Emerging Old Rhodian Award:
Krivani Pillay is a highly motivated and passionate journalist. After graduating from Rhodes University in 2001, she has worked as a journalist for almost 17 years. In this time, she developed skills as a field journalist, current affairs producer, bulletin anchor and current affairs news anchor for Newsbreak on Lotus FM.
She also anchored and produced two current affairs talk shows for Lotus FM called Youth Crossfire and Off the Record.
Aside from her qualification at Rhodes, (BJourn and Journalism Masters), she has a diploma in European Journalism and Literature from Hogeskool van Utrecht in The Netherlands. She worked with one of the first multimedia teams led by Prof Guy Berger , and students and faculty at the University of North Carolina in the United States.
In 2005, Krivani was the recipient of the Vodacom Journalist of the year award in the category of Editor’s Choice. She then spent a semester at the prestigious Thomson Foundation at Cardiff University in Wales. She participated in an advanced broadcast course and served her work experience at the BBC in Bristol.
Krivani subsequently received a Diploma in Advanced Broadcasting from the Foundation. Upon returning from the UK, she was headhunted to anchor and produce a prime-time current affairs show PM Live on SA FM. Here she worked as Senior Producer and Anchor. She serves on the council of the South African National Editors Forum. Krivani has also served as editor and anchor for Eyewitness News at Primedia as well as News Editor for eNCA.
As the Executive producer for Current Affairs at SABC News, Krivani alongside seven of her colleagues played a key role in initially challenging the SABC over their management’s editorial dictate that violent protests must not be covered in TV news broadcasts.
This later spread to the challenge of other editorial policies, which they felt, undermined the editorial independence of the corporation. As a result, the then COO, subjected them to various forms of intimidation and harassment including initial suspension and then dismissal.
They stood their ground and submitted their concerns to Parliament which resulted in the first ever inquiry into the SABC by the Portfolio Committee on Communications. The Committee vindicated the actions of the SABC 8 - the COO was suspended, and the SABC Board was dissolved.
Taking this brave stand came at a huge personal cost with for the group but they played a key role in helping to secure the editorial independence of the SABC and the corporation is currently developing a new set of reporting guidelines, which will protect the organisation from future attempts at state capture. Krivani and her SABC8 colleagues are recipients of the Guardians of Governance Award from the institute of Internal Auditors of South Africa.
Krivani is a selfless individual whose love for family and country has been the greatest motivator in her life. With her impeccable morals and true professionalism, she is a role model, who embodies all the qualities that make her an outstanding person, richly deserving of the Emerging Old Rhodian Award.