Mihlali Ntsabo, a former podcast producer and host at News24, has revealed allegations of a toxic work environment fostered by Adriaan Basson at Media24.
Mihlali Ntsabo exposes ‘toxic’ work culture at Media24
Ntsabo took to social media to detail the intimidation and bullying he faced from the multimedia editor, Nokuthula Manyathi, and her deputy, Bertram Malgas.
Despite multiple complaints to HR and direct appeals to News24‘s editor-in-chief, Adriaan Basson, Ntsabo claimed that no action was taken to address his concerns.
In a lengthy thread, Ntsabo described how his HR complaints were consistently ignored, even though he sent numerous WhatsApp messages, and emails, and requested meetings with Basson.
Ntsabo accused Manyathi of deliberately escalating non-urgent matters to HR to create trouble for him and claimed that Malgas misinterpreted company policies to deny him basic needs, such as fetching medication.
One of the critical incidents Ntsabo highlighted was being forced to file sick leave when he had requested to work from home, only to be later asked to provide medical certificates for those days.
This led to a situation where Ntsabo, who was hospitalised in late May due to work stress, struggled to provide the necessary documentation on time and faced the threat of unpaid leave.
Ntsabo expressed his frustration, stating:
“It was quite clear that Media24 was doing all that it could to shield the multimedia editor and her actions.”
He emphasised that his attempts to communicate the issues to Adriaan Basson and other senior management were in vain, leaving him feeling unsupported and compelled to expose the toxic work culture publicly.
Ntsabo also mentioned that he had to fight for his rights even while on leave, as the multimedia editor and her deputy were insistent on filing his sick days as unpaid leave.
He managed to obtain his medical certificate, but the delays and lack of support during his leave added to his stress.
Despite his resignation in June 2024, Ntsabo remains determined to speak out against the toxic environment he experienced, refusing to stay silent.
As of now, neither Adriaan Basson nor Media24 has responded to Ntsabo’s allegations.
