The Mail & Guardian’s ombudsman, Franz Krüger, questioned the media reporting of Shrien Dewani, a man who is “wanted by South African prosecutors in connection with the murder” of his wife Anni Hindocha.  According to Krüger, “in South Africa you will struggle to find anybody who does not believe him to be as guilty as sin.”

“I’m not arguing that Dewani is innocent. I’m quite happy to leave that to the courts to decide and I do hope that a proper hearing, in a South African court, can be held to unearth the truth,” according to Krüger.

But, Krüger asked for the media to be careful in avoiding spin and measuring information leaked by the police.

Journalists “should be asking the tough questions, checking for internal consistency, looking for corroboration and insisting, in general, on naming sources or at least indicating the direction from where the claims come.”