more, nothing less. Yes, this is personal," said Jessie Duarte.

Video surfaced on Tuesday afternoon of a caustic Jessie Duarte in 2017 berating a CNBC Africa (DStv 410 / Cell C black 512) reporter in a similar on-camera meltdown.

In a statement issued by the ANC afterwards the political party said that it "has noted the one-sided and biased story given by the eNCA on the interaction between Samkelo Maseko" and Jessie Duarte and that "Samkele Maseko engaged in an unacceptable and unprofessional outburst".

The ANC said that "Jessie Duarte reiterates her commitment to freedom of the media and editorial independence which has been championed by the ANC for many years".

"Jessie Duarte today really sounded like Donald Trump," Anton Harber, Caxton Professor of Journalism at Wits University told Open News on Tuesday evening about the ANC deputy secretary-general verbal attack on the eNCA reporter.

Anton Harber told eNCA that "I'm very concerned because Jessie Duarte is so far out of line that, she really needs to be pulled back into place. She seems to think that she can dictate who asks what questions and fails to recognise the role of the media and her duty".

"She seemed to be upset about the hard questions. And we're saying, well, journalists must ask hard questions. That's the whole point, Kate Skinner, executive director at the South African National Editors' Forum (Sanef) told SABC News in an interview on Tuesday evening.

On Wednesday morning the SABC's Morning Live show featured and interviewed both Samkele Maseko and Kate Skinner.

Morning Live anchor Leanne Manas told viewers that the ANC political party's spokesperson and Jessie Duarte have both gone underground. "Please answer your phones. We want to talk to you."