Mail & Guardian acquired by New York-based Media Development Investment Fund
The Mail & Guardian says it has been acquired by the Media Development Investment Fund (MDIF), which is now the majority shareholder of M&G Media Limited.
As part of the same deal, current chief executive officer Hoosain Karjieker becomes a minority shareholder. Trevor Ncube, the former publisher, has left the company, it said.
“MDIF has worked with M&G for more than a decade and knows the company intimately,” said MDIF CEO Harlan Mandel.
“We have invested in M&G because it is a uniquely important media organization with a great future. Its independent reporting has a profound impact on the national debate and it is a beacon for independent journalism across the continent, and indeed the world.
“We are committed to building on this legacy and re-establishing M&G as a commercially and journalistically dynamic institution at this important time in South African politics.”
The MDIF is a New York-based non-profit organisation. Since its founding in 1996, it has invested $163-million in over 113 publications across 39 countries. It has a long history with the M&G, dating back to a loan that it extended to the company in 2003.
Karjieker, who will continue as CEO, said: “The new ownership will steady the company and provide much-needed financial stability. It will provide a strong and stable platform from which we can refocus on building our business, while safeguarding M&G’s unique blend of quality investigative journalism and balanced political coverage.
“I would like to underline the fact that MDIF is a not-for-profit company with a mission to support quality independent news media. Interfering in editorial is against its core principles.”
“As a small independent publisher, the M&G feels the turmoil of the global media industry acutely. This now presents us with a real opportunity to alleviate our financial difficulties,” said Khadija Patel, editor-in-chief of the M&G.
In a separate development, Ncube now assumes 100% of Alpha Media Holdings, the Zimbabwean media house which owns the Zimbabwe Independent and NewsDay Zimbabwe.
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