The Big Debate back for a 9th season with Redi Tlhabi from Sunday 10 March on SABC2 and SABC News.

The Big Debate is returning for a 9th season from Sunday, 10 March at 19:00 and will be broadcast on SABC2, SABC News (DStv 404), SAfm and the SABC News YouTube channel - again with Redi Tlhabi as the moderator of the "town hall style" talk show.

The 8th season of the debate show, from Broad Daylight Films Foundation and executive produced by Ben Cashdan, was also broadcast on SABC2 and SABC News as a live show, including on the SABC's radio station, SAfm, but it's not clear whether episodes will again be done live or are pre-recorded.

Studio guests and invited guests will once again be sitting in the show's well-known five-ringed seating pattern, and some of the The Big Debate topics this season will be centred around South Africa's upcoming national elections taking place on 8 May.

On Wednesday SABC2 was asked for more information about the upcoming season of The Big Debate starting in 3 days. The channel told TVwithThinus it's still working on it.

The Big Debate bursts back onto the SABC, with - surprise! - Redi Tlhabi.

The Big Debate has suddenly burst back onto the SABC, instantly becoming the biggest symbol of the public broadcaster’s top executives to signal their serious effort to regain public trust in its current affairs offering and to try and repair it severely dented news output credibility.

As surprising and astounding, is that none other that the veteran and extremely skilled presenter and interviewer Redi Tlhabi is suddenly back as the moderator after she anchored the earlier seasons.

The Big Debate, with several significant updates for the social media and internet age, made its 8th season debut on the exact SABC TV channel – SABC2 – where it disappeared from exactly four years ago.

Asked how the revival of The Big Debate on the SABC came about, Thabiso Bhengu, senior content producer on the show, told the SABC’s Morning Live this week that “when a notorious somebody left the SABC, the SABC was happy to have us back”.

“And we’re happy to be helping the SABC to become what it should be, which is the best public broadcaster in the world,” he said.

In November 2013 The Big Debate – just before it was supposed to start and with three episodes of its 5th season already filmed – was abruptly yanked and permanently removed from the SABC2 schedule just days before broadcast, including an episode devoted to the Marikana Massacre.

The debate show, from Broad Daylight Films Foundation and and executive produced by Ben Cashdan, was culled from the SABC airwaves on the direct orders of the then acting chief operating officer (COO), Hlaudi Motsoeneng.

At the time Hlaudi Motsoeneng was only in the beginning phase of what was to become a sweeping, widening and pervasive censorship drive by the controversial executive.

His later-described “reign of terror” would eventually see the SABC impose draconian newsroom censorship that extended to, and ended with, his shocking ban in 2016 on showing visuals on SABC News of the destruction of property and infrastructure during public protests.   

The SABC said at the time that The Big Debate was “incorrectly commissioned and compromised the editorial oversight of the SABC newsroom”.

The SABC-neutered season of The Big Debate was instantly picked up by eNCA (DStv 403) and e.tv that broadcast three seasons of the lively town hall debate type show that ended with a 7th season in 2016 with Masechaba Lekalake as moderator.

A bold, brazen return of free speech

Now The Big Debate is “back” on SABC2 as a hard-hitting current affairs talk show that had no less than the topic of “State Capture” for its first new episode.

It is something that would have been unheard of on the SABC of just a year ago, with widely disparate guests on The Big Debate ranging from Floyd Shivambu (EFF deputy president) and Mzwanele "Jimmy" Manyi (ANN7 owner) to Vytjie Mentor (former ANC chief whip) – all sitting and debating each other passionately in the black backdrop studio interspersed with a few banners.

“We invited the president, we invited the Guptas, we invited Brian Molefe, so that they can also contribute to this narrative,” said Redi Tlhabi in a refreshing frankness on the SABC airwaves.

“They didn’t take up the invitation. When people are not here it is not because we don’t want to hear them. But for some reason they don’t want to participate in this debate,” she said.

With the show’s bold and brazen return, the SABC is sending a very strong signal and a significant marker that the struggling public broadcaster is working hard on turning around the erosion the past few years of its current affairs programming and news, and the trust in it.

