One of South Africa's most powerful media bosses has fired a broadside at the ANC government, accusing it of "Big Brother tendencies" and of not supporting a free and independent media.
Ton Vosloo, outgoing non-executive chairman of media conglomerate Naspers, told the Cape Town Press Club yesterday that the ANC government did not support a free and independent press because it abhorred the press's watchdog role.
"The ANC wants total control, like Big Brother," he said, referring to the totalitarian visions conjured up in George Orwell's novel 1984.
He said he believed a free and independent press would face huge problems "sooner rather than later".
Turning to the future of the media industry, Vosloo said his heart bled for the print media which, he said, faced the twin challenges of new technology and the erosion of media freedom.
He said the ownership of South Africa's four major media groups had been greatly transformed and advised those who still claimed that the media were white-owned to rework their maths.
He boasted of Naspers's achievements in comparison to those of its English competitors, some of whose management decisions he described as "stupid" and influenced by mining interests. Naspers, on the other hand, remained open to innovation and "did its homework", he claimed.
He said he believed companies such as Naspers, Bidvest and SABMiller did not get the credit due to them for the revenue they earned for this country through their international successes.
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