INFIGHTING in the ANC has led to a surge in its media coverage during election campaigning in the battle for control of prized metros and key municipalities.
In a survey conducted by Media Monitoring Africa (MMA), it shows that the media coverage for the EFF has declined during the election period compared to the same period in 2014.
The EFF was not alone in the drop in media coverage, with the DA also suffering a sharp decline.
MMA director William Bird said yesterday infighting in the ANC had led to wide media coverage.
MMA's interim results showed that media coverage for the ANC shot up from 38 percent in 2014 to 57 percent this year.
But that of the DA declined from 25 percent in 2014 to 16 percent during the current local government election campaign. It was also found that media coverage of the EFF had dropped from 13 percent in 2014 to just 11 percent in the 2016 local polls.
The IFP’s coverage has remained at the same level as it was in 2014, at just 3 percent.
Bird said the reason for the increase in the coverage of the ANC was because of the infighting.
He said this showed how the media set the agenda on its election coverage. The media determined what was covered during the election campaigning.
Bird said the parties that were suffering when it came to coverage were the DA and EFF.
“The DA is the one suffering because it is functioning, the leadership is stable and they are not involved in any fighting, which is tragic because it shows the media determines the agenda,” he noted.
Bird said the EFF was in the same boat as the DA in the coverage of its campaign.
Coverage of the EFF had declined because the hype over its launch was over, he suggested.
“They are no longer the new kid on the block, they are an established political party, unless they do something completely outrageous,” Bird said of the EFF.
The ANC has been em- broiled in infighting for several weeks, including over its choice of candidates.