Dr Dinesh Balliah appointed Director of the Wits Centre for Journalism 

The Wits Centre for Journalism is proud to announce the appointment of Dr Dinesh Balliah as its new Director. 

"We have excellent teachers, researchers and trainers and I expect that the Centre’s immediate impact will be through our team and our graduates. The WCJ has an outstanding track record in growing talent that can seamlessly step into demanding roles in any country on the continent and abroad." 

Dinesh sits down to discuss her upcoming work and vision for the Centre.

Click here to read the full article.

Pictured: WCJ Finance Officer Makane Phiri with Dr Dinesh Balliah. 

Murder in Paris and the un-erasure of Dulcie September: storytelling, legacy and justice

The Wits Centre for Journalism, together with the Wits History Workshop, Wits Film and TV, and Wits Music departments, hosted a screening of Murder in Paris from award-winning South African filmmaker and director Enver Samuel, a documentary which traces the murky motives behind September’s assassination in 1988.

From the lens of a journalist, filmmaker, researcher or historian, the film shows us the importance of preservation, of memorialisation, and in the case of keeping stories like September’s alive, the direct link this can have to justice and accountability. 

Click here to read the full article. 

Radio in South Africa turns 100 – and collides with podcasting and streaming

Sisanda Nkoala looks back to the first experimental broadcast in SA in 1923, looks at the present, and looks ahead to digital audio broadcasting and how it may reshape the sector.

"Radio remains firmly in place as the country’s most loved medium. Millions tune in daily to 40 commercial and public broadcast stations and over 250 community stations. Although other forms, like television, have threatened, as the song goes, to kill “the radio star”, the intimacy, immediacy and sociability of radio remain unmatched."

Click here to read the full article.

Welcome to the career-entry honours class of 2023!

Our career-entry honours in journalism class of 2023 recently had their first day in the newsroom. Four intense weeks of bootcamp training lie ahead, and we're wishing them all the best!

Top Row (L to R): Ndumiso Nkosi; Morongoa Masebe; Nonhlanhla Mathebula; Ayanda Mgwenya; Aphelele Mbokotho; Otsile Swaratlhe; Kimberley Kersten; Seth Thorne

Bottom Row (L to R): Rethabile Mafisa; Sfundo Parakozov; Sbongile Molambo; Georgia Cartwright; Nonkululeko Mncube; Mbalenhle Dhlamini; Lesedi Maako

Invitation: Unesco consultation on journalism education in Southern Africa set for 15 March

Journalism educators in Southern Africa are invited to join the second regional consultation for Unesco’s Excellence in Journalism Education in Africa project, taking place online on 15 March from 14h00 to 16h00 (SAST). The consultation will include Portuguese translation for institutions based in Angola and Mozambique. 

The project is being implemented by the Wits Centre for Journalism and the School of Journalism and Media Studies at Rhodes University. Funded by the Google News Initiative, it aims to develop criteria for excellence in journalism education on the continent that institutions can use to self-evaluate and strengthen their work. A small grant component of the project will also allow institutions from across the region to develop projects that respond to gaps they identified in their own educational programmes. 

If you would like to participate in the consultation, please contact the project coordinator, Alan Finlay, at [email protected].

Click here for more information about the project.

Dates set for the 19th African Investigative Journalism Conference

This year’s AIJC will take place from 20 – 22 November at Wits University in Johannesburg. Keep an eye on the AIJC website and follow their social media channels to catch calls for input and for fellowship applications as we approach the 19th year of Africa’s biggest journalism event.

TikTok in the New Newsroom

The rapid growth of TikTok and its typically young, vocal audience have been noticed by traditional media, which are quickly realising the app's potential in helping to reach wider audiences. The question for journalism educators is how to adjust their teaching to include the new platform as a means of reporting.

Click here to read the full article. 

Wits Justice Project releases budget speech toolkit

Ahead of the 2023 budget speech last week, the Wits Justice Project at the Wits Centre for Journalism prepared a simple toolkit designed to help journalists and other reporters take a closer look at the budget and expenditure of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.

Click here to download the resources.

Upcoming Events: 

• Jamlab Webinar, 7 March, 12:00 to 13:15 - Join the Jamlab Africa alumni for an informative webinar as they detail their entrepreneurial journeys so far. Jamlab is creating a network of media entrepreneurs to exchange ideas, contacts and support across the continent. Click here to register.

• Africa-China Reporting Project webinar, 20 March, 2pm - The ACRP invites journalists, researchers and media professionals to attend their webinar and workshop, "China 101: Knowledge Building for African Journalists." Click here to register.

• Sustainable Journalism in Practice Conference, 23 - 25 March - The Wits Centre for Journalism, together with the Fojo Media Institute, will host a sustainable journalism conference at the Aga Khan University Graduate School of Media and Communications in Nairobi, Kenya. Click here for details and register to take part in person or virtually.

• Applications are now open for the One World Media Fellowship. This year, 10 early-career journalists will be selected for a full year of training, mentorship and funding to tell underreported stories from the global south. Click here for details.

• Civic Tech Africa has two full-time intern positions available in research and communications. The positions offer a hybrid working arrangement. Click here for details on the research intern position. Click here for details on the comms intern position. Deadline: 10 March.

• The North Coast Courier is looking for an enthusiastic, committed and experienced journalist to join its team in Ballito. Applicants must be able to adapt their writing for print, online and social media platforms. Deadline: 16 April. Click here for details.