South Africa's newsrooms have been stripped to the bone. The commission has turned its sights on the media for a clearer picture of how AI, search engines, news aggregators and social media are allegedly conspiring to hammer the last nails into its coffin.

Search engines, social media sites, video sharing, news aggregators, generative AI and ad tech will be coming under heightened focus over the next year, as the Competition Commission begins an investigation into digital content in South Africa and the advertising technology markets that link buyers and sellers of digital advertising inventory.

It's all to do with concerns that social media platforms and search engines are eroding local media.

The commission announced the Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry on 17 October, over concerns that platforms such as Google, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter/X and others have unfair advantages and market practices, which are damaging SA's news media sector.

The 15-month inquiry - expedited from the legislated 18-month timeframe due to urgency, explained commissioner Doris Tshepe - will be led by James Hodge, chief economist and acting deputy commissioner of the commission, with seasoned journalist and entrepreneur Paula Fray serving as a panel member. Fray is a founding board member of the Accountability Lab and has served as a deputy Press Ombud and a public representative on the SA Press Council.

Tshepe told journalists on Tuesday that the inquiry comes at a critical moment for the media industry, as consumption patterns have...