Sanef online media strategy programme to assist community media

The South African National Editors'Forum (Sanef) will launch a programme to assist selected print and broadcast community media organisations to map out their online media strategies and to develop sustainable websites, workflows, and other digital media platforms.

Source: © Columbia Edcaiton Valley FM, a community radio station in South Africa's Western Cape

Source: © Columbia Edcaiton Columbia Education Valley FM, a community radio station in South Africa's Western Cape

The programme will assist newsrooms to enhance their content creation and distribution practices and fully use available digital tools and help participants set up tools and workflows for digital newsgathering, multimedia production, content management, and publication to the web and social media.

Optional modules such as streaming, podcasting services, and different platforms (e.g. WhatsApp, TikTok) will also be provided.Training and ongoing support will be provided by a help desk, the Community Media Support Service (CMSS).

Qualify for the programme

To qualify, your organisation will need to:

Be a community media organisation that lacks or has an underperforming digital presence.
Primarily operate in the community media sector (print and/or broadcast).
Have at least 3 years experience in regular production and dissemination of news content to a defined audience. Basic existing systems for gathering news and information, editing, and other processing content for publication and distribution.
Have staff and/or volunteers with the necessary basic skills (computer literacy: use of internet browsers, word processors) to integrate, operate, update, and sustain the websites, tools, and processes that they learn about and receive during the pilot.
Have healthy relationships with local businesses that would be open to trying new or additional forms of advertising and partnerships.
Subscribe to and abide by the South African Press Code of the Press Council and/or the BCCSA Code.
Be registered as a company, co-operative, or NPO.

Applications are open until 20 March 2023.

An independent panel of media experts will assess the applications. The panel’s decision will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.

Sanef recognises the critical importance of community media to the overall diversity of the media industry. However, community media operate in a challenging economic environment. Many print and broadcast newsrooms struggle to diversify their content distribution and revenue options to include digital platforms that can lead to future growth.