This year’s contest showed that increasing numbers of South African journalists are taking serious pride in their work, with a record 760 entries compared to last year’s total of 601 submissions. The entries represent 37 newspapers from across all nine provinces and include the community press. The entries were judged by a panel led by Professor Guy Berger.
PROFESSOR GUY BERGER: Prof Guy Berger is head of the School of Journalism & Media Studies at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa, where he has led the setting up of the Africa Media Matrix facility, as well as projects like the Sol Plaatje Media Leadership Institute and the Grocott’s Mail newspaper. He has worked in newspapers, magazines and television, and has a PhD from Rhodes. Active in the South African National Editors Forum, he is also a board member of the Media Development and Diversity Agency. He writes Converse, a column on media issues, at www.mg.co.za/converse.
JUBY MAYET: Detained and then banned while working for the ecumenical weekly, The Voice. Mayet is a founder member and research officer of Sizoya Sibuye Women’s Heritage & Cultural Forum, a group of women ex-prisoners of No. 4 Women’s Jail. She worked at Golden City Post & DRUM Magazine Journalist 1959-1977. Mayet was the first recipient of the Lifetime Achiever Award for Women in Writing in August 2000. She has a teacher’s certificate which she obtained in 1957 from the Johannesburg Indian Teachers’ Training Institute. In April 2006 she was one of the first 12 recipients of the “Memory is Our Heritage” fellowship grants from the Mutloatse Art Heritage Trust in conjunction with the Dept of Arts & Culture.
PAULA FRAY: Paula Fray has worked in media for more than two decades and is currently the Regional Director for IPS Africa. Prior to joining IPS, she founded and managed Paula Fray & Associates (now frayintermedia), a media training organisation. Paula is the founder and convenor of the annual Narrative Journalism Conference in South Africa. An award-winning journalist who rose to become the first female editor of the Saturday Star newspaper in South Africa, Paula was also executive news editor of The Star.
DAVID WIGHTMAN: David Wightman has spent much of his career in Durban having been editor of all the major titles, the Sunday Tribune, Post, the Daily News and the Mercury and was finally Editorial Director of Independent Newspapers in KwaZulu Natal. Earlier he had been a sub-editor on The Times in London, chief sub-editor of the World in Johannesburg before it was banned, and editor of the Cape Herald in Cape Town. He is presently Editorial Director of Famous Publishing, a Durban-based magazine company.
LIESL LOUW-VAUDRAN: Associate Editor at the Institute for Security Studies, she is responsible for conceptualising and editing new publications. Editor of The African.org since June 2009, she also lectures in international journalism at Stellenbosch University’s department of journalism. She was Africa Editor at Media24 for five years and has worked as foreign correspondent in France, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Kenya and elsewhere for Radio France International, the SABC, Independent Newspapers of South Africa and Media24. She has contributed to several books on journalism in Africa and is the author of Anderkant Timboektoe, an account of her work as a journalist in West Africa.
TUMI MAKGABO: For more than a decade, Tumi Makgabo has been a broadcaster locally and as anchor and co-producer of ‘Inside Africa’ at the global news network CNN International’s headquarters in Atlanta, USA. In 2006 she established her production company, Tumi & Co., which produced ‘Talk with Tumi Makgabo’ for M-Net and continues to produce long-form and documentary content for broadcast and/or in-house use. Until early 2008, Tumi was the International Affairs and Communications Manager and spokesperson for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa and it that same year she was selected to join the World Economic Forum’s Forum of Young Global Leaders.
TYRONE AUGUST: In his career as a journalist Tyrone has worked for the top publications in the country as a journalist or editor, including for The Star, City Press, New Nation, Tribute, Sowetan, Leadership, Cape Times. He has played an active role in industry unions and organisations including the Council of Unions or SA, Media Workers’ Association of SA, Association of Democratic Journalists, Black Editors’ Forum, Freedom of Expression Institute, and many more. He has a Bachelor degree from U KZN, Honours BA from Unisa, and a MA from the University of London.
