The „Parishiltonisation‟ of South African black publications: the case of Drum

By: Gcobani Qambela

Word Count: 713

For as long as I can remember DRUM magazine has been a part of my life and my
family‟s. Every Tuesday/Wednesday was the same. A family member (usually my
sister) would purchase the magazine to begin the ritual. She would be the first to read
through it and upon finishing it; she would pass it on up until everyone would have
read it. Following thereafter would be the discussions, reflections and debates on the
content from the magazine - and trust me there was a lot!

For the past years I have however been purchasing no more than five copies of
DRUM a year, and most of them are not ordinary copies, but rather ad-hoc copies
with a special focus, like the coverage of a significant icons death or a special
interview for my own archives.

It is with great despair to find the magazine in its current state. What is happening to
what used to be such a strong black publication is really worrying. It‟s really worrying
that the magazine has concerned itself with selling copies rather than content. Popular
socialites who are really famous for nothing like Bonang Matheba, Khanyi Mbau,
Kelly Khumalo and the likes grace the magazine‟s cover time and time again. The
very same youth who have had no significant impact on the lives of South Africans.

Drum magazine has for a long time been one of the most definitive black publications
with strong, engaging and inspiring content. It has now turned into a tabloid. My aim
is to show that we cannot in South Africa afford to have traditionally black
publications like DRUM conforming to a traditionally western phenomenon of selling
controversial (and often largely false) content in return for selling a large number of
copies.

Professor Marry Metcalfe of the Witwatersrand University estimated in 2007 that in

South Africa 1 in every 10 white students matriculated with Distinction in high school
(i.e. A+ aggregate) whereas only 1 in every 100 black students matriculated with
Distinction. Furthermore these black students who attain A+ aggregate average are
primarily from urban schools and have had exposure to English First Language in
high school.

Such staggering statistics occur in not only a country that is one of the most unequal
societies in the world, but also in a society where there is very little culture of reading,
especially amongst the black population. We have to necessarily ask therefore now
whether publications like DRUM which are primarily targeted and accessible to the
black population can afford to further be dumbed down any further? DRUM‟s sister
publication YOU magazine boosts over 160 pages worth of content to tantalize the
minds of their largely white readership, whereas DRUM only books 120+ pages. Can
these already limited numbers continue to be filled with the love lives of socialites?

Drum writers in the past are noted to have been concerned not with selling the
newspaper but rather with providing key and critical content. “Most of the [past
DRUM writers] were concerned with more than just telling a story. They were
concerned with what was happening to their people and, in consequence with moral
and social questions. It is this which [distinguished] the Drum writers, from purveyors
of pulp fiction”.

Michael Chapman notes for instance that “Drum during the 1950‟s recorded most of
the major political events of the decade, including the Sophiatown removals, the
adoption of the Freedom Charter by the Congress Alliance at Kliptown in 1955, and
the consequent indictment of Alliance leaders on charges of treason (the Treason Trial
of 1956). Drum reported on the bus boycotts, the action of apartheid in churches, the
rise of the PAC and the shooting at Sharpville” (1).

What has Drum reported in the past decade except to recreate tabloids? DRUM has
lost its beat. It has become a tabloid. DRUM magazine has been Parishiltonised. The
magazine needs to revolutionarise its content. We need to read about stories that
encourage critical thinking and promote further reading and investigation. The
magazine has an important role to play in encouraging reading and education to the
youth – the black South African youth who read the magazine or else our students are
still going to fail. Because they are not being provided with the important content –
they are provided with the most popular!
1. See: Chapman, Michael. “More Than Telling a Story: Drum and its
Significance in Black South African Writing‟. In Chapman, Michael. 2001.
The Drum Decade: Stories from the 1950‟s. Pietermaritzburg: University of
Natal Press