So if adamantly refusing to answer questions from journalists and blaming the media for an unfolding social crisis counts as a press conference, then the whole notion of press briefings is nothing short of a cruel joke.
Following last Sundayâs Social Development press conference called for urgently by none other than Sassa Minister Bathabile Dlamini, the key messages that echoed long after the poor excuse for a briefing was over, was nothing more or less than an insult to 17 million of South Africaâs poorest of the poor.
Instead of providing concrete facts on the outsourced payment of grants â or at least some new information as one would expect from a sound press conference â the Minister hid behind her spokesperson who accused the reporters of attending the briefing armed with their own motives.
So what makes or breaks a press conference, or more importantly, what is a media briefingâs intended purpose? Should the whole notion of a presser be shoved away in the dusty archives and replaced with something more robust?
Join Janine Lazarus when she unpacks the art of a press conference with media@safm anchor Ashraf Garda at 8am this Sunday 12 March on 104 â 107 MHz FM.
The podcast is available on demand below, just click on the orange play button.