Sanef mourns the untimely death of editor and writer Shaun Johnson

THE SA National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) mourns the untimely passing of journalist and writer, Shaun Johnson, who died on Monday at the age of 60.

Johnson was the founding chief executive of The Mandela Rhodes Foundation, dedicated to building leadership excellence in Africa. He also served as chief executive of the Nelson-Mandela Foundation. He was associated with Mandela for 23 years.

He wrote the feasibility study for the New Nation newspaper in 1981 and was one of the early members of the Weekly-Mail team (now the Mail & Guardian). He was deputy editor and political editor of the Star newspaper during South Africa’s transition to democracy and went on to edit several newspapers, including the Cape Argus and Saturday Star.

He was founding editor of The Sunday Independent in 1995 and, in 2003, he was appointed deputy chief executive of Independent News & Media South Africa. He was also a founding member of Sanef.

Journalist and author John Battersby remembers him as a “force of nature who inspired many journalists and scholars who benefitted from the Mandela Rhodes Foundation”.

Former editor of the Weekly Mail, Anton Harber, said, “He arrived back from Oxford in the late 1980s to do his doctoral research and offered to freelance for us if we let him use the newspaper’s name to get access to the right political circles.

“He quickly became an indispensable part of the operation, as a writer and a political figure. When we were facing a banning order, he opened the door for us to an international-anti-censorship network and was able to rally important support from the Westernem-bassies and capitals, which became key to our survival.

“He left a strong mark on the journalism of the 1980s and 1990s. I am not sure that any writer or editor did better than him in conveying the joys and fears of the transition period, which he covered tirelessly”.

Journalist and editor Chris Whitfield said: “Shaun was an astonishingly gifted journalist. He wrote beautifully but was also highly accomplished in every facet of newspapering – from subbing to design to analysis and, well, everything. His writing from the years before and after the 1994 election reflected another part of Shaun: his burning desire to see South Africa transformed into a successful and thriving democracy.“

Great friend and former GQ editor Craig Tyson said, “We have lost a wonderful friend. We’ll remember him for his warmth, his support of others less fortunate, his heartfelt writing, immense knowledge, brilliant mind and laughter, all sorts of laughter.”

Johnson died of an esophageal rupture and is survived by his wife Stefania and their daughter Luna.