Enough is enough: Podcast and Chill needs to realise GBV is not a punchline

South Africa may have reached a point where "it's just a joke" can no longer be dismissed as an excuse. Podcast and Chill, hosted by MacG Mukwevho and Solomzi Phenduka, has built a recognisable platform around irreverence and controversy. However, influence comes with responsibility. Repeatedly making women the subject of degrading commentary, the audience, advertisers, and regulators must question where the line is.

This latest controversy is particularly disturbing as South Africa grapples with the grim reality of violence against women. In the past week alone, at least eight women were found dead in Ekurhuleni, with police investigating possible links between the cases. Another woman, Elizabeth "Tsontso" Moselakgomo, 38, went missing after a run and was subsequently found dead.

During a discussion on the podcast, comments were made about her running, including a joke suggesting she should have just kept running. Sol Phenduka later apologised, acknowledging that making jokes about a missing person is insensitive, especially in the context of South Africa's femicide crisis. An apology is important, but it raises a bigger question: why does it take public outrage for basic human sensitivity to be considered?

This is not an isolated incident. Television personality Minnie Dlamini has also taken her dispute with Podcast and Chill to the Equality Court, seeking R2.5 million in damages, with R1 million intended for Women for Change. MacG disputes her allegations, claiming the comments were speculative and not intended to harm. He is willing to mediate and undergo gender-sensitisation training.

The people impacted by this podcast are real individuals with families, careers, and dignity. GBV is not a women's issue; it is a societal crisis. The response should be collective, lawful, and deliberate. Just as South Africans used boycotts and collective action to isolate apartheid, they can now withdraw support from content that degrades women.

Consumers can choose to stop watching, subscribing, and sharing the podcast. Advertisers can also decide whether association with the platform aligns with their values. Formal avenues for accountability exist, such as the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa and the Commission for Gender Equality. South Africans have the power to send a powerful message about what society is prepared to tolerate through collective action.