The collaboration, that commences later this month, includes a monthly TSA magazine show and nine live weekend broadcasts per contract year – showcasing existing tournaments hosted in the country, as well as two newly created prize money events.

The half-hour format monthly magazine show will be a fast-paced look at all areas of local tennis – including shining a spotlight on South Africa’s current and emerging tennis stars. Meanwhile, the nine live broadcasts will include coverage of selected ATP Challenger and ITF World Tennis Tour events currently hosted in South Africa, the David Samaai Junior Open (an ITF elite junior Grade A tournament), a Tie Break Tens exhibition event and the SABC Slam – a new big prize money event for local male and female players.

“I’m really excited about being able to get South African tennis events back where they belong – live, on the SABC. This is good for SABC Sport, good for Tennis South Africa and great for the millions of South Africans who love the game and want to re-connect with the local experience, as much as to what is happening internationally. We believe we can pay a key role in building the image and profile of tennis in our country and allow the game to touch the lives of millions more South Africans. To Tennis South Africa, all I can add is, welcome home,” said Gary Rathbone, the General Manager of SABC Sport.

“Tennis in South Africa is on an upwards trajectory, but for the sport to achieve its true potential it needs to reach as many South Africans as possible. Our new free to air broadcast partnership with the SABC provides us with a powerful platform from which to achieve this goal. We love the new SABC Sport vision and look forward to working closely with Gary (Rathbone) and his team to showcase the best of local tennis over the next three years,” concluded Richard Glover, CEO of TSA.

The SABC Sport GM, Gary Rathbone further elaborated, “we know how big the game of tennis still is in this country and to our audiences. Over many decades, South Africa produced some really talented players who went on to play top class international tennis, and still continues to do so with recent feats by the likes of Kevin Anderson, Lloyd Harris, Raven Klaasen and kgothatso Montjane . SABC Sport is therefore at the centre of showcasing the next raising talented group of players and bringing tennis into the homes of our audiences is the step in the right direction to inspire the future tennis champions.”

This our reality:
* Based on the ban on major events we can’t allow more than 100 people to congregate anywhere.
* Due to the travel ban and recommendations with regard to domestic travel and the use of public transport, our artists and visitors can’t get to Makhanda and we can’t get to them.
* We don’t want to contribute to the spread of the virus and fully understand that this is a time for isolation
That’s not what we do; we create experiences and celebrate the arts.

So, after more thinking, listening, reading, arguing and talking, we’ve come up with a plan… we’ve decided to do something bold, and something we have never done before. From 25 June to 5 July 2020, the National Arts Festival will be going completely virtual for the full 11 days of amazing.

Going virtual will mean that the Festival can continue to support artists and the arts in 2020, by presenting work within a digital space . This way we can share some magic and hope with those who may still be confined to their homes. An opportunity to connect when we are being asked to distance ourselves from one another.

Artists depend on festivals like ours to generate an income through selling tickets, getting their work seen and talked about locally and internationally, and networking with their peers. Rather than cancel, we aim to create a new opportunity for artists and audiences alike to celebrate the arts, and to create an accessible platform for artists to share their work.

Millions of people across South Africa and the world will be cut off from each other in completely unprecedented ways; unable to go to church, school or work, or socialize outside of their immediate family. This is absolutely the responsible thing to do to contain the uncontrolled spread of COVID-19, but as social beings, it is going to chip away a little bit of our souls every day the bans are in force.

Why make the decision now and not wait? We have just over 100 days to our opening day; the reality is that we can’t ask artists to prepare for a festival that may or may not go ahead; we can’t ask our supporters to make their plans, book their accommodation and transport, without the certainty that it will happen; and we can’t ask our service providers to stand at the ready if it may all come to nothing. The 2020 National Arts Festival will go down in our history as the first ever virtual edition.

For Makhanda and the Eastern Cape, this is going to be a really hard year and we are fully aware of the enormous impact that COVID-19 will have on our economic stability. We know how much income our festivals contribute to the infrastructure and economy of Makhanda. We remain committed to the city and will continue to play our role as good corporate citizens.

