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Hi everyone and welcome to FAM2003S. My name is Deborah and I am a PhD candidate in the Centre for Film and Media Studies at UCT.
My areas of research interest are centred around migrant women, mobile and transnational communication. I’m really passionate about South Africa’s media landscape and the communication practices of Africans. I look forward to a successful semester with you all.

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A trained communication professional, particularly in Public Relations and Strategic Communication. Currently pursuing an MA in Political Communication at UCT.
Grace's experience spans for a period of 7 years with a keen interest in Development communication, international relations and policy.

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Hey everyone! I'm Leah, your super excited and down-to-earth media tutor. Buckle up because we're about to embark on a journey through the captivating world of media!
So, here's the scoop about me: I'm all about media, politics, and... well, more media and politics! My academic journey led me to an Honours degree in Political Communication (yeah, politics can be thrilling, too!), and now I'm knee-deep in my Masters in Politics. I have this curiosity about how media and politics mix and mingle. We'll dig into the juicy stuff – how media shapes public opinion, influences our thoughts, and even drives political narratives. And guess what? We'll do it together, with many discussions, debates, and maybe even some popcorn moments. I also have a passion for writing and producing, and besides tutoring at UCT, you'll find me freelancing, writing, and producing content for a local radio station.
But let me clue you in on what I love outside of the classroom. First off, I'm a total fitness enthusiast. You might catch me flexing at the gym or exploring the breathtaking hiking trails that Cape Town has to offer. And I'm not all about the serious stuff. You'll find me hanging with my friends, getting tattoos, and discovering cool hangout spots around town. Oh, and speaking of guilty pleasures – I've got a soft spot for "Real Housewives" (shhh, don't tell anyone!). Sometimes, we all need a little dose of drama, right?
But let's get back to the real deal – media! Together, we will uncover the magic of media in our lives and how it influences everything around us. This semester won't be a snooze-fest; we'll make it engaging, interactive, and fun! I'm excited to get to know each of you and learn together. So, buckle up, get ready to laugh, think, and embrace media. I can't wait to spend this semester with you!

Cheers,
Leah Dennis 🎉

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I'm Shameeka, one of the FAM2003S tutors for this semester. I'm currently doing my Honours degree in Media Theory and Practice. I majored in English Literary Studies and Media & Writing during my undergrad since 2019.
My Honours research interest focuses on youth and media usage, particularly online news consumption.

A fun little fact about me is that I've been writing poetry since I was 13, and you'll probably catch me on a random Friday evening at an open mic event performing my latest spoken word piece.

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Hello everyone! I am Julian, a first year MA candidate for Media Theory and Practice. I previously studied Journalism at Rhodes University, so I am still adapting to big city life and the tiring walk up to the campus! My research interests include ethical reportage, multimedia storytelling, creative nonfiction and South African crime writing. In my spare time I enjoy exploring the Western Cape and have many items on my bucket list including taking a cable car up the mountain. I am excited to meet you all and have a wonderful semester together.

My pronouns are she/her.

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Booker T.W is my name and I am reading towards MA Film by full dissertation. My interest is film as a tool for social change. I majored in Media Studies and Business in my undergraduate studies.

Fun fact, l have had to travel to 7 African countries to collect data for my current MA research. My most recent exciting engagement was completing Political Campaign Strategy winter school! l look forward to exchanging, information, knowledge and experiences.

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Hi everyone, I am Bokang. You are welcome to call me Kamva. My pronouns are She/Her/Hers.

My research interests include critical fabulation, rhetoric, decolonisation, and modernity.

I am interested in black life and leisure. The politics surrounding black joy in the media and in literature are what interest me.

I live with tons of houseplants, and I love crocheting.

I am very keen to meet you all and I am excited for the semester ahead.

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Robin's dissertation explores the social inequalities of being a musician in Cape Town, and his research interests include developing creative industries & media/social media, ‘musicianhood’, popular & visual culture, performance & embodiment, social & material identity, copyright law & technology and media anthropology. He has been tutoring for over 8 years in the fields of Anthropology at UWC and Media Studies at UCT, respectively. Outside academia, he is a bass guitarist who has performed at a variety of events with local and international artists and musicians. He enjoys learning from students' perspectives; helping them uncover and understand the “bigger picture” regarding social issues that people encounter on a daily basis in the public sphere and media/social media spaces.

