The SAHRC commissioner says South Africa’s podcasting landscape is part of a vibrant democracy.
The commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), Tshepo Madlingozi, says its submissions on the Draft White Paper on Audio- and Audiovisual Media Services and Online Safety aren’t about policing podcasts.
“The commission is not calling for the ‘policing’ of podcasts,” Madlingozi told The Citizen.
“Our approach is to ensure that the digital space, including podcasting, remains a platform for robust debate and freedom of expression, while also safeguarding people from hate speech, harassment, and unfair discrimination.”
In July, Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi published the Draft White Paper on Audio and Audiovisual Media Services and Online Safety for final written comments and inputs.
Members of the public and interested persons were invited to submit their final written comments and inputs.
The White Paper was published soon after the Open Chats podcast made derogatory comments about coloured people on their platform, which caused uproar from different corners of society.
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The SAHRC’s comments
In its comments, the SAHRC welcomed the recognition of online harms; however, it emphasised the need for the framework to accurately reflect existing laws.
“Such as the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act (PEPUDA) and the Cybercrimes Act, and to strengthen, rather than duplicate the SAHRC’s constitutional role in addressing harmful content,” Madlingozi said.
Should comments and submissions that emanate from the White Paper result in the drafting of a Bill and eventually become law, there will be a massive shift in South Africa’s podcasting landscape.
The SAHRC has been observing some of the harmful comments that have been broadcast on podcasts. The Commission initiated an investigation into Open Chats podcast despite its apology.
In recent times, the SAHRC also probed media personality Nota Baloyi’s hateful comments about white people while on DJ Sbu’s Hustler’s Corner SA podcast.
The SAHRC initiated Equality Court proceedings against Baloyi, which led to him publicly apologising.
“Recent podcast-related cases demonstrate, including ones that the commission dealt with this in the past couple of months, why a rights-based lens is critical: expression cannot be curtailed lightly, but neither can dignity and equality be undermined,” expressed Madlingozi.
The commissioner of the SAHRC said they see South Africa’s podcasting landscape as part of a vibrant democracy.
“What we urge is coherence: regulation must use accurate constitutional language, integrate human rights impact assessments, and empower existing oversight bodies to ensure that freedom of expression and online safety are balanced in line with the Bill of Rights.”
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