South African publisher recognised for election coverage, creative formats and bold subscriber strategy
Daily Maverick has won three honours at the WAN-IFRA Digital Media Awards Africa 2025, recognising its work in reader engagement, digital innovation and subscription growth.
The publication’s Elections ’24 newsletter was named Best Newsletter. Designed to inform South Africans in the run-up to the 2024 national elections, the listicle-style format offered quick summaries and encouraged readers to submit questions, which were answered in later editions. It recorded an open rate of 78.4% and saw subscriber numbers grow nearly fivefold—making it the most successful newsletter in the publisher’s history.
The award for Best Innovative Digital Project went to Manifesto MAYHEM!, a gamified deck of collectable cards that made political manifestos easier to understand. Designed with a nod to 1990s trading card nostalgia, the project distilled party positions into short summaries, linked to in-depth coverage, and was widely shared on WhatsApp. Judges praised it for breaking down complex issues in a way that encouraged civic participation.
Daily Maverick also won Best Subscription Initiative for its Shutdown Project, which temporarily paused all publishing for 24 hours to highlight the fragility of its donation-based model. The move led to a spike in contributions, drew new advertising interest and re-engaged existing subscribers. Judges called the strategy bold and noted its immediate impact on key business metrics.
“We are thrilled to have won the Best Subscription Initiative in Africa at the WAN-IFRA Digital Media Awards,” said Fran Beighton, head of growth at Daily Maverick. “It feels particularly special as this was awarded for our Shutdown project.” She added that it was the start of a longer campaign to raise awareness about the need to support independent journalism.
The awards come as Daily Maverick continues to develop creative ways to engage readers and build a sustainable model for investigative, public-interest journalism in South Africa.
For a full list of winners, visit the WAN-IFRA website.
Source: Noah Wire Services
- https://wan-ifra.org/2025/04/wan-ifra-announces-the-winners-of-the-digital-media-awards-africa-2025/ – This URL corroborates the achievements of Daily Maverick in the WAN-IFRA Digital Media Awards Africa 2025, particularly in winning categories like Best Newsletter, Best Innovative Digital Project, and Best Subscription Initiative.
- https://www.bizcommunity.africa/article/sa-leads-wan-ifra-digital-media-awards-africa-2025-winners-list-258307a – This URL supports the recognition of Daily Maverick as a leading winner in the WAN-IFRA Digital Media Awards Africa 2025 and highlights its dominance alongside MediaSA.
- https://www.noahwire.com – Although the original article’s source is mentioned here, it does not provide direct access to verify specific details. Instead, it refers to Noah Wire Services as the source of the article itself.
- https://daily.maverick.co.za/ – This is Daily Maverick’s website, where further details about its publications and projects like ‘Elections ’24’ and ‘Manifesto MAYHEM!’ might be found.
- https://wan-ifra.org/ – This is the main website of WAN-IFRA, where one can find more information about the Digital Media Awards and past winners.
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
9
Notes:
The narrative is current, referencing the 2025 WAN-IFRA Digital Media Awards Africa and recent projects like the ‘Elections ’24’ newsletter. The only potential indication of recycling could be the repetition of award details, but it does not appear to be from older content.
Quotes check
Score:
6
Notes:
The quote from Fran Beighton, Head of Growth at Daily Maverick, does not have an easily traceable original source online. This could indicate it is specific to this context or is the first use of this quote.
Source reliability
Score:
8
Notes:
The narrative originates from Daily Maverick, which is well-regarded in South Africa. However, direct information from WAN-IFRA or other external sources would enhance reliability.
Plausability check
Score:
9
Notes:
The claims regarding the awards and projects seem plausible given the context of media awards and innovations in digital journalism. The strategies for civic engagement and financial sustainability are also logical and reasonable.
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): PASS
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): HIGH
Summary:
The narrative is generally well-supported with recent and plausible information. The lack of an original source for the quote is the only minor concern, but it does not detract from the credibility of the narrative as a whole.
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