Songezo Zibi has been appointed editor of Business Day as of 2 May, the Times Media Group announced on Thursday. Zibi is currently an associate editor at BDFM’s Financial Mail. Current editor, Peter Bruce, will become editor in chief of the daily business title.
Zibi was noted in The Media magazine’s Mint Top 40 Under 40 list of 2014 as one of South Africa’s top young media talents. (See the lists, part one and part two.)
“He writes and thinks with flair and has developed a strong following in almost no time at all. I have no doubt he will be a major figure in journalism for years to come,” Tim Cohen, editor of the Financial Mail, told The Media. He said Zibi has established himself as an “influential, independent and creative public voice on local affairs”.
Zibi moved from public relations to journalism in June 2013, following a long-held dream to become a journalist. He wanted to be a reporter after leaving high school in 1992, but his parents were against it because of the political violence in South Africa at the time.
“Stepping into Peter’s shoes is both an honour and terrifying at once, but it is a challenge I am nonetheless excited about and look forward to,” he said in a story announcing his appointment on BDlive.
“One of my ambitions for Business Day is to tell the story of South African companies and the economy in a way that focuses the minds of readers on what is truly important — and where Business Day is the first-choice read for economic, business and political news.”
IMAGE: Financial Mail
