Zapiro launches satirical puppet news show

Prominent South African cartoonist Jonathan Shapiro (“Zapiro”) has launched an internet satirical news show called “ZA News.” The show uses life size puppets of South Africa’s most prominent figures including Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and South African president Jacob Zuma. The show was originally created for television, but the pilot was never aired after the network SABC worried that the public was not ready for it. Zapiro and fellow producers decided to make it a web-only feature where they could have greater topical freedom.