Tabloid Journalism in South Africa

Wasserman's engagement with tabloid journalism in South Africa is comprehensive and critical, at all times attentive to detail and provides sound research and well-rounded critical inquiary into the recent rise of tabloids within the post-apartheid media sphere. Anyone who reads this book will be compelled to take South African tabloids seriously, and will be urged to consider the important socio-semiotic work they carry out for their vast numbers of readers today.

* Ecquid Novi: African Journalism Studies *

This is a thoughtful, refreshing and timely contribution to the South African and international media literature. It attempts to grasp tabloid journalism in all its dimensions: in its blatant commercialism, its social justice implications, its unpalatable eccentricity and sensationalism, its challenge to hierarchies of taste and cultural capital, and its role vis-à-vis the national journalistic field on the one hand and broader society on the other.

* Journal of Modern African Studies *

Wasserman's sound research and keen analysis make this book valuable as a sociological source on race and ethnicity in South Africa, as well as a resource on communication and journalism. . . . An excellent study that is easy to read and understand. . . . Highly recommended.

* Choice *

In all, Wasserman makes a convincing case that South African tabloids should not be dismissed as 'trash journalism' but, in the socio-historical context, should be read politically and viewed as part of the local-regional-global dynamic. 32(2)

* Australian Journalism Review *

As a whole, Tabloid Journalism in South Africa is a must read for media historians, journalists, and perhpas just about anyone who is interested in ongoing questions about a post-apartheid South Africa. Wasserman's work deserves great respect for encouraging a localized standpoint of tabloids in South Africa. Perhaps most importantly, Herman Wasserman's work shows that tabloid newspaper readers like Rapabi Boithatelo illuminate the failure of the post-apartheid government and mainstream media in South Africa to address the needs of all citizens.

* JHistory *

The book makes easy reading . . . [and is] interesting for its novel approach . . . to the examination of tabloid journalism in South Africa.Vol. 32, No. 1, Winter 2011

* Newspaper Research Journ