Anheuser-Busch, the American brewer behind Budweiser, yesterday raised the stakes in the takeover battle for Chinese beer-maker Harbin with a -million bid for the company. That tops the -million from SABMiller, the London-based brewer behind brands including Peroni and Pilsner Urquell. The SABMiller offer was the first attempt at a hostile takeover of a Chinese company by a foreign firm.
The United States and Britain were on Tuesday night putting pressure on the oil cartel Opec to lift production quotas at its meeting in Beirut on Thursday as the West’s leading countries took fright at an economic and political backlash from record oil prices.
Opec to ‘calm the market’
The Bush administration on Tuesday night attempted to regain the political initiative in Iraq after a day of high drama and backroom deals which started when the White House’s preferred candidate for the post of the country’s new president refused to accept the post.
New president looks to the future
The media industry globally, and here I am including advertising, could be said to thrive on the four Ss: Sex, Sin, Scandal and Sport. What is it about sport that whips the usually cynical media into a nationalistic frenzy? Prof. Tawana Kupe looks at the sex, sin and scandal, and then sees the politics.
"’If TV is a vast wasteland, soap operas are thought to be the least nourishing spot in the desert,’ wrote Tania Modleski, a renowned professor of popular culture. Well, tell that to the average South African! " Across all ages and demographics, soaps are South Africa’s top-rated television shows, which leaves Harry Herber dumbstruck. Is there any life after soaps?
Q: What’s the difference between South African sports publishing and South African sports teams? A: One’s a winner. The fact that South African sports teams have performed like dogs being whipped by Australian cheerleaders for the last two years has meant very little to the bottom line of the sports publishing sector. Andy Davis looks at how, and why, sports print is raking in the readership and the revenue.
The May issue lead article is the first in-depth interview for a South African audience with Gavin O’Reilly, Independent News & Media’s heir apparent. It’s a story we’ve been trying to secure for a while, and not just because the Independent group represents this country’s most direct exposure to the operational mindset of a foreign media behemoth.
Around the world, people involved in the Zimbabwe debate talk about the WHAM factor or “What happens after Mugabe?”Can Zimbabwean media be rebuilt after Mugabe? Geoff Hill speaks to senior journalists Basildon Peta and Gerry Jackson, who were forced to flee their homeland in the face of repressive media laws.
Mathematicians have a reputation of being socially awkward creatures whose obscure work does not necessarily have a lot to offer the real world. However, Dr Gareth Witten is practically a party animal. He speaks understandable garden-variety English, plays beach volleyball and, last but not least, is using his skills for something extremely relevant: the fight against Aids.
Thursday July 7 1966 was a particularly hot and muggy day in London. My mother had just given birth to me and in the bed next to her was a woman who had also had a baby. ”What are you going to call him,” my mother asked, as she lent over to look. ”Strawberry,” replied the woman, aglow with original thought. But giving a children exotic or unusual monikers actually reveals a singular lack of imagination.