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I am Soligah, the head tutor for FAM2003S this semester.
I have been with the Centre for Film and Media Studies for many years and I am currently pursuing a PhD in Media Studies.
My research interests are health and political communication. I am the former Editor-in-Chief of the university's official student newspaper, VARSITY News, and have worked as a teaching assistant in the Journalism Department at CPUT.
Fun fact related to my field of study: During my tenure as the Editor-in-Chief at VARSITY News in 2018/2019, the student-led newspaper won The Most Outstanding Team in Student Media award in 2019 at UCT DSA's annual award ceremony.

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Aaisha Dadi Patel was most recently a journalist at the Wall Street Journal’s Africa bureau, where she led coverage of the coronavirus pandemic and economic news from South Africa. Prior to that, she was an online reporter at the Mail & Guardian, where she was content coordinator of the 2019 200 Young South Africans project, and was a member of the founding team of The Daily Vox, most notably lauded for coverage of the #FeesMustFall protests in 2015 and 2016. Her contributions have appeared in international publications, including The Continent, Al Jazeera, The Guardian, Teen Vogue, and Deutsche Welle. Her reporting covered a broad spectrum of topics, including politics, business, gender, and human interest, with a focus on Africa and other emerging markets.

Aaisha joins UCT from the University of the Witwatersrand, where she taught undergraduate and honours level Media Studies students on consumer culture, audience studies, new media production, and representations of gender and race in media texts. She holds an MA in Media Studies from Wits, which awarded her the 2019 Stuart Hall Prize for Excellence in Postgraduate Research. Her research on Muslim women was published in the 2018 anthology of essays, Feminism Is (Kwela). Aaisha is an alumna of the British Council’s 2017 Future News Worldwide initiative, and is a Fellow of the Salzburg Global Seminar.

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Musa is an A/Professor in media studies in the Centre for Film and Media Studies (University of Cape Town); a Mandela Mellon Fellow in the W.E. B. Du Bois Institute at Harvard University; and, a Visiting Academic in the School of Social Science at Loughbourgh University. Musa holds a PhD in Cultural and Media Studies (University of KwaZulu-Natal), Certificate in Political Consulting and Strategic Campaign Communication (Mannheim Centre for European Social Research- University of Mannheim), and a Certificate in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (Cape Higher Education Consortium). He has lectured media studies at Technikon Northern Gauteng’s (Tshwane University of Technology) Department of Journalism and at University of South Africa’s (UNISA) Department of Communication Science.

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Adam is the Director of CFMS and has both lectured and convened FAM2003S for many years. He is co-editor of Neva Again: Hip-Hop Art, Activism and Education in Post-apartheid South Africa with Quentin Williams (UWC), Emile Jansen (Heal the Hood) and H. Samy Alim (UCLA). He co-produced an EP, #IntheKeyofB, for the book project with hip-hop artist Bradley Lodewyk (aka b-boy King Voue) and is the author of Static: Race and Representation in Post-Apartheid Music, Media and  Film and Stealing Empire: P2P, Intellectual Property and Hip-Hop Subversion.  For more on the book and EP, visit HSRC Press (https://www.hsrcpress.ac.za/books/neva-again).

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Associate Professor of Media Studies and FAM2003S Course Convenor.

A/Prof. Wallace Chuma teaches journalism and media studies courses. Chuma worked as reporter for the Daily News, has edited the Zimbabwe Mirror while in Zimbabwe, and spent time on reporting fellowships in Botswana and the United States.

He briefly edited the Wits-based website journalism.co.za and writes occasionally for The Media magazine. His research areas include contemporary journalism and the public sphere, critical political economy of media, media policy and regulation, and media and political transition in Southern Africa.

Chuma holds degrees in English and Media Studies from the University of Zimbabwe and a PhD from Wits University.