The Big Debate made its debut on Saturday evening and surprised when it started with moderator Redi Tlhabi, who recently left her perch behind the Radio 702 microphone and said that she plans to go to America for further academic studies.

Redi Tlhabi was one of the original moderators of the show’s early seasons before Siki Mgabadeli and Masechaba Lekalake took over, with nobody that ever expected her to return.

As an assertive and extremely knowledgeable and experienced interviewer, the well-liked moderator on Saturday evening brought her credibility and cache to bear on the show, with Redi Tlhabi who instantly elevated the SABC’s current affairs credibility despite The Big Debate being slotted into a doldrum timeslot on television’s least watched day of the week.

Like democracy the first live broadcast episode of The Big Debate was a loud, zany, almost ungovernable, glorious mess.

Sound and some other production problems didn’t dim the cacophony of voices, all excitedly reaching for the roving mic and speaking up with varying opinions while the positive and critical comments of viewers scrolled by.

Some people unexpectedly got up and walked off set despite the floor manager telling them to remain seated. Cellphones rang. It was the most alive, unvarnished and authentic a current affairs TV viewers have seen on the SABC in years.

Big changes

Although already done by commercial broadcasters but with the resource scarce and cash-strapped SABC lagging behind, The Big Debate’s latest season marks a dramatic departure from existing SABC current affairs shows, and is a big improvement and a big step forward for SABC public audience interaction and participation.

For the first time, The Big Debate, done from Shine Studios in Johannesburg, is being broadcast live. It enables social media users to interact directly with the show by sending comments and questions that are being scrolled on screen.

With studio guests sitting in the show’s well-known five-ringed seating pattern, The Big Debate, besides being shown on SABC2, is also being simulcast at the same time on SABC News (DStv 404), as well as on the SABC radio station, SAfm, unlocking bigger public broadcasting synergy.

After the scheduled hour long episode of the show is over, The Big Debate now also continues seamlessly for another hour as a streaming show on YouTube with the various studio guests answering questions and making more comments.

The show also has a call-in hotline for the first time with viewers who can leave Whatsapp voice notes with the producers saying they’re listening to each and every one of them.

Also back, in a sense – and helping to elevate the SABC’s quality of broadcasting although they’re not working for the SABC – are several SABC and SABC News veterans working behind the scenes on the production, like Crystal Orderson for instance as one of the content producers.

The new The Big Debate season on the SABC will cover several topics that might seem mundane or well-worn if the show were broadcast elsewhere but that are literally breath-taking and highly notable given that it will be on the public broadcaster.

Upcoming issues that will be tackled include topics like radical economic transformation (“RET”) this Saturday and in 2018 even the controversial nuclear deal.

SABC2 will broadcast a second episode of The Big Debate this coming Saturday and then go on a production hiatus before returning in February 2018 for the remainder of the season.

eNCA starting a series of special election reports this coming Sunday with Siki Mgabadeli talking to ordinary South Africans.

There's been no word from eNCA (DStv 403) about it and no announcement, but the 24-hour TV news channel will start on Sunday (6 April) with a series of special election reports from Siki Mgabadeli before South Africa's next general election 7 May.

Siki Mgabadeli on-air eNCA presence follows the highly successful latest season of the town hall style debate and talk show The Big Debate which the SABC canned and eNCA and e.tv took over from SABC2, as well as appearing during the eNCA's coverage of the opening of parliament at the beginning of 2014.

In the series of special election reports and with an angle highly reminiscent of The Big Debate, Siki Mgabadeli will look at how ordinary South Africans are being affected by certain issues as she speaks to professionals from Sandton to mineworkers in the North West and farm workers in the Western Cape.

ASTOUNDING. With the first episode of The Big Debate now on eNCA it is suddenly crystal clear why the SABC canned the show.

It's astounding in its revealing, truthful, straight talk and debating, and with its first episode it instantly became clear why The Big Debate on eNCA (DStv 403) with Siki Mgabadeli was censored and yanked off of the SABC by the famously matricless and acting chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng.

