Without wanting to exaggerate (and without being there), there does seem to be a very dark upwards trend in racism in the UK right now - and public figures making it worse rather than condemning it

Peter Mutharika has won back Malawi's presidency, with a thumping 58.6% of the vote compared to his longtime rival Lazarus Chakwera's 33%. But he may be inheriting a poisoned chalice, with the economy in a dire state.

Super cool piece by @eromoegbejule.bsky.social, and Mauritanian colleagues, from Mauritania's far north about the growing desert trade in meteorites

Elon Musk's father Errol Musk has been accused of sexually abusing five of his children and step children, the New York Times reports. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/23/w...

This is very cool!

RIP to AP photographer and videographer Sebabatso Mosamo. I didn't know her personally, but my heart breaks reading the tributes from her friends and colleagues apnews.com/article/obit...

I have so many relatives and friends that this would directly affect. Even if I didn't, it would an extremely bad policy for countless reasons

All political tribes can be hypocritical but the right's current level of hypocrisy on free speech is deliberate. It's an assertion of power not a blindspot.

I loved meeting South African choreographer Lee-ché Janecke, who created Tyla's viral Water dance and many other iconic performances & trending dances for her, Uncle Waffles and more. Now, after a VMA nomination, he wants even more.

Sex work and abuse: the women trapped in Malawi’s growing refugee camp

18 rural communities in Lesotho have filed a complaint with the African Development Bank over its funding of a multibillion-pound water project whose construction process they claim has ruined fields, polluted water sources and damaged homes.

In Dzaleka refugee camp, international aid cuts mean many refugees are now only eating once a day. And with the US no long accepting refugees, their chances of relocation have plunged. I met women who fled for their lives and were then forced into sex work. This was a hard piece to do.

Lovely Nick Dall piece about a Khayelitsha township cricket program. Retired South African cricketer Gary Kirsten started the project and said taking a boys team to the UK in 2019 "was one of the highlights of my cricketing life".

Malawi goes to the polls today, with incumbent president Lazarus Chakwera and his 85-year-old predecessor Peter Mutharika the main contenders in an election that is likely to go to a second round (if it's not annulled like in 2019)

"Legitimate concerns"

Two men have been convicted of planning to use witchcraft to kills Zambia's president. They were arrested in December after a cleaner reported hearing strange noises. Authorities said they were found to be in possession of a live chameleon and other “assorted charms”.

Karen Attiah says she has been fired by The Washington Post, where she was the last black staff opinion writer. She says The Washington Post said her posts made after Charlie Kirk's killing were "unacceptable" & claimed they put colleagues in danger - which Attiah calls "charges without evidence"

One unexpected detail in the revelations about Peter Mandelson and Jeffrey Epstein is they were involved in a mining deal in Congo-Brazzaville: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09...

Politicians in at least 51 countries used anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric during elections, NGO finds

I'm interviewing someone really cool this afternoon and let me tell you I am *stressed* about my outfit. There is a reason I'm not a full-time culture or fashion journalist, much as I love both (and opine on the Met Gala lewks every year, because of course).

I love this Aina Khan piece on Zohran Mamdani's multifaceted identity and how Ugandans are proud of him as one of their own. Nuance and context!

South Africa is reopening the inquest into Steve Biko's death, 48 years since he died in custody after being beaten into a coma by police

"We dreamed of being asked to return to our towns and neighbourhoods... We hoped for a ceasefire to end this nightmare once and for all. We prayed for a miracle to foil the Israeli plan. Yet, once again, we are packing to leave." Guardian correspondent Malak Tantesh. Photos by Enas Tantesh

Politicians in at least 51 countries used anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric during elections last year, according to a new study by @outrightintl.bsky.social. “You realise that it’s a global, coordinated and increasingly well-funded effort to diminish LGBTIQ people” - Alberto de Belaúnde, Outright Intl director

Many things can be true - Political violence is bad and tends lead to more - Charlie Kirk spread racism, sexism and conspiracy theories - Many people in the US will be shocked and scared. A lot will exploit his death for their and their political side's benefit

When a public figure tells a professionally-behaving journalist to eff off, they're either really rude or you should keep digging

Keir Starmer says Peter Mandelson "has repeatedly expressed his deep regret for his association with" Jeffrey Epstein. When asked about Epstein by the Financial Times in February, Mandelson said: "It’s an FT obsession and frankly you can all fuck off. OK?”

