Mail & Guardian Reporter
There has been a shake-up at Independent Newspaper’s golden egg, Natal Newspapers. Loss-making Natal Mercury editor John Patten has suddenly taken early retirement. It is due to be announced next week that his place has been taken by David Wightman, editor of the massively profitable Sunday Tribune, which went down-market in the last few years.
Daily News editor Peter Davis takes over as editor of the Sunday Tribune. The first black to get a senior position in Natal Newspapers, Dennis Pather, has finally been promoted and is now editor of the Daily News.
No decision has been taken about editor-in- chief “Mossie” van Schoor who is in poor health and had lengthy absences from work last