Fienie Grobler

The Audit Bureau of Circulations has demanded a retraction from marketing analyst Chris Moerdyk for saying the ABC’s integrity has taken a knock in the Media24 circulation debacle.

Three new radio stations will soon enter the playing fields in North West, Mpumalanga and Limpopo. They will be the first commercial stations taking on the radio market outside Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Cape Town. Fienie Grobler considers their chances of survival.

Once the ugly duckling of the magazine industry, custom publishing has given itself a make-over to become a more competitive – and prettier – player. Fienie Grobler tracks the growth of the local industry against international trends.

<i>Rapport</i> editor Tim du Plessis has been in the game since 1976 and witnessed many affairs between political leaders and the Afrikaans media. That would include Jacob Zuma, Thabo Mbeki, Jan Smuts and General De la Rey. Fienie Grobler picked his brain.

Since women make up just over half of the population, we in the fourth estate still have a long walk to equality though it is vital that we chalk up the progress as it happens, writes Ferial Haffajee.

<i>The Media</i> magazine has announced the two finalists for the overall 2007 Vodacom Women in The Media Award. They are: GenderLinks executive director Colleen Lowe Morna and CEO of Media24 Magazines Patricia Scholtemeyer

Does KwaZulu-Natal get enough credit for its groundbreaking work in launching Zulu media? Not only are these publications financially successful but they also create new newspaper readers. Fienie Grobler suggests that the rest of the country can take a leaf from the KZN booklet.

Black women are scarce in senior and top management positions in newsrooms and earn 25 percent less than their white, male counterparts, according to a report released by the South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) on Thursday.

An informal study by <i>The Media</i> shows that newspapers carried more than triple the number of crime stories in January and February this year compared to the same period last year. An unspoken agreement between editors seemed to have resulted in a joint effort by all media to heighten debate. Fienie Grobler asks whether the peak in crime coverage has spurred the government into action.

The end of M-Net’s open time window marks the start of a new ball game for local television. It finally levels the playing field in subscription broadcasting while the free-to-air channels are certain to score some viewers. But M-Net is determined to lure the eyeballs back onto its screens. Fienie Grobler reports.

Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana has asked the National Skills Authority to investigate allegations of financial irregularities at the Mappp-Seta, a senior government official told <i>eMedia</i>.

Entry into the 2007 Vodacom Women in The Media Award is now open. Now in its fifth year, the Vodacom Women in The Media Award is the only one of its kind in South Africa to recognise the achievements of remarkable women in this sector.

The South African National Editors Forum (Sanef) has described the alleged assault on <i>Sowetan</i> reporter Vusi Ndlovu as one of the most brutal attacks on a journalist in the post-apartheid era.

The Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) has lodged a complaint against the public broadcaster for allegedly failing to implement the findings of a report into the blacklisting of certain political commentators.

The weekly <i>Son</i> has pointed out that the latest circulation data is misleading. The October – December 2006 figures make it seem as if its total ABCs have dropped by more than 100&nbsp;000 while, in fact, the totals for the weekly newspaper are lower because <i>Son</i> in the Western Cape made no submission.

A new award for investigative journalism, initiated by businessman Taco Kuiper shortly before his death in 2004, has been met with dismay from broadcasting and internet journalists who have been excluded from entering.

Financial publications are investing heavily on the internet as their audiences turn to the web for up-to-date information. But are business sites really giving print a run for its money? Fienie Grobler reports.

Although the South African Press Association is an indispensable news provider to newsrooms countrywide, budget constraints are stifling it slowly but surely. The news agency has recovered from major financial losses in 2000 and its board is next month set to make some important decisions about its future. Fienie Grobler reports.

Media adventurers are spreading their wings into Africa and undoubtedly reaping the benefits. But why are the explorers among us so few and far between? There is after all a whole continent out there hungry for entertainment and information, writes Fienie Grobler.

Radio remains king while newspapers are raking in more readers. Fienie Grobler outlines the key findings of the latest readership data released by the South African Advertising Research Foundation (SAARF).

Marketers and media houses have woken up to the new market savvy generation of students, realising that the early birds do indeed catch the worms. But it is not the easiest market to capture. Fienie Grobler reports.

Radio is one of the most popular advertising mediums in South Africa with the unique ability to reach both illiterate, lower income groups as well as tertiary educated, high income earners. Maybe that is why advertising costs have soared since the public broadcaster sold off six radio stations in the mid-1990s, writes Fienie Grobler.

It is common industry knowledge that SAARF and TGI do not sit around the same campfire. But how do media strategists view the value of their products? Fienie Grobler investigates.

The race among the big media players for a chunk of the community press pie is on. The turf war is heating up and the old gentlemen’s agreements between the conglomerates seem to be forgotten. Meanwhile more than 200 smaller, independent publishers are struggling to keep their heads above water, writes Fienie Grobler.

A new generation of working mothers and stressed parents has opened the door for niche parenting magazines. They are hungry for information and devour advertising, writes Fienie Grobler.

Media research veteran Barbara Cooke has been honoured as Lifetime Achiever in the MTN Women in <i>The Media</i> awards. Fienie Grobler looks at her illustrious career and speaks to her colleagues and friends about the woman who is regarded as a leader in her field.

She loves the spirituality of trees and interviewing ordinary people. She is a fierce protector of privacy and does not believe in mentors. Fienie Grobler speaks to <i>Carte Blanche</i> anchor Ruda Landman.

She is a no-nonsense woman known for her fearless coverage of Aids issues. Fienie Grobler speaks to freelance journalist Sue Valentine.

Ferial Haffajee is the first woman editor of the leading <i>Mail & Guardian</i> newspaper. Under her editorship, the weekly has tackled ground-breaking stories. But that is not the sole reason for her winning the MTN Women in The Media award. She has also become a powerfully persuasive and authoritative voice on the media, writes Fienie Grobler.

Financial Mail</i> has appointed advertising agency rmg: connect/JWT Johannesburg in an exercise to build its brand and increase readership as rival Finweek’s circulation figures near <i>FM</i>’s 30,889.<

Primedia Unlimited, the advertising arm of Primedia, is spreading its wings into the United Arab Emirates in November, launching washroom adverts and kids’ shopping carts in Dubai malls in a first for the shopping mecca of the world.