The Huffington Post, in partnership with Media24, today launched The Huffington Post South Africa (www.huffingtonpost.co.za), the brand’s first sub-Saharan edition. HuffPost South Africa will provide a platform for local voices and communities, while delivering a mix of local and international news, politics, lifestyle and entertainment for South Africans.
The partnership combines the strengths of The Huffington Post, a leading global source of breaking news, videos, features, entertainment and the opinions and conversations of a highly engaged global community, with Media24, South Africa’s biggest digital media publisher with more than 16 million monthly unique visitors across all sites.
“South Africa’s rich and politically engaged history has demonstrated a strong desire for people to have a place to express their voice and opinions,” The Huffington Post CEO Jared Grusd says. “Having been born there, I’m especially proud to say that HuffPost is now that destination. We hope our platform can help people lead better lives, make more informed choices and build stronger communities.”
Verashni Pillay has been appointed editor-in-chief of HuffPost South Africa. “The combination of intelligent lifestyle and hard news is perfectly suited to where many South Africans find themselves right now: interested in everything and anything and wanting to know, more than ever, what it means for them,” she says. “And all this is beautifully presented on a digital platform that has been tried and tested with audiences across the world.”
The Huffington Post launched its first international edition in May 2011. In just five years, the site has exploded into 16 markets across six continents, with more than half its audience situated outside of the US. HuffPost has more than 300 editors located in nearly 20 countries outside the US and continues to expand its global presence with the launch of HuffPost South Africa, the brand’s 17th edition.
Media24 is South Africa’s foremost media company with a leading market share in newspapers, magazines and digital publishing. The company’s digital media division, 24.com, is the country’s top news, lifestyle and entertainment destination. Media24’s broad portfolio of print and digital brands addresses a wide socioeconomic market and caters for South Africa’s diverse demographics.
“We’re excited to be partnering with The Huffington Post to launch a South African edition,” 24.com head Andreij Horn says. “We believe the HuffPost audience will enhance what we already have in 24.com and become part of its expanding portfolio of digital assets that provide engaged audiences with world-class journalism and content and advertisers with valuable connections to these audiences. We look forward to working closely with The Huffington Post to build the brand and bring its digital media innovation to South Africa.”
The Huffington Post already has a large audience in South Africa, with nearly 750 000 unique visitors per month, according to comScore.
Go to www.huffingtonpost.co.za or follow HuffPost South Africa on:
Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/HuffPostSouthAfrica/
Twitter at https://twitter.com/HuffPostSA
Instagram at @huffpostsa