INSIGHT | Dispatch ups its game as pillar of democracy

On Tuesday July 3 residents of Buffalo City Metro and the Eastern Cape read a Daily Dispatch significantly different to the paper they were used to.

The copy I saw had a different design and layout of its stories.

I’m confident that, like me, many people had not seen anything wrong with or outdated about the detailed investigative and socially responsible reporting the Daily Dispatch has produced. Nor anything wrong with its stylistic outlook and presentation.

But from where I sit, the paper has not only changed its appearance, but its content has also improved. This is surely all intended to provide a better experience for readers.

The Dispatch should be commended for keeping the standards of the paper high and for recognising the opportune moment to effect transformation.

Writing on June 27, the Dispatch’s editor in chief, Sibusiso Ngalwa, emphasised that the new look would include new ideas: “We understand that the redesign of the Daily Dispatch cannot be a stand-alone function. It has to go hand in hand with an overall review of the content mix of the paper.”

It is very comforting to note that the Dispatch is continuing to contribute to the building of the “public sphere” as described by the German critical theorist, Jürgen Habermas, in his work, The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere (1962).

Habermas called for a realm of critical rational engagement for all people of society in order to deepen democracy. He argued against what he called “spectator politics” and debates where the media and elites had the monopoly over discussions and courses of action.

And he called for the refusal of every temptation to “refeudalise” politics in society.

From the point of view of political leaders this requires that they are consistently in touch with communities so that their decisions are expressions of people’s aspirations.

Our integrated development planning consultations, ward committees, ward meetings and mayoral imbizo programme continue to provide a structured way of infusing the views of our communities into what the city is doing.

For Habermas, the media should play a role in transforming the public sphere by serving as a platform of rational critical engagement and proper representation.

Whilst the Dispatch can be critiqued for representing dominant groups in the city, the paper is also trying to include stories of ordinary people, which may not necessarily interest some of the advertisers.

The paper should continue to tell the story of the city in all its varied and diverse forms.

It should always try to follow in the footsteps of some of its great editors, particularly Donald Woods, who positioned the paper as an institution of progressive thought and resistance to apartheid.

Woods, a friend of Steve Biko, was committed to truth and to fair, accurate and balanced reporting. That earned him a five-year banning order by the apartheid government.

We expect the Dispatch of today to continue keeping the residents of Buffalo City informed about what is happening in society generally and what their municipality is doing. The paper should be a key link between the metro and its citizens, thus contributing to the deepening of democracy.

The new-look Dispatch should play a central role in protecting the interests of the public, which sometimes means guarding against the excesses of power by some elected to positions of responsibility.

It has a role as a fourth pillar of democracy in our city – our Fourth Estate, playing a broad and essential role in how our affairs are managed.

When the city’s achievement of an unqualified audit for the 2016/17 financial year was announced, I noted: “We want to thank you, members of the media, for playing your role as the Fourth Estate and keeping us in check. We would be remiss if we did not acknowledge your contribution to this audit outcome and we are inviting you to celebrate it with us.”

This was to acknowledge the role the media plays as a relevant pillar of democracy and in improving our governance.

The media is theoretically supposed to act in the public interest and provide citizens with credible and relevant information. The Dispatch is, without argument, the main media organisation in the city and ought to continuously provide leadership in this front.

For this reason we believe the Dispatch could do more in informing our citizens about the programmes the metro runs to make Buffalo City a place to live, work, play and invest.

We have consistently made the point that the city and the Dispatch share the same goal – to make the city thrive, as a habitation and economically.

This is why the metro has a structured relationship with the Dispatch represented by the paper’s senior editorial team and myself as executive mayor.

It should also be noted that the Dispatch is not immune to mistakes which often happen due to lack of information or the blurring of communication lines between our institutions.

Like any media institution, the Dispatch is also vulnerable to manipulation and abuse of power from both inside the institution and outside of it.

Most successful media organisations manage to negotiate this terrain through a persistent quest for fairness, truth and balanced reporting.

We wish the Dispatch success in its new journey. May it continue to be an institution for critical, rational thinking about our city and the province.

Let’s all celebrate this refreshing look from this intellectually refreshing newspaper.

Xola Pakati is executive mayor of Buffalo City Metro.