SECTOR 4 4.7 Journalists and media houses have integrity and are not corrupt. Bribes for journalists (“brown envelopes”) are not a major issue in South Africa. Editors deal harshly with journalists who get caught taking kickbacks. There is zero tolerance for corruption and salaries are good enough to limit possible temptations. The problem lies with journalists and their attitude to freebies, such as small amounts of cash paid as ‘allowances’, cellphones and the like. There are some who will not only take gifts but will actually seek them out. Unfortunately many journalists do not have a sense of where to draw the line on freebies. A number of media houses have policies in regard to such inducements. The Sunday Times, for example, demands that its journalists hand over all gifts to the editors, to be auctioned at the end of the year. At Bush Radio these gifts are distributed to listeners. A major problem is instances where journalists get free travel and accommodation to cover a story. In many cases, these will carry a note at the end, saying that the story was made possible courtesy of, say, travel company XYZ. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator. 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: 3.9 (2008 = n/a; 2006 = n/a) AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER SOUTH AFRICA 2010 65