Mind you, with Tony Heard as his closest-to-hand example of a big-time South African hack, I’m not surprised he’s a bit dubious about the profession as a whole. If you can’t beat ’em, fondle ’em in the light of which it is a bit odd Mbeki chose to prattle on like a back-fence gossip about how the South African media need to be more professional. After a couple of years of horrendous publicity about the South African presidency it is quite plain to see that Mbeki has decided to play ardent swain to the media, to get into the political spin game with a vengeance. To be fair, Patta did push a bit when asking about the Zimbabwe debacle but avoided asking the obvious question: if Mr Mbeki is so adamant about not interfering in the domestic affairs of neighbouring countries, how does he justify the armed invasion by his government of Lesotho? Keep it up your sleeve for next time, Debora. They let Mbeki get away with as much as he wanted to get away with, to include some truly preposterous statements and misdirection.
For nearly all the time Patta and Reddy failed to follow through on their questions. On more than several occasions Mbeki was asked questions in response to which he obfuscated, strayed off the point, blathered on or just plain avoided answering. They ask a penetrating question, receive an assiduously fatuous answer and then, as Reddy would say, change focus. By asking what sound like difficult questions the impression is given that the questioners are serious about what they’re doing. The technique if technique isn’t too spacious a term behind the Patta/Reddy interviewing was plain to see. As the song from Chicago goes: “Give ’em the old razzle-dazzle, bead and flummox ’em/How can they see with stardust in their eyes?” A perfect occasion for the disporting of some virtuoso Mbeki-style flim-flam-flooey. San Reddy and Debora Patta were a sort of clown duo doing a routine as “no nonsense” interrogators, their essential smarminess leaking through every crack.
Thabo Mbeki must have been well pleased e.tv sent along a pair of such vapid bojos with a set of such predictable questions. Blessed are the meek and mild for they shall inherit the presidential television interview.
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