Last week, we had the honour of meeting our President. It was just a few days before the G20, and with all the leaders getting ready to fly in, we managed to persuade the President that we had something really important to discuss.
The something was the Johannesburg Declaration – a document that emerged from the Media20 (M20), a collaboration between the South African National Editors Forum (Sanef), and ourselves, Media Monitoring Africa (currently rebranding to Moxii Africa). The M20 aimed to highlight critical issues facing the media globally. After months of fantastic events and eight policy briefs later, the M20 culminated in a two-day summit which hosted representatives from 19 countries, and the Johannesburg Declaration was produced. It has been endorsed by more than 70 organisations around the world.
Moxii Africa and Sanef had already handed the declaration to the minister of communications and digital technologies, but we wanted the President not to just be aware of it, but to raise the issues in the Declaration with the other global leaders.
We got our chance, and together we presented the M20 and the declaration to Cyril Ramaphosa.
While some world leaders seek to dim the lights and share disinformation in an effort to shame and embarrass their guests, Ramaphosa sought to set us at ease, and listened carefully. Taking notes. Engaging.
The opening remarks of the meeting have gone viral.
@athigeleba ♬ original sound - Athi Geleba 🇿🇦
The video clip raised the ire of a group of people, so it’s important for a little context.
Given the efforts to which the US had gone to let everyone know just how little they thought of South Africa and the G20, and that they really, really, definitely weren’t coming, and that, despite even crime “experts” (like some of our golfers) and some of the most wealthy people having tried to speak to Trump a few months ago, the Magas pressed on with disinformation about South Africa. It went so far as to magic up policies of extermination. Ideas so weak even an Irish rugby scrum would have defeated them.
All this, alongside Trump’s ongoing efforts to discredit and undermine credible media, rounded off with his masterclass in mainstreaming misogyny, when he told a woman journalist “quiet piggy” instead of answering a question.
So, in a tension-filled week, I, tongue in cheek, highlighted the very bad things – very, very, bad things – happening. It was indeed a reference to Trump, but made with a serious point. Because there really are many bad, very bad things happening with media, globally. Our media aimed to highlight the crises and the very good things that are being done to address them.
And so, after a weekend of thousands of comments, I was pleased that for the most part people didn’t know who the man was who dared to make a pointed joke with Ramaphosa. But then, someone asked Grok.
And Grok replied that the man appeared to be “Boris Johnson”.
I will admit that my hair is large and unruly, but being compared to Boris Johnson? It’s like Grok is practising reverse racism, by suggesting all white men with unruly hair are Boris Johnson. It’s just not fair, and there are quite enough Johnsons. We don’t need another one.
Three things. One, the Johannesburg Declaration is really GOOD and highlights six critical themes. Please read it (here). Two, I am NOT Boris Johnson. And three, I WILL be getting a haircut this week. DM