Printing, distribution, circulation and marketing are basic functions in any publishing operation, yet it is precisely these functions that are tripping up the small independent community press in South Africa, making it difficult for the publishers to survive. This study goes to the heart of what is wrong with, and should be put right in, the grassroots press. Written for the Media Development and Diversity Agency (MDDA), this influential report argues that a market-oriented approach is vital. Solutions for small independent newspapers must be sought both at the enterprise level and in the wider media environment. The fact that many grassroots papers are still involved in Struggle – this time the struggle to survive financially - indicates that the sector needs business infrastructure, networking, alliances with fellow media, and synergies with the mainstream media.

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Zenzele News will be mainly a seSotho language tabloid covering about 15 widespread towns and rural communities in the northern Free State of South Africa. Zenzele News aims to bring news and debate to readers who have not, until now, had any newspaper of their own. The report covers strategy; publication goals & content; editorial and management practices; marketing and distribution; set-up and sustainability; and regular reviews. Much of our previous report to the MDDA on the Grassroots Press(open access on this website) applies directly to Zenzele News, but that was written more than three years ago. We go further here, recognising that print-electronic convergence is now a fact of publishing life in South Africa. Almost everyone has a cellphone or access to one. A unique strategy is envisaged - called the "electronic shell" - which will allow the newspaper to reach out to its town and village readers via cellphone texting, while at the same time using a website to reach advertisers and other stakeholders who have access to the Internet.

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South African democracy will stand or fall on the ability of the country's people to engage with the political leadership and influence policy-making. It's time for the nation to start talking, demanding answers, and weighing up alternatives. This report explores the launch of a channel for the national discussion of priorities, involving rich and poor, urban and rural, the well informed and those marginalised by media. The client commissioning this study has a far-sighted vision of public engagement over health, education, energy, services, security, and everything else that should concern an informed citizenry. We outline how the public platform for this national conversation can be brought into being through independent electronic media and by means of alliances with established media. The scale of this ambitious undertaking will be determined by funding and organisational capacity. We examine the possibilities for launch, growth and sustainability against a background of development communications.

ACCESS for client & advisors

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