Media

Media

iMaverick, Tuesday 18 October

iMaverick, Tuesday 18 October

Bheki Cele's warning to journalists; Zuma's reckless claim about a plot to kill him; ANCYL vs Blade Nzimande, again; Drum magazine turns 60; and the Top 20 Global Brands. By iMAVERICK TEAM.

South Africa

POLITICAL GUNPOWDER, TREASON AND PLOT

There’s nothing our politicians like more than a good plot. It keeps everyone going for months, revs up their engines and gets the juices flowing. You would think they were journalists by how they react to the mere whiff of something exciting. So you can imagine how much fun we’re all going to have with the latest claim by President Jacob Zuma that there was a plot to kill him while he was Deputy President. The problem is, no one knows if what he said is really true. And that could be the difference between a careless remark, and outright lying. By STEPHEN GROOTES.

CELE’S FRIENDLIEST OF WARNINGS TO JOURNALISTS REPORTING HIS DEPARTURE

Police chief General Bheki Cele has demanded that Sunday Independent bosses do an investigation into front page stories that he’s leaving at the end of November, and report back to him within three weeks. Not that he’s trying to intimidate anyone or anything. CARIEN DU PLESSIS reports.

COP17: SHOULD ESKOM AND SASOL BE PART OF IT? EARTHLIFE DOESN’T THINK SO

Environmental activist group, Earthlife continues to protest the inclusion of representatives from Sasol and Eskom on South Africa’s COP17 negotiation committee. Earthlife accuses both Eskom and Sasol of a conflict of interest but Business Unity South Africa and the Department of Environmental Affairs disagree. By KHADIJA PATEL.

ANC YOUTH HITS BACK AT BLADE

Another round of fisticuffs has ensued in the alliance: SACP general secretary Blade Nzimande lashed the ANC Youth League for being opportunist marchers, the League retorted that he won’t stop them and Cosatu seemed a little bit confused about it all (the ANC proper is strategically and quietly sitting on the fence). CARIEN DU PLESSIS reports.

Opinionistas

IVO VEGTER: PROFITABLE PURVEYORS OF PUDENDAL PRETTINESS

It should come as no surprise that it is possible to hae elective surgery to enhance the aesthetic appeal of female private parts. It is expensive, and it doesn’t always work, but it is a highly profitable business. Cue the hand-wringing.

TROY PARFITT: CHINA’S RULING THE WORLD? AN IMPOSSIBILITY.

IN argumentative logic, it’s known as a slippery slope fallacy: a particular event is offered up as being just one in a series of events inexorably leading to a specific outcome. Such a fallacy is currently underpinning one of the poorest arguments – and richest myths – of this young century.

Africa

TRIPOLI UNIVERSITY DITCHES GREEN BOOK

Tripoli University is preparing to re-open in a reinvented form. The tasks students and staff face in transforming the campus range from getting rid of Gaddafi’s
private “gynaecology room” to throwing out a syllabus built on propaganda. By REBECCA DAVIS.

ZIM GOVERNMENT BICKERS OVER INDIGENISATION LAW

Confusion reigns in Zimbabwe’s government over its proposed indigenisation laws, with Tsvangirai lambasting the plans and companies taking steps to placate the country’s angry indigenisation minister. We wouldn’t invest in Zimbabwe just yet either. By SIMON ALLISON.

TANZANIA’S FLAMINGOS HIGHLIGHT AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT DILEMMA

In the placid waters of Lake Natron, three-quarters of the world’s endangered lesser flamingos relax enough to make some babies – an essential requirement for the continuation of the species. Tanzania’s plans for a giant soda ash plant on the shores of the lake will shatter this tranquillity, but put a lot of money in government coffers. SIMON ALLISON ponders Tanzania’s dilemma.

THE ICC IN COTE D’IVOIRE: ALASSANE OUATTARA’S BIG TEST LOOMS

The sort of machinations and talks that will culminate in an inquiry by the International Criminal Court into the Co?te d’Ivoire post-election violence is now underway. There’s a whole lot that can go wrong, so hold your breath on this one. President Alassane Ouattara has not had to face stiff calls to account for his side’s alleged war crimes and the possibility that he won’t deliver on his promise of absolute transparency and justice is possible. BY SIPHO HLONGWANE.

World

FRANCE PICKS HOLLANDE TO BATTLE SARKOZY

Once upon a time a man called Dominique Strauss-Kahn was set to contest the French presidential elections for the Socialist Party. But then he got distracted, and now the Socialists have voted Franc?ois Hollande to carry their baton into April’s elections. By REBECCA DAVIS.

Business

CHINESE CARS GET TOUGHER SAFTEY TESTS IN 2012

From July next year, a new China New Car Assessment Program will be implemented in an effort to boost the build quality and safety of vehicles manufactured in the People’s Republic. No more horror crash videos on YouTube. By SIPHO HLONGWANE.

GOOGLE PLANS AN iTUNES-LIKE MUSIC STORE

Google is reportedly creating an online music store with cloud capabilities to compete with Amazon’s store and the Apple iTunes store. If anyone can shake the market, it is Google. They’ve already begun doing that with apps. By SIPHO HLONGWANE.

COMMUNICATIONS MINISTRY REPORTEDLY OK WITH KOREA TELCOM DEAL

The Department of Communications may be OK with a deal that will see the South Korean telecommunications company KT Corporation take a 20% slice of Telkom, according to reports. Will the deal mean a better Telkom, though? By SIPHO HLONGWANE.

WORLD’S TOP BRANDS

Global brand consultancy Interbrand recently released its 12th Annual Best Global Brands Report. Evaluated according to three criteria, namely financial performance, the role of the brand in the purchasing decision and the strength of the brand to continue to generate earnings, Coca-Cola has emerged as the number one brand for the 12th consecutive year.

Life, etc

HIGH DRAMA AS TILE GOES MISSING AT WORLD SCRABBLE CHAMPIONSHIPS

If you thought Scrabble was a sedate game, think again. The World Scrabble Championships, which concluded in Warsaw on Sunday, were plunged into controversy over a missing “G” tile. By REBECCA DAVIS.

THE SOUND OF MUSIC FINALLY COMES HOME TO SALZBURG

The Sound of Music will forever be associated with Salzburg, the Austrian city where most of its famous songs were recorded. But the city has never hosted a performance of the stage show due to shame over the story it tells. That all changes next Sunday, when the show opens in Salzburg for the first time. By REBECCA DAVIS.

DRUM, THE ORIGINAL BEAT OF SOPHIATOWN’S HEART, 60 YEARS LATER

These days, Drum is a different beast from its 1950s heyday under Jim Bailey – the magazine enters its 60s as a sister publication to Huisgenoot and You. While current owners Media24 are planning a big birthday later this month, and a commemorative edition will be released in November, the real story of Drum magazine is the one that happened in 1950s. J BROOKS SPECTOR looks back on the magazine’s glory days.

Sport

DEANS DEFENDS PUBLIC ENEMY COOPER

Wallabies coach Robbie Deans believes his flyhalf Quade Cooper does not deserve the abuse he is getting from New Zealanders. By PLANETRUGBY.COM.

WHITE DRAFTED INTO ODI SQUAD

Australia on Monday confirmed that Cameron White would remain in South Africa, joining up with the ODI squad as cover for Shane Watson and Shaun Marsh, who are battling injuries. By CRICKET365.COM.

TEST CRICKET PREVIEW: PAKISTAN VS SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka need to get out of their rut in Abu Dhabi and move on from the Muttiah Muralitharan era, but they will be up against a confident Pakistan side. By SHAHIDA JACOBS for Cricket365.com



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