Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom
Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom
Twenty years after the Windhoek Declaration on press freedom
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A small publisher gets technology<br />
to do <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> work<br />
By Ant<strong>on</strong> van Zyl<br />
Ant<strong>on</strong> van Zyl is <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> owner/manager<br />
of Zoutnet CC, a company based in<br />
South Africa’s Limpopo province and<br />
which publishes <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> award-winning<br />
Limpopo Mirror and Zoutpansberger<br />
newspapers. He is a director and<br />
founder member of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Associati<strong>on</strong><br />
of Independent Publishers (AIP) and<br />
vice-chairpers<strong>on</strong> of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> advertising<br />
co-operative Capro (Pty) Ltd.<br />
106 | Media in Africa - 2011<br />
Press <strong>freedom</strong> is an idealistic approach<br />
that looks good <strong>on</strong> paper….<br />
Well, yes. Most of us can’t agree<br />
more. The problem comes in with<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> paper. Who pays <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> paper and<br />
printing bills and who makes sure it<br />
gets delivered to thousands of readers?<br />
Press <strong>freedom</strong> is inevitably linked<br />
to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> newspaper owner and manager’s<br />
ability to survive in a tough<br />
ec<strong>on</strong>omy. This is even more difficult<br />
if you are a small community-based<br />
paper without <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> safety net of a<br />
big nati<strong>on</strong>al bro<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r. In order to survive<br />
you have to adapt, be creative<br />
and find soluti<strong>on</strong>s even before <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
bigger competitors realise <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>re are<br />
problems.<br />
In <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> case of Zoutnet, publisher of<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Limpopo Mirror and Zoutpansberger<br />
newspapers, <strong>on</strong>e means of<br />
survival lies in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> innovative use of<br />
technology. The two newspapers are<br />
circulated in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> nor<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rn parts of<br />
Limpopo, in probably <strong>on</strong>e of South<br />
Africa’s poorest regi<strong>on</strong>s.<br />
When I took over <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> two titles in<br />
2000, I realised efficiency was crucial<br />
to survival in a small, price-sensitive<br />
ec<strong>on</strong>omy. Low profit margins and<br />
a quality product seldom go hand<br />
in hand but I was not willing to<br />
sacrifice <strong>on</strong> c<strong>on</strong>tent. The <strong>on</strong>ly way<br />
I could afford a skilled and creative<br />
team was by cutting down <strong>on</strong> any<br />
wastage and ensuring a process that<br />
was streamlined to minimise errors.<br />
You need a bit of luck in life and<br />
often assistance comes via strange<br />
routes. It started off with me (<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>n<br />
still <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> news editor) realising <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
need for an <strong>on</strong>line presence back<br />
in 1997. Seeing <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>re were no<br />
web design experts in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> regi<strong>on</strong>, I<br />
decided to tackle it <strong>on</strong> my own. A<br />
few dummy’s guides and a software<br />
programme later, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> newspaper’s<br />
first website appeared.<br />
“Press <strong>freedom</strong> is an<br />
idealistic approach<br />
that looks good <strong>on</strong><br />
paper…”<br />
When I became owner and manager<br />
of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> publishing company a few<br />
<str<strong>on</strong>g>years</str<strong>on</strong>g> later, I realised that I had<br />
very little time at hand to spend<br />
updating and working <strong>on</strong> “luxuries”<br />
such as a website that didn’t bring<br />
in any revenue. The soluti<strong>on</strong> arrived<br />
in 2003 when a young developer<br />
introduced himself. He was keen<br />
<strong>on</strong> doing websites, even though he<br />
had little experience. I decided to<br />
give him a chance and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> dummy’s<br />
guides found a new home.<br />
A couple of m<strong>on</strong>ths later <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> website<br />
was finished and it immediately<br />
impacted <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> way <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> newsrooms<br />
functi<strong>on</strong>ed. Because it was<br />
database-driven, much more informati<strong>on</strong><br />
could be derived from <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />
site. Editors could keep track of <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>