We will let you know more in the next few weeks about what will be on offer and how this will all work. We are engaging with our sponsors and donors, the Eastern Cape Provincial Government, Standard Bank of South Africa, the Department of Arts and Culture, Distell and Multichoice regarding our plans. Our commitment to the arts remains steadfast and we invite you to take this journey with us.

We will be engaging directly all artists and traders who are currently registered to participate in the 2020 Festival.
Postscript:
Scifest Africa will be postponed and take place from 9 to 15 September 2020 – all being well. The Eastern Cape Schools Festival will similarly be postponed to September 2020 – dates to be advised.

For more see: https://www.nationalartsfestival.co.za/

We were really excited to deliver the Pink Loerie and LGBTQ+ revival for 2020 but we cannot be irresponsible in delivering an event that will one, not be attended by people due to coronavirus and two, place people’s lives at risk.

We will be confirming the new date in 2020 from our website and pages and this will be based on the trajectory of the coronavirus and how it affects the world and South Africa.

Please note that you can and should be able to place accommodation and flights on hold till further notice and if not your travel insurance should cover this under an “Act of God” clause that was beyond the control of the festival planners and beyond your control.

We encourage our members, followers and festival goers to keep their chin up in this horrible time that the whole world is going through and note that we will come back from this stronger and better.

Remember, we will have the biggest, most fabulous, feather filled and happy party when this is all over, so keep up your spirit and let us remember we as the LGBTQ+ community have been through these terrible diseases before and we will learn to get through this as humanity as we have before.

In particular, we take extreme exception to her life being threatened, threats of rape; her telephone number being disseminated and the derogatory names she is being called.

We stand in full agreement with the SA National Editors Forum (SANEF) that this is also a hostile attack on media freedom in this country, particularly in a highly charged pre-election political climate in which all media houses are operating. We concur with SANEF that party leader Malema owes Ms Brown an apology and call on the EFF to immediately cease this intimidation and bullying.

Ms Brown is the presenter of a Sunday morning show called The Fix which takes a robust and analytical look at political issues facing the country. She also performs the role of political commentator where she is called on from time to time to provide analysis and insight into political stories. In the short term, she is also performing the role of Consulting Producer on the evening show Tonight with Jane Dutton where she assists in developing content and providing guidance when called upon.

With reference to a WhatsApp message that Ms Brown put out, it was simply one of guidance to our political team and pertinent questions we would ask of any political party. The issues queried in the message revolve around a point of how a young party with no significant body of retired past leadership selects a body of elders. It is, therefore, a legitimate question that deserves an answer rather than an attack on the questioner.

eNCA believes it would have been instructive and less damaging to all concerned had the EFF simply engaged on the matter with the station before resorting to what amounts to unfair harassment and aggression.

If the EFF has any complaints about content on the station or issues with individual presenters and reporters there are accepted avenues to follow including the Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa.

Jeremy Maggs
Acting MD and Editor: eNCA

eMedia is proud to bring Pascale Lamche’s Winnie, the documentary on South Africa’s Mother of the Nation. This illuminating work brings fresh perspective and insight into the life of anti-apartheid activist and human rights advocate Nomzamo Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. The documentary won a Sundance Award in 2017.

Winnie explores Mandikizela-Mandela’s contribution to the struggle against apartheid from the inside country. The work includes interviews with Madikizela-Mandela herself, those who were closest to her, and those who sought to extinguish her radical capacity to shake up the order of things.

“With acquisition of the rights to Winnie, the eMedia Group is proud to contribute to the collective understanding of our history, as we continue to do every day in our various media properties. We are particularly excited to be able to offer this award winning production to our OpenView viewers as part of our commitment to bringing high quality content to our free to air satellite platform. We have also made a library of our key Winnie Mandela interviews and stories available on our YouTube channel so that our viewers are able to watch these enlightning interviews at their convenience” says Andre van der Veen, eMedia Holdings Chief Executive Officer.

