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Mayor Kaunda Reaffirms Commitment of The Municipality To Media Freedom And Calls On The Industry To Accelerate Transformation
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Date: 2021-10-04 04:16:57

Mayor Kaunda Reaffirms Commitment of The Municipality To Media Freedom And Calls On The Industry To Accelerate Transformation

ETHEKWINI NEWS FLASH
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
19 OCTOBER 2020
 
Mayor Kaunda Reaffirms Commitment of The Municipality To Media Freedom And Calls On The Industry To Accelerate Transformation
 
As the country is commemorating the National Press Freedom Day, on behalf of eThekwini Municipality, Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda would like to reaffirm the Municipality’s commitment of ensuring media freedom by being accessible and transparent to the members of the fourth estate all times.
 
Mayor Kaunda said that media is an important vehicle for nation building that is critical for the enhancement South Africa’s hard-earned democracy.
 
“Media plays a very important role in ensuring access to information which is the backbone of our democracy. As the Municipality we will continue to work with the media in ensuring that it diligently execute its responsibilities of promoting democratic principles such as transparency, accountability and freedom of speech.
 
Mayor Kaunda also congratulated all media houses who continue to elevate people from diverse backgrounds into senior positions.
 
On this important, day we also want to congratulate the first online Isizulu news portal, uMbele founded by a seasoned editor, Silindile Khanyile. Kaunda believes that Media diversity is critical in the battle of ideas and for the new voices to be heard.
 
“We are also aware of the strides that have been made by various media houses to recognise the contribution that women media practitionaers continue to make in the industry. It is encouraging to see that most news divisions in our electronic media space are headed by women editors. While this is a positive step in a right direction, we urge the industry to do more in accelerating transformation. We are confident that these Editors will continue discharging their responsibilities of empowering people by keeping them constantly informed through the media platforms they lead,” said Kaunda.
 
ENDS
 
Issued by the Mayor’s Office
 
For more information contact Mayoral Spokesperson Mluleki Mntungwa on 060 974 1140