Independent Online

Independent Online, popularly known as IOL, is a partially Chinese state-owned news website based in South Africa.^[1]

Independent Online

Type	News
Format	Online newspaper
Owner(s)	Sekunjalo Investments Public Investment Corporation China International Television Corporation China Africa Development Fund
Language	English
Headquarters	Cape Town, South Africa
Website	www.iol.co.za

IOL serves the online versions of a number of South African newspapers, including The Star, Pretoria News, The Daily Voice, Cape Times, Cape Argus, Weekend Argus, The Mercury, Post, Diamond Fields Advertiser, Isolezwe, Daily Tribune, Sunday Tribune, The Independent on Saturday, and The Sunday Independent.^{[2][needs update]} IOL regularly distributes Chinese state media content.^[3][4][5]

Corporate affairs

Ownership

Sekunjalo Investments initially owned 55% of the company via its subsidiary Sekunjalo Independent Media, the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) owned 25%, and two Chinese state-owned enterprises (China International Television Corporation and the China Africa Development Fund) owned the remaining 20% of the newspaper.^[6] China International Television Corporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV).^[7] Before 2013, IOL was owned by Tony O'Reilly's Independent News & Media.^{[citation needed]}

At some point,^[when?] IOL was sold off from Sekunjalo Independent Media while the print publications entity Independent Newspapers remained under the ownership of Sekunjalo Independent Media.^[8][9]

The change in ownership structure came at a time when the South African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU) had sued Sekunjalo Independent Media in the Western Cape High Court for failing to repay a loan of ZAR 150 million plus interest in aid of funding the purchase of the company from Tony O'Reilly.^[10] The PIC had also filed an application asking the court to liquidate Sekunjalo Independent Media.^[11][12][13]

Management

Viasen Soobramoney took over as CEO of Independent Online from Vasantha Angamuthu in May 2023.^[14] Angamuthu remains CEO of African News Agency.

In 2023, Independent Media issued retrenchment notices to its staff for the fifth time since Sekunjalo's purchase of the news organisation. IOL staff were initially not affected but later added to the list of business units facing job cuts.^{[15][16] [17]} By October 2023, at least a third of staff were retrenched and the company failed to pay severance packages on time and instead issued grocery vouchers to the value of ZAR 2500 which initially were not loaded with any cash.^[18][19]

At the end of 2023, Group CEO of Independent Media unexpectedly resigned after 16 months in the job prompting Survé to again take up an executive role in the company.^[20][21]

Controversies

Chinese censorship

Further information: Chinese censorship abroad

In 2018, Reporters Without Borders reported that an IOL columnist was forced out after publishing a column condemning the persecution of Uyghurs.^[22][4][23]

Information laundering

According to The Economist, IOL "often engages in 'information laundering' designed to make sentiment appear homegrown, says Herman Wasserman at the University of Cape Town. For instance, it will run a Chinese news-agency story on the biolab conspiracy, then get a left-wing student leader to write an article expressing concern about the supposed biolabs. Chinese news agencies will use that to write about how South Africans are worried, thus manufacturing a 'story' out of nothing at all."^[24]

Bank account closures

IOL and Independent Media's banking facilities were threatened in 2022 when Standard Bank issued a notice to cut all ties with any company within the Sekunjalo Group.^[25] This followed several other banks refusing to do business with the investment group, its subsidiaries and directors.^[26]

Fake news

In 2021, IOL published a series of articles about a Tembisa woman having delivered decuplets (ten babies) which were penned by Pretoria News editor Piet Rampedi.^[27] The story was debunked as fake news as no evidence of the births was available and multiple requests for donations were made both in print and online Independent Media platforms.^[28][29] Rampedi, Survé, IOL and Independent Media newspapers all went on to claim that the babies were trafficked but they provided no evidence to support their claims. Rampedi eventually resigned in January 2023 following a report by the Public Protector which found that the story was a lie. ^[30] Neither Rampedi nor the company or any of its publications apologised for the story, however, the 125-year-old Pretoria News ceased to be published a few months later.^[31]

Fictitious journalist

In 2022, IOL was accused of making up a fake journalist called Jamie Roz to spread fake news and disinformation in support of its chairman and controversial businessman Iqbal Survé.^[32][33]

In 2023, veteran journalist Chris Roper found that a series of anonymous articles on IOL were likely written by Survé's spin doctor Feroza Petersen, who together with Sunday Independent editor Sizwe Dlamini had penned many articles in support of Survé.^[34]

Further reading

• Dasnois, Alide (2019). Paper Tiger: Iqbal Survé and the downfall of Independent Newspapers. Cape Town: Tafelberg. ISBN 978-0-62408-717-5.