“In South Africa we have lived through turbulent times, and coming to terms with that history is often difficult. The passage of time often distorts as much as it allows for better insight into the past. Making sense of that past remains absolutely key to imagining a better future, though. In that spirit we hope that this documentary will help many South Africans confirm what they already know, gain new insight into what they have long believed about our collective history, but also, to help inform how we remember someone as important to our history as Nomzamo Winnie Madikizela Mandela. The life of this singular woman is indeed humbling, and holds many lessons for those of us who have benefited from her work over her long life.” says Mapi Mhlangu, MD and Editor-in-chief, eNCA.

Marlon Davids, e.tv’s head of channels says “We look forward to scheduling Winnie on e.tv and on Openview to enable South Africans to see this excellent film in their numbers.”

Lamche’s account of the political life of Winnie includes fascinating archival footage, extensive interviews with her, her daughter Zindzi, and those who sought her downfall. Though firmly on the side of Winnie, this film, nonetheless, offers a unique perspective on recent South African history. In the process, it restores Madikizela-Mandela as a key figure in the liberation of South Africa.

The documentary will premiere on eNCA on Wednesday 11^th April 2018 at 9PM, after which it will broadcast to all South Africans on e.tv and OpenView.

OpenView is proud to announce a breakthrough deal with Kwesé Free Sports for broadcast in South Africa. Kwesé Free Sports, Africa’s largest and only pan-African free-to-air channel, will join OpenView’s programming line-up this March bringing premium African and international sports content to over 1 million homes in South Africa, for free.

The demand for a dedicated sports channel on OpenView has been at the top of the OpenView viewers’ requests, and the platform is delighted to have struck a deal with this dynamic sports channel.

Kwesé Free Sports has established itself as a premium sports destination for every sports lover. The broadcaster has amassed rights for some of the world’s most loved sporting leagues such as the NBA – providing the most extensive content line-up available outside of the USA, Major League Baseball, Formula E, WTA Miami Masters and so much more.

OpenView’s Head of Channel Acquisitions, Ziyanda Mngomezulu, is pleased about the new addition to the OpenView family. “Sport is one of the most talked about subjects in South Africa and giving our audiences a new experience on the platform is perfectly timed. We have had requests for a sports channel since the launch of OpenView and Kwesé Free Sports is the perfect choice for quality sport from around the world that our viewers will love.” says Mngomezulu.

Speaking about the launch of Kwesé Free Sports on OpenView, Econet Media President and Group CEO Joseph Hundah said, “This is yet another significant milestone for us as we introduce another premium Kwesé platform to the South African market following the launch of Kwesé Play in 2017. This increases Kwesé Free Sports’ footprint to 27 markets. As a business premised on making world-class sports and entertainment content accessible, we are proud to deliver a dedicated sports channel beaming 24 hours of premium and in some cases exclusive sporting action.”

Kwesé Free Sports is the free-to-air sports content platform from Africa’s newest satellite broadcast network Kwesé TV. Although a relatively new player in the market Kwesé TV has revolutionised the African media industry by offering a multi-platform content distribution network that encompasses linear, mobile and digital services. Kwesé TV’s broadcast network gives viewers unlimited choice to access content whenever and wherever they want, be it free-to-air TV (Kwesé Free Sports), mobile applications (Kwesé App available outside of South Africa), OTT streaming service (Kwesé Play) and pay TV (linear broadcast service available outside of South Africa).

With the launch of Kwesé Free Sports on OpenView, South African sports lovers looking for a diverse mix of exciting sporting action will be in for a real treat. Tennis lovers will be enthralled by the kick serves, aces and breaks in the WTA Miami Masters, while Baseball fans can watch Toronto Blue Jays second baseman and shortstop Gift Ngoepe make his mark in the South African history books in Major League Baseball. Motoring heads can get their fix of fast paced racing action in the Formula E, while basketball fans enjoy every explosive dunk, high flying hoop and sneaky steals the NBA season has to offer. There is something for every sports fanatic on Kwesé Free Sports and OpenView audiences will be spoilt for choice.

Kwesé Free Sports will premiere on OpenView channel 110 on Friday 16 March 2018 at 11:30AM.

