# The Citizen (South African newspaper)

The Citizen is a South African daily newspaper published in Johannesburg, South Africa. The newspaper is distributed nationally in South Africa. It has long been considered a newspaper of record in South Africa. While its core readership is mainly in Gauteng, it also distributes to surrounding provinces such as Free State, Northern Cape, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and the North West. The newspaper is owned by Caxton and CTP Publishers and Printers Limited, a public company listed on the JSE.

## History and ownership

The newspaper was founded in 1976 during the apartheid era by Louis Luyt, at which time it was the only major English-language newspaper favourable to the ruling National Party. In 1978, during the Muldergate Scandal, it was revealed that the money to establish and finance the newspaper had come from a secret slush fund of the Department of Information, and ultimately from the Department of Defence.
In 1998, ownership of the newspaper was transferred from Perskor to Caxton and CTP Publishers and Printers Limited. The company is involved in various fields of publishing and printing such as newspapers, magazines, commercial print, book printing, stationery, packaging and labels.

## Format

The Citizen is a compact newspaper. In 2012, the newspaper layout and design was revamped by Dr. Mario Garcia. On 1 August 2013 the first edition of the revamped newspaper went on sale.

## Editors (past and present)

Tim du Plessis
Kevin Keogh
Martin Williams
On 7 October 2013, The Citizen announced[5] that Editor Martin Williams would be stepping down. Williams, who had been with The Citizen for 19 years, retired at the end of October 2013.
Steven Motale
Martin Williams was succeeded by Steve Motale, who at the time was the executive editor of Pretoria News. Motale had started off as a reporter at The Citizen in 2002, later becoming political editor and then editor of Citizen Metro.
Trevor Stevens
Trevor Stevens, who joined The Citizen in 2001 as a sports reporter, became editor of The Citizen in 2017. He is also the current Saturday Citizen editor – a position he has held since 2010.

## Online Editors (past and present)

Charles Cilliers (May 2016 - June 2020)
Hendri Pelser (Acting online editor: June 2020 - June 2021)
Earl Coetzee (October 2021 - April 2023)
Earl took over from Hendri Pelser as acting online editor in July 2021 and was appointed online editor in October 2021.
Gareth Cotterell (June 2023 – present)
Gareth initially joined The Citizen as digital news editor. Beginning of May 2023, he took over from then digital editor, Earl Coetzee, in acting capacity. On 6 June 2023 he was appointed digital editor of The Citizen.

## Regular columnists

Ben Trovato
Isaac Mashaba
William Saunderson-Meyer
Carine Hartman
Jennie Ridyard
Sydney Majoko
Brian Sokutu
Eric Naki
Reitumetse Makwea
Cliff Buchler
Danie Toerien
Martin Williams
Dirk Lotriet
Kekeletso Nakeli-Dhliwayo
Muzi Yeni
Bruce Fordyce
Wesley Botton
Jonty Mark
Ken Borland
Jonathan Mokuena

## Titles/Products

The Citizen
Saturday Citizen (Previously Super Saturday Citizen)
The Citizen Online website
The redesigned website, citizen.co.za, went live on 1 August 2013.

## Supplements

* Personal Finance (Mondays) – supplement to help you manage your money
* City (Monday-Saturday) – lifestyle and entertainment supplement
* Racing Express (Monday-Saturday) – horse racing supplement
* Phakaaathi (Tuesdays) – local and international soccer supplement
* Motoring (Wednesdays) – motoring and local motorsport supplement
* Gaming (Thursdays) – gaming supplement
* Buy in Bulk (Thursdays) – weekly wholesale supplement
* Hammer & Gavel (Fridays) – auctions supplement
* Travel (Saturdays) – travel supplement
* Your Home (last Saturday of the month) – home renovations and DIY supplement

## Distribution areas

| | 2021 | 2022 |
| Eastern Cape | | |
| Free State | Y | Y |
| Gauteng | Y | Y |
| KwaZulu-Natal | Subscriptions only | Subscriptions only |
| Limpopo | Y | Y |
| Mpumalanga | Y | Y |
| North West | Y | Y |
| Northern Cape | Y | Y |
| Western Cape | | |

## Circulation figures

Circulation :
| | Total circulation |
| Apr-Jun 2022 | 26 142 |
| Jan-Mar 2022 | 27 097 |
| Oct-Nov 2021 | 27 492 |
| Jul-Sep 2021 | 27 315 |
| Apr-Jun 2021 | 29 678 |
| Jan-Mar 2021 | 29 800 |
| Oct-Dec 2020 | 30 012 |
| Jul-Sep 2020 | 28 316 |
| Jan-Mar 2020 | 36 359 |
| Oct-Dec 2019 | 36 966 |
| Jul-Sep 2019 | 38 270 |
| Apr-Jun 2019 | 39 349 |
| Jan-Mar 2019 | 40 481 |

## Readership figures

Estimated readership :
| | PRINT AIR |
| Reader Audience Data 2021 (READ 2021) | 471 000 |