Ferial Haffajee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ferial Haffajee
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Farial Haffajee speaking at Wiki Indaba 2024.
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| Born | 20 February 1967 |
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| Nationality | South African |
| Alma mater | University of the Witwatersrand |
Ferial Haffajee (born 20 February 1967) is a well-known South African journalist and newspaper editor. She was the editor of the City Press newspaper from July 2009 to July 2016. Before that, she was the editor of the Mail & Guardian newspaper.
Ferial Haffajee received the 2014 International Press Freedom Award. This award is given by the Committee to Protect Journalists to people who bravely stand up for press freedom. In 2011, she also joined the board of the International Press Institute, which works to protect journalists worldwide.
Currently, Ferial Haffajee is an Associate Editor at the Daily Maverick, a popular online news publication. She previously worked as editor-at-large at HuffPost South Africa until 2018.
Early Life and Career Beginnings
Ferial Haffajee grew up in Bosmont, a suburb located in Johannesburg, South Africa. Her father worked in a clothing factory. She studied at the University of the Witwatersrand, a well-known university in South Africa.
Haffajee started her career as a young reporter at the Mail & Guardian newspaper. Over time, she held different roles there, including associate editor and economics writer. Before becoming an editor, she also worked at the SABC, which is South Africa's state broadcaster. At SABC, she was a radio producer and a television reporter. She also worked at the Financial Mail magazine, where she was a senior editor covering politics.
Leading the Mail & Guardian Newspaper
Ferial Haffajee became the editor of the Mail & Guardian newspaper on 1 February 2004. She was 36 years old at the time. This happened two years after a Zimbabwean publisher named Trevor Ncube took control of the newspaper.
During her time as editor, the Mail & Guardian faced some challenges. In 2005, the newspaper was stopped by a court order from publishing certain stories. This was rare for a publication in South Africa after 1994. In 2006, the paper faced another court order and Haffajee received threats. This happened after the newspaper republished some cartoons that caused controversy.
In March 2009, the Mail & Guardian announced that Haffajee was leaving her role. She then became the editor of City Press in July of that year.
Images for kids
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Farial Haffajee speaking at Wiki Indaba 2024.
