You guys remember when we were only a print publication? Jolling, online all the way baby.

Well local newspaper Cape Times have just been dealt a big blow with the Western Cape government’s call for all provincial departments to cancel their subscriptions. It appears Helen Zille and her mates don’t think too highly of the standards of journalism on display and will not renew existing subscriptions. Director general Bert Gerber quoted here on News24:

Cabinet has discussed with concern the ongoing decline in the quality of reporting in the Cape Times. As we get newspaper cuttings every day, Cabinet considers it to be fruitless expenditure to renew Cape Times subscriptions.

The SA National Editors’ Forum (SANEF) are not at all happy and their chairperson released his own statement slamming the decision and outlining how appalled they were. News24 again:

If the Western Cape government has an issue with the quality of content in the Cape Times, they should address it with the editor of that newspaper or through complaints to the office of the Press Ombudsman, and not by effectively calling for a government boycott of the Cape Times.

We will leave the last word on the matter to Helen Zille, market-host par excellence and Premier, who said this to News24:

No newspaper has the right to demand that anyone subscribes to it. Everyone, including governments, makes informed consumer choices…

Publishers can publish what they like, readers can read what they like. That seems to me a logical starting point in an open society.

You see guys that’s why you stick to online, no one can stop you from reading exactly which sites you want. Hang on…what’s that China?

[source:news24]