Media plays a significant role in directing public discourse. It has an influence on what receives attention and how audiences interpret the world around them.
Today, that influence spans global digital networks, connecting billions of people instantaneously.
Yet, despite this vast reach, the relationship between information, public perception and social responsibility has fractured across social prisms. This fragmentation prompts critical questions about the media's effect on democratic participation and the narratives that mould South Africa's identity.
The negativity bias in media only deepens these divides. In its extreme form, it is realised through sensationalism, scandal or even conspiracy. Understanding how this relentless negativity in journalism informs public opinion is essential to examining the media's broader role in society.
Stories of progress and community action, however, can present an alternative perspective — one that Mandy Wiener considers by spelling out the how and why.
Given the deep media polarisation in South Africa, what structural or regulatory interventions can counter social insularity when algorithmic echo chambers continuously reinforce existing biases?
I always encourage people on whatever platform I'm on to read widely and to not merely subscribe to media that reinforces their world view on things.
It is so easy to like and share and comment on something that resonates with you. The real challenge is to immerse yourself in views and ideas that differ from your own. I'm not sure if this can be done in a structural or regulatory way — I think individuals need to be more discerning and aware of what they are being fed.
Young South Africans are growing up as digital natives, yet their access to quality education is unequal. What dangers does this spell for our democracy when a generation is plugged directly into these algorithmic echo chambers without the foundational equitable education required to spot disinformation?
I don't think we should underestimate how tech savvy and aware young people are in spite of their economic positions or backgrounds.
I do think there needs to be more awareness around disinformation and misinformation in the digital environment, though, and there is a responsibility on the media to do this.
In the current environment, fake news can gain legitimate traction so easily and have a real influence on people's worldviews.
Through your new docu-series, The Hope Dealers, you challenge the media's negativity bias. If fear or conflict are what's most effective at capturing attention, how can this positive storytelling compete on those terms?
Bad news sells much better than good news. We know this. But I do believe this is changing and there has been a real appetite for more good vibes.
I've seen it in the response to The Hope Dealers. It has really resonated with people.
People are seeking out antidotes to the fear and conflict that overwhelms the news agenda.
The media's negativity bias is discussed as a problem of what gets reported, but there is also a question of who gets considered newsworthy. How do you decide which stories and communities deserve the visibility that The Hope Dealers gives them?
It is entirely subjective, but as a team we have also conducted research and canvassed those who are involved in rebuilding the city. Jozi My Jozi was super helpful in guiding us and our colleagues in the media, such as those at Daily Maverick, have also done great work in identifying some of the stories.
We were looking for people who were changing the narrative in the city of Joburg and I think there are many more stories to tell.
There's a real difference between a story that makes you angry and one that makes you think, "I could help with that". What changes someone's relationship with an issue when journalism moves them from the first reaction to the second?
The entire point of doing the series was to spark education.
Yes, it's good to be informed and to tell good happy stories — but what we really wanted to do was get people to act.
We chose stories that could be motivating and inspiring and the hope is that this would spark people into finding their own way to change the narrative in their own environments. Maybe instead of just getting angry, they could shift that and ask themselves how they could help.
Johannesburg is a city where residents frequently take up the mantle to drive change when systems fail. While The Hope Dealers shine a necessary light on these patriots, does this model of community-driven repair risk normalising state abdication, making it easier for public institutions to neglect their mandates? How can we balance community action with demanding state accountability?
I don't think we should absolve government of responsibility. As a journalist my job is to hold power to account and I do that every day on my radio show on 702 and columns I write.
But I think both can be possible at the same time.
I'm a big believer in collaboration between government, the private sector and civil society, and I think we cannot leave it to government alone to remedy our myriad problems. It's never going to happen. So, either we can sit back and watch it all crumble and fall apart — or we can step up and get involved, and try and fix it ourselves.
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*Image courtesy of contributor and Canva