Three new episodes of the fifth season of The Big Debate was already produced, although none yet shown, when the SABC dumped The Big Debate off the SABC2 schedule.

The SABC gave a convoluted, confusing reason why The Big Debate has been pulled and wasn't willing to elaborate or explain in detail what exactly happened, other than to say that The Big Debate was "incorrectly commissioned and compromised the editorial oversight of the SABC newsroom".

Siki Mgabadeli was simply brilliant in the first episode of The Big Debate on eNCA on Tuesday night, the first of a 10 episode season which centred around the theme of "workers' rights".

Perhaps the SABC pulled The Big Debate off SABC2 because the show dared to mention and use the words "Marikana Massacre" repeatedly during the show and in voice-overs. In November 2012 the SABC banned the words "Marikana Massacre".

Perhaps the SABC pulled The Big Debate off SABC2 because victims and bereaved family members of the Marikana Massacre were bussed in for the first episode of the town hall style debating show, sharing their emotional stories.

Perhaps the SABC pulled The Big Debate off SABC2 because the ruling party, the ANC, received multiple rebukes from a cross-section of debating panel members across the spectrum which included trade union representatives and ordinary South African citizens.

Perhaps the SABC pulled The Big Debate off SABC2 because in the audience spoke a women, Primrose Sonti from the Wonderkop Marikana community with her red EFF party beret.

So emotionally and with so much conviction, she talked about an entire widowed community left without husbands and men and any form of income. (The SABC has allegedly placed a limit on coverage of Julius Malema.)

The Big Debate episode touched on goverment institutions and parastatals who are all a failure.

The Big Debate touched on the high levels of poverty in South Africa, the high jobless rate and unemployment and the people who are suffering because of what happened at the Marikana Massacre.

The Big Debate also gave screen time to Dali Mpofu (the Marikana miners' lawyer and the SABC's former CEO who got R13,4 million in August 2009 when he took the SABC to court following his suspension and subsequent firing.)

It was perhaps too much of a stretch to think that a show such as The Big Debate with critical and thought-provoking debate could still be seen on South Africa's public broadcaster given the level of top-down political interference and ongoing cadre deployment at the SABC.

The Big Debate's Siki Mgabadeli: 'I was extremely disappointed and frustrated with the SABC. Thanks to eNCA ordinary voices will be heard.'

e.tv and the eNCA's publicity department is unable to answer a specific media enquiry first which TV with Thinus made yesterday regarding The Big Debate dumped by the SABC and now moving to eNCA (DStv 403), but has now send out a general statement to all press, with more information.

As I reported here yesterday, The Big Debate will move to eNCA from Tuesday 19 November at 21:00 for 10 episodes. The Big Debate will repeat on Thursdays at 11:00, Saturdays at 18:00 and Sundays at 12:00.

The Big Debate will also be broadcast on e.tv starting at a later date, as TV with Thinus reported yesterday. The Big Debate will start its 10 episode run on e.tv from 5 January. The Big Debate will also be shown on eKasi+ on OpenView HD from Sunday 5 January.

"When the show was pulled off air at the last minute, I was extremely disappointed and frustrated with the SABC," says Siki Mgabadeli. "It seemed that the voices of ordinary people across the country would not be heard. Thanks to eNCA and e.tv, those voices will now be part of the national debate," she says.

The Big Debate executive producer Ben Cashdan says "nothing is off limits" and that "right now South Africa needs more than ever a space in which marginalised voices can be heard."

"As we head into 20 years of democracy, we feel it is critical to debate the issues facing our country," says Patrick Conroy, the group head of news. "How can that be a bad thing? It is just a contestation of ideas - that's what freedom is all about."

"We agreed to broadcast the show becase we feel it is in the public interest to do so," says Monde Twala, e.tv's group head of channels. "The channel is committed to ensure that debate-driven content is widely accessible to the majority of South Africans."


ALSO READ: eNCA picks up the SABC's censored The Big Debate for a 10 episode season starting 19 November at 21:00.

