Suzy Bell The only independent radio station that was a breath of fresh air in KwaZulu-Natal with lively, off-the-wall DJs, controversial talk shows and excellent news coverage, was the old Capital Radio station in Durban, which closed last year on November 29. It looks like old Capital will be back if all goes well for […]

The people who should answer for the medias apartheid past were absent from the commission hearings, writes Ferial Haffajee Ironically, those who represented the media at this weeks Truth and Reconciliation Commission probe into their past were its brightest symbols of the future. Times Media Limiteds (TML) Cyril Ramaphosa, the Independent Groups Moegsien Williams and […]

Promising oil discoveries offer hope for Africas poorest economies but raise the political stakes, writes Richard Cornwell Excitement is growing about the prospects for Africas hydrocarbons industry. Even with the present relatively modest oil price, the growth in African production has been remarkable.What has really caused a stir, however, are the discoveries in the Gulf […]

Raincoats are the only protection schoolchildren in Meadowlands have from the clouds of dust that blow off a disused slimes dam, writes Ferial Haffajee The children wear raincoats. Not to keep out the rain, but to ward off the dust. It blows and then settles everywhere. In the ceilings, on the rose-bushes and in the […]

In 1982 The Star newspaper published a story exposing the Reverend Allan Boesaks affair with an official of the South African Council of Churches. The story was based upon information fed to it by security police. To justify its decision, the newspaper claimed that it was an expos of the security branchs dirty tricks. Yet […]

FRIDAY, 1.00PM THE US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has joined the fray over callback operations in South Africa. The commission says it has “serious concerns” over the manner in which the SA Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (Satra) is seeking to ban South African callback operators from offering cheaper international calls to consumers. The FCC is braodly […]

The ANC in the Western Cape did not jump. It was pushed. Andy Duffy reports The African National Congress in the Western Cape is struggling to justify a decision that has opened the door to the partys eviction from the provincial Cabinet. Senior party members are putting a positive spin on the ousting, talking about […]

Nkabinde begins Wonder Hlongwana Richmond residents have high expectations of the trial of alleged warlord Sifiso Nkabinde. They say they want to know who gave him guns, ammunition and money. They also believe the 18 counts of murder he is facing are just a drop in the ocean. Half of the charges Nkabinde faces in […]

Greg Bowes Im whisked off without a notebook and completely unprepared to meet New Yorks deejaying legend Frankie Knuckles. Inside Johannesburgs South Station Stuart Hs opening set thunders along like a steam train and the kids parade around in expensive labels and somehow still manage to look completely bland. In a room behind the DJ […]

Gustav Thiel The contention by Minister of Safety and Security Sydney Mufamadi that serious crime has decreased has been challenged by the Institute for Security Studies, which says there is undoubtedly a rise in crime. Mufamadi based his optimism on crime figures for the first six months of the year, released last week. The figures […]