Director of Media Monitoring Africa, William Bird, has called on journalists to fight any attempts to undermine their credibility.
His statement follows the South African National Editors’ Forum’s (SANEF) warning that allegations of unethical journalism are dangerous to the credibility of the media industry.
This after Hawks investigator Kobus Roelefse implicated Tiso Blackstar associate Editor, Ranjeni Munusamy, in wrongdoing in his testimony before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture.
He alleged that more than R140 000 from the Crime Intelligence slush fund was paid into a WesBank car finance account in 2008, to settle Munusamy’s debt.
Munusamy, who has denied the allegations, has since been placed on special leave.
Bird says a cloud of suspicion is now hanging over Munusamy’s head.
“Whether she’s innocent or not, we don’t know. It is a question of getting to the bottom of what has happened and if she is guilty, I don’t see how she will be able to continue as a journalist,” says Bird.
Watch a related video below:
