Natasha Joseph is assistant editor for news and research, as well as commissioning editor for science and technology, at The Conversation Africa. She also runs her own editing company, NCJ Editing. She graduated from JMS in 2003 with a BJourn degree, working for the university in its communications department for a few years, before joining the Cape Times as a general reporter in 2007. In 2009 she joined the Cape Argus as news editor; she moved to Johannesburg in 2012 to take up the position of news editor at City Press and joined The Conversation Africa in 2015. She has freelanced for Al Jazeera English, The Atlantic, and The Big Issue, and is a former contributing editor to the Index on Censorship.
Joseph specifically chose Rhodes because she wanted to study journalism. “I ended up learning that and a whole lot more - about myself, South Africa, and the world around me,” she says. “It was exciting, exhilarating, confusing and occasionally terrifying, but I suppose that's what growing up involves. I made friends who are still in my life today; we're scattered all over the place, but whenever we meet we have a good laugh about what we used to get up to.”
She has some words of encouragement and advice for young journalists: “You have to be flexible, able to teach yourself and keep learning, utterly driven and prepared to adapt to an environment in which full time jobs are rare. You have to want to tell people's stories honestly and as completely as possible.” She adds that aspiring journalists should go into field with “open eyes and an open heart”, while also prioritising self-care, because “mental health is not prioritised in the media sector. “
Written by Boitumelo Nte