by Leonissah Munjoma – SANF 04 no 91
Why has environmental journalism remained on the fringes of mainstream media?
This is the question journalists, representatives from non-governmental organisations, government and the private sector in southern Africa pondered when they met in Johannesburg, South Africa in early October.
Under the theme “Taking Environmental Journalism from Margins to Mainstream”, the meeting explored ways of getting environment stories into the mainstream media in the region. Participants had the opportunity to interrogate editors who take decisions on what issues are covered in their media, be it electronic or print.
While the environment is showing increasing signs of stress and damage and the problems are acknowledged, the meeting observed that the tendency is to continue thinking the effects will only be felt in the ever-receding future. This attitude has led to little coverage of environmental issues in the mainstream media in southern Africa.
Hugh Tyrrell, the conference coordinator, put it simply when he said: “Environmental and sustainable development are priority issues in Africa today. The media has a responsibility to report on them in clear, compelling ways that create better understanding, wise decision-making and concerted action.”
It was observed that the attitude of mainstream media had resulted in alternative media as seen in the proliferation of specialised environmental publications produced by journalists concerned about ensuring coverage of environmental issues. However, these are restricted to specific audiences and usually miss those who would benefit more from such stories – the non-specialist readers.
A number of perspectives were aired on why mainstream media does not adequately cover environment issues. An interesting one is that there is fear, by the publishing houses, of losing business. If they are seen as publishing articles that blame some private companies for environmental degradation, the media houses risk losing advertisement.
George Monbiot, a leading environmental writer who gave the keynote address, said environmental journalists should not be surprised when their stories are not used because “a journalist who is concerned about the destruction of the environment will by definition find herself or himself at odds with the prevailing media culture.”
This is a culture where the owners of the mainstream media who are business tycoons either have direct financial involvement in other businesses or associate with those who do. The two, according to Monbiot, have one thing in common: they want “complete freedom to swing their fist, whether or not your nose is in the way”.
Another perspective that came up is that environment stories being submitted are shallow and usually not well-researched when written for use by the mainstream media. Some of the participants and editors, attributed this to lack of good accessible environmental information and the fact that most senior journalists have left the mainstream media.
One seldom finds journalists over 25 years of age in newsrooms today. Senior journalists who are equipped with research and investigative skills have either been attracted to the private sector or have joined the specialised publications.
When environmental information is available, it is usually not user-friendly. Journalists not familiar with the technical jargon end up writing stories that are rejected because they are not suitable for the person on the street.
There are a few sources of accessible information on southern African and Africa, including state of environment reports, but these are not well known.
A key environmental information centre in the region is SARDC’s I Musokotwane Environment Resource Centre for Southern Africa ((IMERCSA) at www.sardc.net.
The editors admitted that media is a business and to remain in it, they have to keep a following of readers and viewers. To do that, they have to publish or broadcast stories that are interesting to their audience. The onus is therefore on environmental journalists to make their stories interesting to win space and airtime.
Joe Thloloe, Chief Executive Officer of South Africa’s E-Television (etv) and chair of South Africa’s National Editor’s Forum, said he would not force stories “down people’s throats” if they did not like them.
His organisation carried out research on what people like to watch on television and environmental documentaries ranked among the last issues.
South Africa’s Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, told the meeting that despite the hurdles that the journalists face, it is undisputable that today’s environmental journalist occupies one of the most important and challenging positions in the media spectrum, that of balancing the roles of watchdog, educator, researcher, activist and social commentator.
He said the region needs more environmental journalists, but these should be equipped with up-to-date skills, cutting-edge knowledge and in-depth understanding of the environmental and sustainable development issues.
The journalists also felt there is need for training of journalists in environmental reporting to equip them with skills to tackle the technical aspects of environmental issues.
The need to network was emphasised as an association for environmental journalists in southern Africa was formed at the end of the conference. A steering committee was appointed, tasked to come up with a name and to draw up a list of environmental journalists in the region as well as coordinate them with the aim of improving reporting on the environment (SARDC)