BREAKING. eNCA picks up the SABC's censored The Big Debate for a new 10 episode second season starting on 19 November at 21:00.

The Big Debate talk show with host Siki Mgabadeli is moving to eNCA (DStv 403) and e.tv with a new season of 10 episodes which will start on Tuesday 19 November at 21:00 on eNCA, and roll out on a later date on e.tv as well.

The Sabido-run 24-hour TV news channel is picking up and talking over the public current affairs show after the SABC's matricless acting chief operating officer (COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng unilaterally ordered The Big Debate off the air a month ago just before it was supposed to start its second season on SABC2.

The matricless Hlaudi Motsoeneng also ordered all repeats of The Big Debate stopped. The current affairs talk show had already filmed episodes and kept filming episodes.

The SABC's daft decision which the public broadcaster admitted was its own fault in that the SABC "incorrectly commissioned" The Big Debate and which the SABC said "compromised the SABC newsroom", led to a huge public outcry.

An organised public protest at the end of October followed at the SABC's Auckland Park headquarters triggered by growing concerns within South Africa about the suppression of freedom of speech at the SABC. Critics once again pointing fingers to how far South Africa's public broadcaster has fallen from the mandate it is supposed to deliver on.

Now the The Big Debate is moving to the eNCA with the 10 new episodes of a second season which will also be broadcast on e.tv from a slightly later date.

Although the pick-up solves one issue - returning a relevant, hard-hitting current affairs talk show to the air in South Africa, it doesn't address the SABC's ongoing erosion of quality current affairs programming and unbiased news delivery ahead of South Africa's next general election in 2014.

The eNCA has not yet officially confirmed that the 24-hour news channel has taken over The Big Debate but upcoming topics to be discussed on The Big Debate this new season will include the problems with public transport and government corruption.

Public protest coming this Thursday at the SABC over the broadcaster's ongoing censorship and canning of The Big Debate on SABC2.

The Right2Know Campaign (R2K) is organising public protest action outside the SABC's Auckland Park headquarters this Thursday 24 October at 12:00 to picket the South African public broadcaster's sudden, unilateral canning of the hard-hitting current affairs talk show The Big Debate hosted by Siki Mgabadeli.

The SABC's famously matricless acting chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng ordered The Big Debate on SABC2 with executive producer Dan Cashdan off the air just before its second season was supposed to start which has already filmed 4 episodes, as well as pulling all the repeats of the first season.

The SABC says The Big Debate "compromised the SABC newsroom" since the show was "incorrectly commissioned".

"In protest at the continuing censorship and lack of editorial independence at the SABC, as well as the canning of The Big Debate, we are issuing a public call to protest for this Thursday 24 October from 12:00 to 14:00 outside the SABC in Auckland Park," says the R2Know Campaign in a statement.

"The South African public are fed a diet of cheap American sitcoms, aspirational soap operas and poor quality foreign programming in part because of the perennial underfunding and financial mismanagement at the SABC," says the Right2Know Campaign. "The Big Debate is a massively popular exception to this that gives South Africans a taste of what a true public broadcaster can deliver."

Public pressure organisations and industry watch groups focusing on public broadcasting in South Africa are incensed at the SABC and the ongoing highly-embarrassing financial, management and editorial dramas which plague the struggling broadcaster.

"We do not want skewed and biased sunshine journalism from our public broadcaster – we want real journalism," says William Bird, director of Media Monitoring Africa MMA). "This really is an extraordinary decision especially given how the SABC's group CEO Lulama Mokhobo spoke so warmly and positively about The Big Debate."

"It would appear that the SABC wants to insource current affairs because the programme producers are too independently-minded for the broadcaster, and they have developed cold feet with a national election looming," says the Right2Know Campaign.

"The SABC's canning of The Big Debate smacks of political censorship and an abuse of the public broadcaster to protect certain individuals' political interests. In its first season of 10 episodes The Big Debate offered viewers high quality programming and deep level debates on various current affairs pertinent to South Africa."

