Athandiwe Saba
M&G Media Limited, publisher and owner of the Mail & Guardian, is pleased to announce the appointment of award-winning journalist and author Athandiwe Saba as its deputy editor.
Saba joins a leadership team headed by Ron Derby, who was appointed editor-in-chief of the 36-year-old publication in May this year. Together they will be responsible for restructuring the M&G into a multiplatform content provider, servicing our growing digital platforms, as well as one of the country’s most important weekly newspapers.
Saba is currently the news editor of the M&G and has worked at the publication for the past four years. During her career Saba has worked at some of South Africa’s most prominent publications, including Sunday Times and City Press. She has experience in investigations and data journalism, and has produced in-depth articles on a vast range of topics over the past decade.
She is also a three-time speaker at the African Investigative Journalism Conference, has been a guest speaker at the Transnational Law Institute seminar series at
Kings College in London, and has been recipient of the News Corp Fellowship with the Wall Street Journal and The Times in London.
Saba said, “Coming into this role at this time in our industry and at the M&G is exciting. There is a need to innovate: change practices that don’t serve our readers and get back to the basics of building an honest, transparent relationship with the society we serve. Journalism is a calling and I am excited to work with a team and a leader who understands that.”
Ron Derby welcomed Saba’s appointment. “Athi has been central to our plans to transform the M&G newsroom into a digital-first operation and one answerable to an ever-changing media landscape. It’s been an exciting couple of months working with her energy and drive for the challenging task ahead.”
The chief executive of M&G Media Limited, Hoosain Karjieker, confirmed the appointment and commented: “This is an exciting moment for all of us at the Mail & Guardian as we embark on a journey in which innovation, agility and adaptability are key to navigating the digital landscape as continues to unfold.”
Karjieker added: “Athandiwe has all the necessary traits of journalistic passion and enthusiasm that are required in this new role.”
Athandiwe Saba’s appointment is effective from 1 July 2021.