About Kwesé Free Sports
Kwesé Free Sports is Africa’s largest and only Pan-African Free-To-Air (FTA) channel available in more than 27 countries in Africa. It offers live premium sports viewing to fanatics across Africa for free. Watch Kwesé Free Sport on Kwesé’s satellite TV service, using the Kwesé TV decoders or on your FTA Set Top Box (STB) with no subscription fee. Viewers can also live stream the channel on Kwesé’s mobile app available for download on all Apple and Android devices or on the web on www.kwese.espn.com wherever they are, whenever they want. Don’t miss the Premier League live, NBA, various FIFA tournaments including the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia and leagues, NFL, AVIVA Premiership Rugby as well as sport themed magazine shows only on Kwesé Free Sports.

In light of the drought that Cape Town is facing, the entire festival will be water wise and operate outside the municipal grid. This includes ablution facilities which will be brought in, instead of using the existing infrastructure at the stadium. Throughout the day patrons will be reminded that they need to be conscious of water usage. Heart FM is not only committed to leading by example as to being water conscious, but the festival is also running off bio friendly generators to reduce harm to the environment.

Hottest line-up
The line-up includes something for both young and the young at heart, celebrating the best South African and Cape Town talent.

While last season Idol’s winner Paxton Fielies agreed to perform at the festival, it was not in consultation with her newly appointed manager, who accepted an invitation to perform at another radio station concert which required exclusivity.

Festival director Denver Apollus explains. “We are not pleased with the outcome as we believe these new artists should be given the exposure across multiple platforms and not be exclusive. We should never let our brands dictate the segregation of our Cape Town artists. We are here to support and Heart FM will do so regardless. We support Paxton and look forward to our partnership with Robin Pieters’ show where she will be performing with him on 14th February 2018 at the GrandWest Arena.”

Artists taking to the stage: Jimmy Nevis, Youngsta CPT, Marc Alex, Prime Circle, Craig Lucas, AKA, Cassper Nyovest, Sketchy Bongo, Tresor, Dr Victor & The Rasta Rebels, Mango Groove, Die Heuwels Fantasies, Nasty C, Emo Adams, Sasha-Lee Davids, Alistair Izobell, Salome, Kurt Darren, Chad Saaiman, Jarrad Ricketts, Airborne, The Black Ties.

The feisty Judge Judy makes a welcome return to e.tv at 4:30PM, followed by the ever-popular Steve Harvey Show at 5PM. Days Of Our Lives kicks off a 2-hour soapie bonanza at 6PM, followed by award-winning local shows Rhythm City and Scandal!, which will air at 7PM and 7:30PM, respectively. eNews with Sally Burdett follows at 8PM and local drama fans will get a double dose of Easy Money on Mondays and Tuesdays at 9:30PM.

Crime drama, Shades Of Blue – starring Jennifer Lopez – makes its debut on Monday 15 January at 8:30PM. Season 3 of Chicago PD will start on Tuesday 16 January at 8:30PM, with The Blacklist returning for its second season on Wednesday 17 January at 8:30PM. 50 Cent’s thrilling crime drama, Power, premieres directly afterwards, at 9:30PM on Wednesday 17 January.

Broken Vows will shift to eExtra on OpenView HD (Channel 105) and DStv (Channel 195) every weekday at 6PM from Monday 15 January 2018, offering viewers more local drama on the channel. Broken Vows is also available on eOnDemand on www.etv.co.za any time, any day and e.tv viewers can still watch an omnibus of the show on Saturdays at 11:20AM

“Over the last 20 years, e.tv’s constant innovation has made the channel a firm favourite in the free-to-air television landscape,” says Marlon Davids, MD of e.tv. “Our new programming line-up demonstrates our commitment to meeting the needs of our audiences. They can look forward to more of the highest quality local programming, alongside world-renowned international content, this year”.

We begin the New Year with a Special Assignment investigation into the murky world of the poultry industry. As we expose a multi-billion dollar business that operates without proper mechanisms in place to ensure product safety and quality controls.

Our investigation begins in Brazil, where a recent meat scandal has led to the country losing its credibility as a global leader in meat exports. In South Africa, we uncover how incorrect labeling on chicken at retail store Food Lovers Market – misleads shoppers and compromises the products safety, putting at risk the health of thousands of people that consume this meat.