"This has happened as the SABC is on a nationwide roadshow to ensure public participation in the review of editorial policies. The decision flies in the face of the current and draft policies which both commit the public broadcaster to reflect the diverse range of South African attitudes and opinions."

"The SABC is being dragged back to the days when it was a state broadcaster practicing political censorship ahead of the public's right to know," says the Right2Know Campaign.

Meanwhile the former intelligence minister Ronnie Kasrils has called on South African journalists to question the so-called Secrecy Bill and to report on it insightfully. The Secrecy Bill aims to hamper journalists reporting on various matters with the interest of the state weighing heavier than freedom of expression.

Ronnie Kasrils who spoke at a Media Freedom Day Event at Wits University said South African journalists have to question the Secrecy Bill and investigate all the implications.

BREAKING. The Big Debate on SABC2 canned because 'it was incorrectly commissioned and compromised the SABC newsroom'.

You're reading it here first.

The SABC says its current affairs talk show The Big Debate on SABC2 was canned because it was wrongly outsourced and in the process compromised the SABC newsroom.

Furore and controversy erupted on Thursday hours before the second season of The Big Debate with the award-winning journalist Siki Mgabadeli was supposed to start on SABC2 at 21:30, when she vented that The Big Debate has "unfortunately been pulled off the air" and that neither she nor the producers know why.

The SABC's famously matricless acting chief operating officer (COO) ordered the hard-hitting weekly town hall format talk show off of the public broadcaster's air after two episodes were already filmed, with the second season which was supposed to start on Thursday. 

Hlaudi Motsoeneng also ordered the repeats of the first season of The Big Debate which has been running since September in the run-up to the launch of the second season to be scrubbed from SABC2's schedule.

Ironically the pulled episode of The Big Debate on Thursday night on SABC2 had the topic of the right to communicate. The Big Debate timeslot has been filled with rebroadcasts of Speak Out.

"I cannot express how angry I am now," said Siki Mgabadeli. who said that there was "no reasons given. Just told it's being pulled".

Siki Mgabadeli said it's "no mistake" that The Big Debate has been pulled off of the SABC2 schedule. "We've been told, no more airing of the show".

The SABC's spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago now tells TV with Thinus that "it is against the policies of the SABC to outsource news and current affairs".

He says"editorial responsibility for all news and current affairs content is vested in the newsroom. The Big Debate, which is a current affairs programme, was incorrectly commissioned by SABC2, and in so doing, the editorial oversight, which is the responsibility of the newsroom, was compromised. This is all we are prepared to say on the matter."

BREAKING. SABC2's The Big Debate suddenly 'pulled off the air'; 'we don't know why,' says talk show host Siki Mgabadeli.

More public embarrassment for the South African public broadcaster, after the SABC's matricless acting chief operating officer (COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng unilaterally pulled SABC2's current affairs talk show The Big Debate off the air and also ordered all repeats cancelled.

Talk show host Siki Mgabadeli of the current affairs talk show The Big Debate on SABC2 on Thursdays at 21:30 is venting that The Big Debate has "unfortunately been pulled off the air" and that neither she nor the producers know why.

Sources tell me that Hlaudi Motsoeneng ordered The Big Debate off the SABC2 schedule. The Big Debate timeslot has been filled with rebroadcasts of Speak Out. Ironically the pulled episode of The Big Debate on Thursday night on SABC2 had the topic of the right to communicate.

The Big Debate, the SABC's town hall debate show, started to rebroadcast selected episodes since September, with the second season of The Big Debate which was supposed to kick off tonight on SABC2.

The award-winning journalist Siki Mgabadeli and the producers apparently only found out recently that that won't be the case.

"I cannot express how angry I am now," said Siki Mgabadeli. who said that there was "no reasons given. Just told it's being pulled".

Siki Mgabadeli said it's "no mistake" that The Big Debate has been pulled off of the SABC2 schedule. "We've been told, no more airing of the show". The programme already recorded three episodes.

The SABC and SABC2 didn't immediately respond to a media enquiry about the sudden cancellation of The Big Debate made on Thursday evening.