Nota did what a real friend does, he redirected the conversation around Nonhle Thema.
Instead of joining everyone laughing at the “I introduced South Africa to Twitter” moment, he focused on the substance: Nonhle’s influence on the industry and how her confidence in charging what she believed she was worth raised the ceiling for other creatives. She showed many creators what was possible and gave them a benchmark for what they could ask for.
He was also right to call out Thando’s condescending attitude during the interview. She could’ve handled that conversation much better.
What we are not gonna do is not credit Nonhle Thema’s contribution to the culture and adoption of this social media platform. Her unhinged tweets got people talking and joining. Her infamy had influence.