funding and other assistance, has achieved some progress, but the overall picture remains that of a highly concentrated media industry. All media house have cut costs, especially by reducing staff numbers. This streamlining of operations has resulted in a noticeable adverse effect on the quality of their output. There are many examples of inaccurate, poor quality and unfair reporting, pointing to a systemic problem. Media houses are increasingly aware of these shortcomings and have begun with attempts to address them through training, and also beefing up their selfregulatory mechanisms. The industry has an agreed code of conduct in place, as well as a voluntary Press Council and a Press Ombudsman to ensure compliance with the code. The council consists of six public and six media representatives. Members of the public can take their complaint to the ombudsman as a first resort and, if they are not satisfied with his decision, to an Appeals Panel of three. The panel consists of one representative each of the public and the press, and is chaired by a retired judge. The findings of these bodies have to be published prominently by the newspaper concerned. The number of cases brought and adjudicated in this manner is increasing steadily. The ruling party (African National Congress), on the other hand, argues that self-regulation of the media is not “sufficient” and that it should be possible to take “punitive measures” against “offending” media and journalists. The party therefore proposes that a statutory body at parliamentary level - a Media Appeals Tribunal (MAT) – be set up. The media, prominent individuals and many civil society groups – while acknowledging that the self-regulatory mechanism can, and should, be strengthened – have voiced their protest against these plans. Most people rely on radio and, to a lesser extent, television for their information needs. Despite a competitive commercial broadcasting sector and a large number of community radios, this market is dominated by the public broadcaster, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). The SABC is accountable to the public through parliament, to government (as the corporation’s legal owner) and to the broadcasting regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA). Developments over the past few years suggest that the government is attempting to extend its influence over the public broadcaster. One of the clearest indications of this intention to date was the publication of a Draft Public Service Broadcasting Bill in October 2009. If enacted it would give the Minister of Communications considerable control over the SABC. Over the last five years the SABC has been experiencing ongoing problems of governance and funding, with matters reaching a crisis point in 2009 when government had to guarantee a substantial bank loan in order for the broadcaster to continue honouring its obligations. One immediate consequence is that many 6 AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER SOUTH AFRICA 2010