Six people have been shot dead in two days on the north-east edge of Cape Town, as the city reels from gang-related violence. West Cape police said they're committed to seizing firearms. Acting police minister Firoz Cachalia said, "There is no proper plan in Cape Town to deal with gang violence."

I thought the point of college was to be subjected to controversial ideas that make you uncomfortable

There is a Spring fun run in my neighbourhood tomorrow. At 6am. South Africans stay undefeated at getting up unnecessarily early.

British NIMBYism is truly a sight to behold. “We are rejecting this solar farm, because one time I saw an electric vehicle on fire, which reminded me that decades ago a coal mining disaster killed lots of children”.

An ICC hearing into charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity against Joseph Kony has begun in his absence, but it isn't publicly known if he is actually still alive. The victims' lawyer spoke about children who were abducted and sexually abused and mothers forced to abandon their babies

South African officials are in the US for formal trade talks, which Ramaphosa said "should be taking place in just a few days". They have a hard task ahead of them - no doubt the US side will want hefty concessions, given their base-baiting rhetoric about SA discriminating against white people

"Every single person who has died during these cycles of actions and reprisals — around 140 people in large protests –– has been killed by the police." - @nanjala.bsky.social in @hammerandhope.bsky.social

The entire anti-protest policing architecture is built on US funded anti-terrorism machinery. The ICE kidnappings in the street are familiar because that’s how the Kenya (and Uganda) police have been kidnapping Somali citizens and then their own for 20 years. When a Kenyan protester gets tortured

We spent the day with food influencer Nick Hamman, eating at some of Johannesburg's finest food spots, listening to the owners' stories and hearing about Nick's mission to boost South African food businesses and highlight the country's diverse cuisines. A great day out 🇿🇦🍔🍞🍖🍽️

It's hard watching these clips not to feel just utter revulsion at well, er, capitalism. But the thing is, what this actually shows is the *weakness* of "capital". In authoritarian countries this is what business is always like. Totally obsequious to power, because the King can destroy you

This piece was so much fun to do!

Loved this year's FNB Art Joburg. Need to win the lottery expeditiously.

This quote, whew. “Florida’s undertakers will now need to plan for the future by increasing their stocks of small coffins,” said John Moore, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York.

I'm quoted in this article arguing that the flood of cheap, lab-grown gems is the biggest shock to the industry since 1908 when diamonds were discovered on Namibia's coast. Within two years, Namibia's diamond fields were producing about 50% of world output, up from 0%.

Would love to read the thoughts of any African authors who didn't want their book covers to feature an acacia tree at sunset

Burkina Faso's unelected parliament has criminalised same-sex relationships, now punishable by up to five years in jail. Anti-LGBTQ laws and sentiment often comes hand in hand with rising authoritarianism

I haven't watched this myself and don't follow UK news in minute detail. But knowing what I know about a lot of UK journalism, this does not surprise me The industry there has a lot to answer for and things like this also undermine the good work that so many UK journalists do.

This is incredibly dystopian

I love this @eromoegbejule.bsky.social piece about two young Ivorian archivists. Marie-Hélène Banimbadio Tusiama is documenting Y2K style at Archives Ivoire (www.instagram.com/archives.ivo...) and Cédric Kouamé is archiving Ivorian music

This is so sad. Tshidi Madia, EWN's Associate Editor: Politics, has passed away after a short illness. I'll really miss hearing her on 702 radio. www.ewn.co.za/2025/08/27/p...

Botswana’s president has declared a public health emergency due to shortages of essential medicines and equipment. The Ministry of Health suspended non-urgent surgeries on 4 August, stating that the country was short of medicines to treat hypertension, diabetes, cancer, asthma and eye conditions

This is extremely important news, to me, personally.