Ed’s note: On the record

On the record...

Reading the responses to questions on how media agency leadership prepared their teams for working from home, I was struck by the fact that all the respondents mentioned the mental wellness of their employees as something of great concern. Many had initiatives in place for employees and even their families. Some offered professional counselling, others a 24-hour helpline. All were vitally aware of the issues relating to the Covid-19 pandemic that go beyond staying safe and counting the days until we can get the jab.

During the terrible week of violence and insurrection South Africa recently experienced, I watched the mostly young reporters from eNCA, Newzroom Afrika and SABC News on the ground amid the madness, solidly reporting news that was terrifying and sad in equal measure. These reporters have to deal with increasing distrust of media and personal threats to their safety too.

I wondered how they decompress when they return from the front line. How they clear their minds of the fear, sadness and disquiet that are the legacy of the past weeks. Are they offered counselling? Are they taught skills to manage the stress? The South African National Editors’ Forum recently hosted a webinar for members covering topics such as grief, trauma, burnout, compassion fatigue, managing anxiety, and coping with workplace stress and depression. It was the first of an ongoing project to “prioritise journalism wellness in all newsrooms across the country this year”.

Then there are the freelancers out there, their income dependent on getting work in, getting paid on time and getting more work in. The added layer of stress is a burden, and something the Southern African Freelancers’ Association has acknowledged. It too hosted a webinar by American resilience expert Dr Deborah Gilboa to help freelancers find “the path from stress to resilience”.

Then there’s webinar and Zoom stress too! The point is, perhaps it’s time to take time out to join these webinars. We all need to learn to cope better with the wider world, and our own particularly unsettled and unhappy country.

Meanwhile, in a happier space, we are celebrating all things audio in this issue, plus some other interesting media stuff too. The Radio Awards were a bright light in July, celebrating the wonderful talent and resilience of our audio sector. Congratulations to the winners: you are amazing.

The Media. Got to love it. Glenda

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