KAS Media Africa Launches "Currents of Truth" - A Comic Book on Journalism in the AI Era

The launch event of "Currents of Truth" - our first-ever comic book

KAS Media Africa Director, Hendrik Sittig

Participants attending the comic book launch, during a panel discussion

The comic's illustrator, Careshia Esperanza, sharing her insights into the creative process

Panel discussion moderated by Nwabisa Makunga (Arena Media Holdings) featured Dr. Dinesh Balliah (Director, Wits Centre for Journalism), Phathiswa Magopeni (Executive Director, Press Council of South Africa), Jeff Wicks (Investigative Journalist, News24), and Dr. Peter Frey (former Editor-in-Chief, ZDF).

Panel discussion with Careshia Esperanza (illustrator) and Rebecca Sibanda (KAS Media Africa) about the creative and writing process, moderated by Nwabisa Makunga (Arena Media Holdings)

Panelists discussion about disinformation, AI and journalism

Q&A Session with participants

The event brought together numerous journalists and media experts to discuss the effects of disinformation and AI on journalism, as well as the comic’s illustrator, Careshia Esperanza.

Joining us from Cape Town, Careshia Esperanza shared insights into the creative process behind the comic book. From her initial application and early ideas to the final product, she took us along on her journey. Rebecca Sibanda from the KAS Media Programme also provided fascinating perspectives on the writing process and highlighted the most crucial parts of the story in conveying the right message.

A thought-provoking panel discussion followed, expertly moderated by Nwabisa Makunga from Arena Media Holdings. Our panel featured Dr. Dinesh Balliah (Director, Wits Centre for Journalism), Phathiswa Magopeni (Executive Director, Press Council of South Africa), Jeff Wicks (Investigative Journalist, News24), and Dr. Peter Frey (former Editor-in-Chief, ZDF). Their expertise and insights on disinformation, AI, and journalism were both inspiring and eye-opening.

We are truly grateful to our amazing audience for asking so many thought-provoking questions, sparking a lively discussion with our panelists. Everyone agrees that AI will continue to pose enormous challenges to the media landscape in the future. Let’s keep critically engaging with this topic—exploring both the opportunities and challenges AI presents, as well as its broader impact on society.