What if media magnate Manyi is onto something?

For very understandable reasons Mzwanele Manyi's transformation into a media mogul this week didn't exactly have South Africans celebrating.

The former government communications and information system head's sudden acquisition of the Gupta family-owned The New Age newspaper and ANN7 television channel for R450-million was a difficult pill to swallow for many, given Manyi's consistent and staunch defence of the family, who, in turn, are accused of plundering billions in dodgy state contracts thanks to their political connections and proximity to their friend.

Eyes were rolling when it emerged that the deal was financed by the Gupta family in a structure where Manyi's company would repay the purchase price using the cash flows of the business.

It's important to note that vendor financing assumes the business being sold will generate enough cash flows to settle the purchase price, and also service the cost of the funding, assuming there is interest payable on the loan. Seasoned dealmakers will also tell you that the most important thing to get right in any acquisition is the price. The almost half-a-billion-rand price tag appears rather hefty for a newspaper and a four-year-old 24-hour news network broadcasting on a pay-television network.

However, trade players have been known to pay handsomely for acquisitions when they know what they can do with them.

The world is filled with examples of expensive acquisitions that turned out to be steals in the hands of capable, new operators.

But let's suspend our mass incredulity over the bona fides of the transaction and give Manyi the benefit of the doubt for just a moment.

Let us imagine he achieves what he has said he would. Imagine if Manyi actually creates a media platform that reflects the real concerns and needs of a largely black population.

It is something that is sorely needed.

You'd have to forgive those few, perhaps gullible, souls lauding the deal as a win for black-owned media, because, in a majority black country, the stubbornly white face of much media ownership is downright depressing.

It's an uncomfortable fact that finds expression in many ways. The ruling by the appeals panel of the press ombudsman this week is a case in point.

A five-member panel overturned the bizarre ruling by press ombudsman Johan Retief over the now infamous HuffPost SA hoax blog, "Could it be time to deny white men the franchise?"

Retief ruled that the blog, as well as a response piece by former HuffPost editor Verashni Pillay, constituted hate speech and discriminatory speech, amid a host of problematic findings. His original ruling makes him look as if he had taken great personal offence. It's not hard to imagine how his own identity might have played into the errors of legal judgment that led to a cringeworthy correction of his ruling.

There was clearly over-identification with the group most hurt by the blog - white men, one which Media24 seemed to have played straight into. On the back of the ruling, Pillay immediately resigned, later citing a lack of support from the company. Shortly afterwards, two other young black journalists at the publication abruptly left.

The blog was stupid, certainly, even if it was "faux academic", as Steve Budlender so politely put it in his legal argument at the appeals hearing. Pillay's response was unwise, but it wasn't hate speech; nor reason enough to push out an editor.

But Media24 is a largely white-run and

-owned company, and this appears to be a reflection of the decisions it makes. Previously it has backed its editors when they have come up against the governing party or its officials, but it seems to have lost its nerve when faced with an issue that offended the one demographic it values.

We talk media transformation ad nauseum, but - 23 years after democracy - it's still something of a dream. Senior editors in mainstream titles taken together do not reflect the demographics of our country. And it shows. Our news runs the risk of being a filter bubble, an echo chamber where we all put out certain views in agreement with each other.

Understanding what ordinary South Africans think is that much harder when barely any of us are rooted in that experience. It's how so many media houses missed Polokwane and President Jacob Zuma's comprehensive victory. It's how so many American media houses didn't see President Donald Trump's victory coming.

Transformation at every level of the media business is key if we want to break out of the echo chamber.

At a time that audience trust is at record lows and fake news is becoming frighteningly sophisticated, it's more important than ever that we earn back that trust and start engaging our people's concerns in their language.

As Manyi moves into the Midrand headquarters, I hopehe proves us all wrong and adds an authentic voice to our media landscape.

Wishful thinking, perhaps, but then again I am a Liverpool fan. I am always hopeful.

Khumalo is chief operating officer of MSG Afrika and presents 'Power Business' on Power98.7 at 6pm, Monday to Thursday