A Brazilian Federal Police probe, last year code name, operation Weak Flesh uncovered that health inspectors were paid bribes to allow the sales of contaminated meat for export. Following reports of unsafe Brazilian meat, how safe are their imports to South Africa? After searching for imported meat in various local retailers, we discovered that Food Lovers Market sells chicken branded as a product of Brazil. To avoid an unbiased report we tested this meat sold at the retailer and also tested a popular brand of South African produced chicken. We found that the meat sold at Food Lovers Market contained high levels of bacteria which pose health risks.

Food Lovers Market declined our request to respond to the damning evidence in an on camera interview. Instead they issued a statement in which the company denies that the meat they sell in their stores is imported from Brazil. They say that it’s locally produced meat which they get from their distributors. It further states the poultry was wrongfully packaged as a Product of Brazil at their store.

The Consumer Protection Act specifically prohibits labeling that is misleading. Food Lovers Market says they did their own tests on the meat we uncovered and concedes that it does contain high levels of coliforms, but it’s safe to eat. A Food Safety Expert we interview says this indicates the meat is handled in unhygienic conditions. Dr Patrick Njobe says “these pathogens are toxigenic which are able to produce toxins that are found to cause cancers”.

Food Lovers Market says they have since introduced processes to prevent the wrongful re-branding of its chicken in future. But when we visited one of their stores we found its chicken is still being sold as a Product of Brazil. They also sell other chicken which they label as being a product of Argentina, USA and the European Union. The retailer is a major supplier of imported chicken which it sells at its stores countrywide and in neighboring states.

Local chicken producers say the industry is on the verge of collapse, because of the recent bird flu epidemic and imported chicken. We also travel to Hammersdale in KZN where we observe the alleged consequences of chicken imports at Rainbow Chickens – where more than a thousand workers were retrenched. Busisiwe Zungu a worker that lost her job after working at the company for 27years says “the poultry producer, Rainbow Chicken doesn’t have enough money or power to compete against imported chicken”. Local Poultry producers have accused export countries of dumping chicken in South Africa, which they cannot sell in their own markets.

In this episode, we ask the questions why government has failed to protect the local poultry industry from imported chicken. What’s been done to ensure retailers do not mislead the public with incorrect labeling to sell their products? And what regulations exist to ensure consumers are sold a safe, quality product?

ANC Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa leads the race for the top spot in the party. This is according to findings from Markdata and African Response research. Ramaphosa is ahead of his contenders, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and Lindiwe Sisulu. The results are from 16 focus groups conducted in Gauteng, KwaZulu Natal, Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape. Participants are ANC supporters who voted the party in 2014 national and 2016 local government elections.

The findings reveal that Ramaphosa is trusted to lead the party and the country because of his role in crafting the constitution of the country and his involvement in the Nation Union of Mine Workers. He is also viewed as capable, trustworthy and incorruptible due to the fact that he owns businesses. However, results also show that Ramaphosa has not been forgiven for his role in the Lonmin strike that led to the Marikana massacre in 2012.

Dr Nkosazana appears the closest contender to Ramaphosa. While she is considered efficient and brave, based on her previous roles as a cabinet minister and African Union leader, research participants view her association with President Jacob Zuma as problematic.

In the third position is Lindiwe Sisulu. She is regarded as competent based on her role as Housing minister. Her family’s role in the struggle against apartheid appear to count in her favour. But, participants do not see her as very well-known. Other candidates, Jeff Radebe, Baleka Mbethe, Zweli Mkhize and Matthews Phosa received the least attention from participants.

eNCA’s programme, The Race, unpacks the findings every Monday, while e.tv breaks down the findings from Sundays to Thursdays on eNews Direct. In November, results of standardised interviews with approximately 5000 South Africans around the country will be announced. Topics include preferred ANC leaders, provincial party politics, race relations, economic transformation.

Catch The Race every Monday at 3:30pm on eNCA on DStv (Channel 403), and the breakdown of the findings on e.tv from Sundays to Thursday on eNews Direct at 8PM. Visit www.eNCA.com to view this and past episodes.