When we talk about the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, your ordinary media scholar rarely thinks of radio. It is always related to journalism in its traditional sense. 

That is most likely because the newspaper industry has done an incredible job at taking the lead in creating awareness and fighting to end impunity, and to kill any possibility of crimes being committed against journalists for doing their job. 

As a result, Namibia has always ranked high in press freedom. 

However, as a country, we recently dropped 12 points on the 2024 Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders. 

The country’s global ranking fell from 22 in 2023 to 34 this year. 

Mauritania now claims the title of Africa’s freest press, surpassing Namibia with a ranking of 33. 

Perhaps what I am about to reveal has contributed to us losing the number one spot. 

Today, I would like us to explore what this movement means for the radio industry. 

What does the movement to end impunity for crimes against journalists look like about radio? 

The burning desire to explore what this movement looks like for radio stems from a current issue with a die-hard fan of Jericho, who in public full view on Facebook directly threatened to inflict bodily harm on me. 

This said, the fan went as far as posting derogatory comments about my character on his personal Facebook account, and DM’d me derogatory terms on my Facebook fan page. 

This is because I recently pronounced myself on a story, where Jericho responded to a fan (in what I deemed as necessary), who called him out for repeating old lyrics on new songs. 

After I pronounced myself on the matter as a radio presenter, working on a station that prides itself on being music-centric and Namibian-centric, he then moved to apologise to the fan. 

However, in his apology, which is now deleted, he mentions me and the station, insinuating that we are driving an “agenda”. 

With that, he creates the impression that we are “hating” on him or trying to “break” him, or his persona down. 

This is unfortunately far from the truth. 

It is rather unfortunate that a 20-year veteran like him concluded that excellent radio work is nothing but an agenda or hate. 

What his insinuation then does is rile up fans like the one who had the misguided and unfortunate guts to threaten to “beat me up”, and “send me back to my mother”. 

That is what the movement of ending impunity for crimes against journalists looks like when it comes to radio.

It is your classic case of deflection, playing the victim and casting doubt on genuinely good work done. 

This is unfortunately not the first time I have had some Namibian artists brand the work I do on radio – and now by extension, the podcast version of this column as hate or there is some sort of invincible agenda. 

It is painstakingly baffling that some Namibian artists do not understand that in today’s day and age, not everyone will have a positive opinion of your art, and that is fine. 

I have people who, until today, tell me that they do not like Michael Jackson’s music – even though he is widely regarded as the best musician to have ever done it on planet Earth.

As for Jericho, it was not even a case of me not liking his music or his persona. 

I actually love his music and his persona which is why his insinuation is unbelievably puzzling. 

Even if that were the case (that I do not like his music or his persona), that too should be fine. Would that justify inciting using insinuation resulting in me being harassed and beaten up by his fan/s? 

We lack critical thinking in this industry. It would be a shame if the forces incited using insinuation by Jericho and others succeed in silencing me and very few others who have the ability to look at things beyond the surface level. 

I have an established track record of Namibian creative practitioners complaining that radio presenters do not speak about their work on air. When we eventually do, this is what people like myself have to deal with. 

In 2024, Jericho or any other public figure will never dictate to a media house or a media practitioner how a story should be covered. 

We need to add #StopBullyingRadioPresenters and #CriticalThinkingIsNotHating to existing hashtags, #JournalismIsNotACrime and #StopSilencingJournalists.

Get with the times – educate yourself. Understand what being a public figure means in 2024. It is that simple. 

Until the next loop, we say #GMTM                                                 

Need an MC? I’m your guy. Hit me up: naobebsekind@gmail.com