As someone who has been working in the media and communication industry for the past 22 years, I am deeply worried by the unwarranted attacks on journalists we have seen recently. There is a poisonous and dangerous undertone that needs to be stopped before it is too late. Attacks on the character and the motives of journalists is not something we only see here in SA. Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi lost his life after criticising the Saudi state. Four members of the editorial team at the Capital Gazette were gunned down in their newsroom, allegedly by a lone gunman who had a grudge against their reporting. The Committee to Protect Journalists says that 52 journalists lost their lives in the line of duty in 2018. Journalists aren’t perfect. Of course we make mistakes, we are only human. That is exactly why there are checks and balances built into the work we do and that is why there are rights of recourse for anyone who feels aggrieved. Denigrating journalists as “enemies” ...
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