2008 Free State Community Media Awards a success

The third of November 2008 marked a very important day on the calendar of Free State Community Media. It was the first ever community media award ceremony organized by the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) and Mangaung Local Municipality (MLM). It is also the first of such events organized at provincial level.

The Awards function was held at the Mangaung Regional Hall. The purpose of the event was to honor men and women of the media, who so diligently serve their communities with information that enriches their lives. This event follows the national Community Media Awards hosted by SABC in partnership with MDDA and industry players, which took place in May 2008. The role of the community media is often overlooked and through this event, its profile and significance will be highlighted. “We saw the need for the awarding ceremony because community media is one of the most important tools used by government to deliver its message to the community”, said Free State GCIS Director Trevor Mokeyane. Delivering the key note address, Mr. Mokotjo Mokotjo who worked for the South African Broadcasting Cooperation (SABC) for many years, encouraged the community journalists to do their best despite the obvious challenges such as lack of training and mentorship to sharpen their skills. One of the concerns he raised strongly, was that the Free State indigenous languages such as Sotho, Tswana and Xhosa are neglected in the media in particular newspapers, although the majority of the people use them in the province. He called for the community media to produce media in the languages spoken by the targeted audience, as that does not only satisfies audience needs but makes business sense, in the context of the transformation of this country. He asked the Minister in the Presidency Dr. Manto Tshabalala-Msimang (through the Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA) CEO, Mr. Lumko Mtimde) to lobby for increased financial support for media produced in indigenous languages. The competition comprised with the five categories which are Government and General News, Sport, Feature, Photography and Radio. The winners are: Ø For the Government and General News category : Mr. Jabulani Dlamini from Express Newspaper, Ø For the Sport category : Mr. Tebogo Setena from Express Newspaper Ø For the Features category : Ms Julia Stuurman from Free State News Ø For the Photography category: Mr. Nkosinathi Mashinini from Eastern Free State Issue Ø For Radio category: Mr. Molefe Sompane from Mosupatsela Community Radio Station. The overall winner who took the coveted Free State Community Award for 2008 is Mr. Jabulani Dlamini from Express Newspaper.