See also

• List of newspapers in South Africa

References

1. "Chinese Media in South Africa: An Overview - ACRP". from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
2. "South of the Sahara". Stanford University. from the original on 12 February 2009. Retrieved 23 February 2009.
3. Pike, Lili (18 May 2022). "How China uses global media to spread its views — and misinformation". Grid. from the original on 23 June 2022. Retrieved 29 May 2022.
4. "China Uses Training, Media Ownership to Shape Africa's News Landscape". Africa Defense Forum. 25 January 2022. from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
5. "Coercion, Capture, and Censorship: Case Studies on the CCP's Quest for Global Influence". International Republican Institute. 28 September 2022. from the original on 29 September 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
6. Sam Sole and Craig McKune (28 August 2014). "What's black and white and in the red all over?". Mail & Guardian. from the original on 4 October 2019. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
7. "CITVC Signs Partnership Deal With NATPE". National Association of Television Program Executives. from the original on 6 May 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2022.
8. Rensburg, Dewald van (28 January 2021). "PIC looks on while 'Survé Inc' burns through state pensioners' billions". amaBhungane. from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
9. Rensburg, Dewald van (14 November 2019). "PIC wants to "investigate" Sekunjalo directors after liquidation". amaBhungane. from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
10. Cronje, Jan. "Union in court to get R300m back from Iqbal Survé-linked Sekunjalo Independent Media". Business. from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
11. Mahlaka, Ray (12 May 2021). "PIC pushes Iqbal Survé into a corner as more of his entities, including Independent Media, are dragged to court". Daily Maverick. from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
12. Rensburg, Dewald van (14 November 2019). "PIC wants to "investigate" Sekunjalo directors after liquidation". amaBhungane. from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
13. Cronje, Jan. "State asset manager applies to liquidate Sekunjalo Independent Media". Business. from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
14. "Viasen Soobramoney appointed as CEO at IOL". IOL. 10 May 2023. from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
15. Brown, Justin (31 October 2019). "More cracks in Survé empire as ANA bosses, staff leave". The Media Online. from the original on 19 November 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
16. Nevill, Glenda (18 September 2019). "Jobs on the line at ANA and Independent Media". The Media Online. from the original on 2 July 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
17. Cronje, Jan. "Independent Newspapers set to cut at least 40% of its staff". Business. from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
18. Cronje, Jan. "Independent Newspapers retrenches 128, delays payment of severance packages". Business. from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
19. Cohen, Tim (9 November 2023). "In blow to PIC, Iqbal Survé's Independent Media retrenches a third of its staff". Daily Maverick. from the original on 8 January 2024. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
20. Correspondent, Mercury (10 January 2024). "Independent Media appoints new executives". The Mercury. from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
21. Wilson, Nick. "Independent Media CEO steps down as Iqbal Survé returns as executive chair". Business. from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
22. "South Africa: Journalist loses column after publishing an article critical of China". Reporters Without Borders. 18 September 2018. from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
23. Joseph, Natasha (April 2021). "A new world order". Index on Censorship. 50 (1): 70–71. doi:10.1177/03064220211012307. ISSN 0306-4220. S2CID 233449064.
24. "How Russia is trying to win over the global south". The Economist. 22 September 2022. ISSN 0013-0613. from the original on 24 September 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
25. Gous, Nico (19 July 2022). "Standard Bank latest to cut ties with Sekunjalo Group". BusinessLIVE. from the original on 25 January 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
26. Cronje, Jan. "Standard Bank also dropping Iqbal Survé's Sekunjalo group as a client". Business. from the original on 2 August 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
27. "South African 10 babies story not true, inquiry finds". 23 June 2021. from the original on 25 June 2021. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
28. Charles, Marvin. "Tembisa 10: Public Protector finds claims mom gave birth to decuplets 'unsubstantiated'". News24. from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
29. Charles, Tebogo Monama and Marvin. "FACT CHECK | What really happened to the Tembisa 10? Why Independent Media's claims just don't hold up". News24. from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
30. "Piet Rampedi, driving force behind 'Tembisa 10' decuplets story, resigns as Pretoria News editor". News24. from the original on 30 July 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
31. Cronje, Jan. "The Star publisher Independent Newspapers mulls job cuts as revenues keep falling". Business. from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
32. Haffajee, Ferial (6 September 2022). "From making up decuplets to making up a writer, Independent Media's Iqbal Survé plumbs new depths". Daily Maverick. from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
33. Roper, Chris (7 September 2022). "CHRIS ROPER: Will the real Jamie Roz please stand up?". BusinessLIVE. from the original on 5 October 2022. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
34. Roper, Chris (17 August 2023). "CHRIS ROPER: Banking on BS". BusinessLIVE. from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.

External links

• Official website