Network presented by a clearly inexperienced and badly dressed and inappropriately dressed for television Siphumelele Zondi made its debut today on SABC News (DStv 404), the SABC's new 24-hour TV news channel, as a new weekly magazine show focusing on consumer technology and social media news.
Network is a new weekly half hour show which is clearly an extremely low-budgeted version of the other South African 24-hour TV news channel eNCA (DStv 403) well-produced Tech Report.
"This is a show that will bring you technology and social media news," said Siphumelele Zondi in the opener of the first episode of Network. "We discuss some of the trending topics on social media as well. We also give you a bit of information on certain communication gadgets that are in the market."
Embarrassingly, Siphumelele Zondi struggled with reading mistakes; TV presenting fluency and eloquence reading from the teleprompter; and flapping stacks of white A4 paper around on screen.
Network also cut out and the SABC News TV channel went blank and black in a major technical problem for more than half a minute during a review of a smartphone in one of the latter segments of the first episode, showing only a black screen and the SABC News logo in the corner.
Network looks and sounds terrible with an ill-equipped presenter, the production values are laughably bad, technical mistakes added to the trash feel and the content, interviews and interview subject was off-the-mark and off-topic.
"The SABC issued no press material, press information, synopsis, weekly programme summary, publicity images, press release or programme profile about Network to South African TV critics and writers and didn't respond with information to requests the past week seeking basic publicity information about specific SABC News programming such as this show.