MIKE SILUMA: Mike Siluma has worked in the media sector, including both print and broadcasting, for more than 25 years. He was previously the editor of Sowetan, having also worked in a senior capacity at The Star. He is a former chairman of both the South African National Editors’ Forum and the National Association of Broadcasters. Previously the CEO of Jacaranda FM, he is a social and political commentator in The Star. Siluma is now the head of SABC radio news.
ARRIE ROSSOUW: Currently running a media consultancy business (ARK Rossouw Media Consultancy) and marketing mobile ecommerce applications company (Mobile Potential), Arrie is a highly skilled journalist with experience of more than 26 years in the business. He has experience in all aspects of journalism and publishing newspapers, locally and internationally; publishing 24/7 news online; creating start-up businesses in East and West Africa and driving innovation in the newspaper and online environment. He has earned a reputation as change manager in the media at a time (post 1994) when the South African media was under pressure to transform.
PETER SULLIVAN: Born and educated in Bloemfontein, Peter Sullivan is a former Editor of The Star and Group Editor-in-Chief of Independent Newspapers. He was chairman of the Mondi Awards committee for half a decade. He now consults to governments and the United Nations on media matters.
JODI BIEBER: Jodi started her photographic career in a photographic training programme at The Star newspaper under the late Ken Oosterbroek in September 1993. Working there as a photographer until 1996, she was chosen to participate in the World Press Masterclass held in Holland and started working on assignments for publications like the NY Times Magazine. She also works for non- profit organizations like Medicins San Frontiers. Bieber was awarded the World Press Photo Award for 2010. For 10 years (1994 – 2004) she focused on the country of her birth, South Africa.
MATHATHA TSEDU: Mathatha Tsedu has served as editor at a number of SA newspapers; he is the former Chairperson of The African Editors Forum (TAEF), and a member of Council of the SA National Editors Forum (SANEF). He is the recipient of a number of awards, including Nieman Fellowship at Harvard University, the Nat Nakasa Award for Courageous Journalism, The Mondi Shanduka Lifetime Achiever Award, and the SANEF Wrottesley Award. He served on the Task Group on Government Communications that devised the government’s communications structure, leading to the creation of GCIS. Tsedu holds a BA Honours in Journalism and Media Studies from Wits University.
JOE LETAKGOMO: Joe started his journalistic career as a sports reporter on the World newspaper and was appointed deputy sports editor in 1970. From there he moved into production as sub-editor before being appointed News Editor, and Acting Editor until the closure of the World and Weekend World by the government. He was appointed Acting Editor of Post and Sunday Post until those were also closed down. He was a founding editor of the Sowetan, then moved on to The Star as Senior Assistant Editor, where he also worked for the Argus Africa News Service. Letakgomo is now the public editor for Avusa.
PIPPA GREEN: Pippa Green is Associate Professor and Head of the Journalism Programme at the University of Pretoria. She was educated at UCT and at the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University in New York City, where she earned an MSc in Journalism. She is the author of “Choice, not Fate: The Life and Times of Trevor Manuel,” published by Penguin in 2008 and short-listed for the Alan Paton Award in 2009. She has been a journalist and writer for the past 25 years. Her past positions include Head of SABC Radio News, Deputy Editor of the Sunday Independent and Pretoria News, and Political Editor of SABC Radio News. She has also held various editorial and writing positions on magazines.
ADRIENNE SICHEL: This theatre journalist began her career as a cadet at The Pretoria News in 1970 after graduating from the University of Natal (Durban) with a BA in Speech and Drama and English. After a break from newspapers she began specialising in the performing arts, back at The Pretoria News in 1978, was appointed arts editor in 1981, then transferred to The Star Tonight in 1983 becoming their senior specialist writer (theatre, dance and cultural politics). She retired from The Star in 2009 and is today a busy freelance writer. She has received numerous awards including a Mondi Shanduka AK Soga Lifetime Achiever award (2010.