Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      World Bank set to back South Africa’s big energy grid roll-out

      20 June 2025

      The algorithm will sing now: why musicians should be worried about AI

      20 June 2025

      Sita hits back at critics, promises faster, automated procurement

      20 June 2025

      The transatlantic race to create the first television

      20 June 2025

      Listed: All the MVNOs in South Africa – 2025 edition

      19 June 2025
    • World

      Watch | Starship rocket explodes in setback to Musk’s Mars mission

      19 June 2025

      Trump Mobile dials into politics, profit and patriarchy

      17 June 2025

      Samsung plots health data hub to link users and doctors in real time

      17 June 2025

      Beijing’s chip champions blacklisted by Taiwan

      16 June 2025

      China is behind in AI chips – but for how much longer?

      13 June 2025
    • In-depth

      Meta bets $72-billion on AI – and investors love it

      17 June 2025

      MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

      12 June 2025

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025

      Digital fortress: We go inside JB5, Teraco’s giant new AI-ready data centre

      30 May 2025

      Sam Altman and Jony Ive’s big bet to out-Apple Apple

      22 May 2025
    • TCS

      TCS+ | AfriGIS’s Helen Hulett on how tech can help resolve South Africa’s water crisis

      18 June 2025

      TechCentral Nexus S0E2: South Africa’s digital battlefield

      16 June 2025

      TechCentral Nexus S0E1: Starlink, BEE and a new leader at Vodacom

      8 June 2025

      TCS+ | The future of mobile money, with MTN’s Kagiso Mothibi

      6 June 2025

      TCS+ | AI is more than hype: Workday execs unpack real human impact

      4 June 2025
    • Opinion

      South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

      17 June 2025

      AI and the future of ICT distribution

      16 June 2025

      Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

      13 June 2025

      Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

      2 June 2025

      South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

      2 June 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SevenC
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » News » SABC ordered to apologise over Gumede story

    SABC ordered to apologise over Gumede story

    By Editor24 March 2011
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp
    Robert Gumede is nonexecutive chairman of listed IT group Gijima

    The SABC has been ordered to apologise to the Mail & Guardian newspaper for broadcasting an “inaccurate” and “distorted” story about one of the newspaper’s journalists.

    The Broadcasting Complaints Commission of SA (BCCSA) found that, in neglecting to give journalist Sam Sole the right to reply to allegations that he accepted a R900 bribe and was guilty of racial bias, the SABC failed in its obligation to publish truthful and unbiased news in an ethical manner.

    The allegations against Sole were made by IT businessman Robert Gumede in a report on the SABC on 4 November. In the insert, broadcast on SABC 3 and SAfm, Sole was accused of accepting bribes from British businessman John Sterenborg in return for publishing damaging allegations of corruption against Gumede.

    “Here’s a payment, one of the first payments that Sterenborg made out to a journalist who is an award-winning journalist, so-called investigative journalist who goes out to attack black people, to say that they are corrupt, they bribe people and here it is,” Gumede said in the report.

    The BCCSA said the report was “serious” and “damaging”. “The allegations made by Gumede against Sole are very serious and damaging. Sole’s credibility as an investigative journalist was questioned and he was not afforded the opportunity to defend himself. The SABC is clearly biased against the Mail & Guardian.”

    The authority said the broadcaster had “intentionally or negligently” distorted and misrepresented the facts of the story, “in particular, the allegation that Sterenborg paid Sole a bribe”.

    It said the SABC had failed to contact Sole and had approached the Mail & Guardian only an hour-and-a-half before the story was to be aired. Gumede was contacted three-and-a-half hours earlier.

    “The SABC has failed to comply with the BCCSA code of conduct by broadcasting the Gumede-Mail & Guardian story in a manner which is inconsistent with the requirements of the code of conduct.

    “The BCCSA is requested to order the SABC to broadcast an apology to the Mail & Guardian and Sole on the SABC 3 7pm news bulletin and on the SAfm 6am and 7am news. The apology must be given the same prominence as the original broadcast.”

    The SABC said it believed it had not contravened the code.  — Sapa

    • Subscribe to our free daily newsletter
    • Follow us on Twitter or on Facebook


    Robert Gumede SABC Sam Sole
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleSoftware piracy bad for the economy – Leon Louw
    Next Article Pay wall or pain wall?

    Related Posts

    Hiking TV licence fees won’t solve the SABC’s funding crisis

    29 May 2025

    SABC Plus tops a million registered users

    8 May 2025

    Outdated and costly: why South Africa should rethink digital migration

    2 April 2025
    Company News

    Making IT happen: how Trade Link gears up to enable SA retail strategies

    20 June 2025

    Why parents choose CambriLearn for online education

    19 June 2025

    Disrupt first, ask questions later – the uncomfortable truth about incident response

    18 June 2025
    Opinion

    South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

    17 June 2025

    AI and the future of ICT distribution

    16 June 2025

    Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

    13 June 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.