In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser

Eve Fairbanks is an American journalist who has just written and published an amazing book, one that already won a significan  international literally award. It is called The Inheritors, and is situated in South Africa. 

She has been based here for more than ten years, and developed a fascinating interest in making sense of how a country with our traumatic past, tried to carve out ways of dealing with the past, and moving forward. She follows three characters for many years, and tells their stories in The Inheritors. 

The book has already resulted in a stunning range of many very different reviews, with readers furiously debating different aspects of the book. That's exactly what every author craves. 

Eve joined me on the podcast to talk about this major work. There are no spoilers. And the conversation covers areas I didn't get to in my own written review nor at the book launch I anchored for her, so there's somethin  here for everyone: those who read the book; those who haven't; those who attended the launch; those who didn't; those who read the reviews; those who haven't.

Listen. Enjoy. Share.

And buy and read the book yourself. 

Are you confused that Somizi and Mohale were never married? "How so?", you may have asked yourself.

Are you also confused as to why Somizi, rather than Mohale, is the one who wanted to sustain the claim that there WAS a valid marriage in place? After all, wouldn't Somizi, more than Mohale, be excited to know there was no valid marriage in place? If Mohale is the alleged gold digger, why wouldn't Somizi be happy to accept that they were not spouses?! Confused? 

Let me help you out. I do two things in this episode: a) answer these questions AND (far more importantly) b) I will persuade you why this is NOT a silly celebrity gossip story but a fascinating story with curious and important legal, cultural and even ethical dimensions. Everyone missed the substance- because Somizi being a celebrity resulted in the story not being seriously paused over. His celebrity status and larger than life personality got in the way of a story that an editor might otherwise have assigned to a senior legal reporter, for example. 

Let me help you out. Have a listen to this episode, and share it with your mates before you debate the issues I explain and frame for public engagement - no pun on 'public engagement'! 

In this edition of In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser, I ask and engage a bloody award question about Mr Ramaphosa's leadership weaknesses - should he even be the ANC's presidential candidate for 2024?

I engaged this controversial question in a TimesLIVE analysis piece ( https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times-daily/opinion-and-analysis/2023-03-06-eusebius-mckaiser-can-the-anc-risk-putting-ramaphosas-face-on-its-2024-elections-posters/ ) and I voice the argument here for those of you who enjoy audio journalism as much as you enjoy reading. 

And yes obviously part of the debate would be "But who is better, Eusebius?!" I'm afraid you MUST listen to the whole podcast- it is a short episode- to appreciate why the ANC has one helluva headache ahead of 2024 even if there is no obvious alternative candidate (which is debatable and complicated as an aside).

Enjoy. Listen. Reflect. Engage. And share the epsiode widely!

Dean Michael Weeder (St George's Cathedral, Cape Town) wrote a stunning and moving collection of poems and ruminations. 

You have to - HAVE TO - listen to some of the poems and ruminations being read in this episode of In The Ring. And get yourself a copy of his anthology. 

We talked, along the way, about jazz, social justice, aesthetics, celebrating the everyday, artistic technique and creativity, and so much more.

Spoil yourself and listen to Dean Michael who is a wonderfully reflective guest, easy on the ear, with plenty of incisive gems to chew on...

Enjoy.

Here's what I think of the interview outgoing UCT VC Prof Mamokgethi Phakeng did with JJ Tabane on eNCA.

EVEN IF YOU DIDN'T FOLLOW THE STORY, THIS PODCAST CONTAINS LOTS OF CONTENT ON CRISIS COMMUNICATION THAT IS OF GENERAL INTEREST TO EVERYONE. 

Have a listen.

I sometimes get asked in my keynote speeches on diversity, equity and inclusion whether interventions aimed at inclusion are dangerous because they can result in "unconscious exclusion." The fear is that victims of oppression may become today's oppressors.

In this small entry of In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser, I slay some myths around this issue.

Have a listen

A sad person or bunch of 'em unsuccessfully attempted to run a disinformation campaign against me recently. 

In this episode of In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser, I explain why these campaigns should not be oxygenated but, nevertheless, why they should not be taken lightly either. 

They are a threat to public discourse and to democracy by implication; that is quite apart from the potential to literally destroy lives.

What is their ultimate function? And how should we think through them? 

Have a listen. 

As always, PLEASE rate our podcast, leave a comment, and hit the subscribe button before you exit. 

Thank you for the love and support.

Advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi joined me to discuss a very specific feature of racism. We drilled down into a tendency to assume that a singular act of failure on the part of a black person tells you about their entire skillet and capability. 

From here, we slowly examined the structural features of the workplace, with a racist undergird, that leads to "competency racism".


I predict many of you listening to this discussion with me and Tembeka may feel overwhelmed by a familiar and painful recognition of what you have experienced but never knew it to be a phenomenon in general.

We give you the language to empower yourself, and we offer insights to help us all collectively continue the fight against anti-black racism in the wake of white supremacist grips still in place everywhere. 

Although we used the legal profession as a sustained case study, the lessons are easily transferred elsewhere. 

Enjoy. And drop me a message, even if confidential, telling me what came up for you. 

I was joined by Vanita Daniels (director at Rise Up Against Gender-Based Violence) and Nduduzo Nyanda (techpreneur), who are regular listeners of In The Ring With Eusebius McKaiser. 

We decided to shoot (not literally) ... uhm to shoot the breeze on a bizarre recent story of a tigress on the loose in Johannesburg. 

How the story played out, including the public responses to the story, was most interesting. It revealed many of our class, racial, political, and other fissures.

In this episode, we frame some of these questions, tackle them, and invite you to do the same. 

Enjoy.

Nice Racism by Robin DiAngelo opens up a conversation with white progressives. It is a book that is stunning but which will also, and already has, upset many white progressives.

This episode is just my FIRST reaction to the book? 

Buy it. Read it. Sit with it.

We will engage a lot of material from it in the weeks ahead.

For now, enjoy my first, raw, unmediated reaction to it.