I have been working at Soweto TV for just over two weeks now and it's one of the most interesting and refreshing jobs I've had in ages! Soweto was the first community station in South Africa and is currently watched by over a million people. A new transmitter is due to be installed in the next few months and our transmission area will increase tenfold.
We operate out of a portion of the former Tlhoreng Primary School and our facilities can best be described as "basic". Attached are a few pics. Down the street from the historic Mandela House, it's a lively neighbourhood with a mixture of locals, tourists, cafes and souvenir stalls. Each day, I promise myself I am going to stroll the immediate neighbourhood, but haven't yet managed to do so as I get absorbed by the work day. One of the lovely things that happens is that local kids tend to gather and play on the premises after school-- on Friday afternoons, there are art classes in one of the rooms to which we don't have access. They are friendly and curious an help make one feel part of the community.
Although the facilities are "no frills", what happens here far exceeds our limitations: 6 cameras, 2 edit suites and one car (the other is in the shop after a recent car accident) and yet 28 origin programs are produced each week!
The mood is what makes the place-- people are young and welcoming to this white middle-aged foreigner. For me, it is an entry into a new culture as opposed to the mostly white very middle class bubble we live in in the northern suburbs. Each day is a revelation as I get to know the Producers who work under me.
For example, Phumi, who produces our health shows, who only discovered she was HIV+ when her young son became ill and both were diagnosed. She is now on ARVs and is half of a "discordant couple" meaning that her husband remains HIV negative and their two year old was born free of the disease. One of the shows she in now working on is about how popular male circumcision has become in the townships-- yes, we're talking about ADULT MALE circumcision here (yikes!)-- as it reduces HIV transmission by 60%.
Each day there is a new revelation and I must start to jot them down as they occur, but as you can imagine, the past two weeks have been focused on figuring out this new job. It's a new position, so I am pretty much making it up as I go along-- I oversee 17 shows and am trying to raise their quality as well as the professionalism of the staff. Not sure what I can accomplish in three months, but I'll give it my best shot! Am enjoying it despite the tiring commute.
