Sponsored Links:
Find the right coffee table for your room
Pay your tribute to Nelson Mandela here
On this page we try and answer as many of the most frequently asked questions that IOL readers have. Please look through this page to see if your question has been answered before contacting us directly. If your question is still without an answer then use our feedback system to get hold of us.
About IOL and Independent Newspapers
Quick contacts
Problems/Help with the IOL site
What is IOL?
IOL is owned and run by Independent Newspapers. The South African newspaper group publishes 15 national and regional newspapers, and several Cape-based community newspapers.
IOL's mission is to represent the group as a whole online, using a mix of elements from the newspaper titles along with fast-breaking news.
Where does the news on IOL come from?
The news on IOL comes primarily from the newspapers run by the Independent group in South Africa as well as from news wires. A small portion of our content is generated by IOL staff.
Which newspapers are published by Independent Newspapers?
Independent Newspapers publishes the following newspapers. (For contact details see this section)
Can I find any story that I have seen in an Independent newspaper on IOL?
Unfortunately not. IOL does not have the capacity to process all the copy in every newspaper. If you cannot find the news item you are seeking on IOL, you should contact the publication involved. (Click here for a list of phone numbers). Please make clear to the publication that you have already looked on IOL and have been unable to find the article.
How can I contact IOL?
You can contact IOL using our feedback system. Please select an appropriate section to help us help you. While we prefer to be contacted via our feedback system if you do need to phone us you can contact us via Independent Newspapers Gauteng on 011-633-9111.
For queries relating to IOLProperty and IOLRetailZone you can use the following contacts:
My query is about a newspaper. Should I contact IOL?
No. If your query is about one of the newspapers published by the Independent group then please see the section below and contact the newspaper directly.
I have a newsworthy idea, a story I have written or a media release. Can I send it to IOL?
IOL is primarily a publisher of content from the Independent’s stable of print publications and does not have its own reporting staff. IOL does not process general media releases. Those are best sent directly to the appropriate newspaper. One of the few sections on IOL that does write a portion of its own material is the motoring section.
Can I submit an article for publication on IOL?
Unfortunately not. IOL does not have the budget to pay for freelance articles.
I think something I have seen in a news article on IOL is incorrect, or I am offended by something on the IOL site. Who do I contact?
Please use our feedback section to report your concern. We will address all concerns as quickly as possible.
I have general feedback to give to IOL, or queries about the site, or technical problems. Who do I write to?
For general queries, support queries and technical support please use our feedback section and direct your query to the appropriate division.
Do you have a newsletter? How do I subscribe?
IOL has a number of email newsletters. We send out twice-daily news updates during the week and once a day versions over weekends. We also have newsletters covering business, sport, motoring, entertainment, television schedules, lifestyle, travel as well as science and technology news. For a list of newsletters and subscription options you can visit our newsletter subscription page.
How do I unsubscribe from your newsletters?
While we hope that you find our newsletters useful and informative, if you do want to unsubscribe from our newsletters you can click on the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of the newsletter you want to unsubscribe from. Please let us know why you unsubscribed. It helps us improve our services to readers.
The site is slow, or times out. Why?
While we do our best to ensure that IOL performs as quickly as possible, the site is very large and is read my hundreds, even thousands, of readers at any one time. This can sometimes result in bottlenecks.
We also update the site hundreds of times a day which means the site is constantly changing. Sometimes this can result in some slowdown in performance.
If these speed issues do not resolve themselves in a reasonable time please contact us via our feedback system and let us know. If possible please include some details on the type of internet connection you have (ADSL, 3G etc), the browser you are using (Internet Explorer, Chrome etc), the operating system you are using (OS X, Windows XP etc) and any other relevant details you can offer. The more details we have of the problem the easier it is for us to try and solve it.
I am seeing old news on IOL. How do I get the most up-to-date news?
It is possible you are seeing a cached or stored version of the IOL site. Try clicking refresh or reload in your browser window. Clicking while holding down the control key can also help refresh and retrieve the most recent version of the page. Alternatively, hitting the F5 button will refresh the page.
If you continue to experience problems please use our feedback system to let us know. Giving us as much information about the problem can make it easier for us to resolve the issue. Please see the previous answer for an idea of the types of information that can help us pinpoint the problem.
Can I search IOL's archives? How does the search work?
To search for an article on IOL you can use the search box in the top right-hand corner. Type keywords into the space and click search. By default the search results will be arranged by relevance to the keywords you searched for. In order to find the most recent results for your search, click the “relevance” button on the top right of the results and change that to “date”.
Please bear in mind that searching this way only searches articles we have published on IOL. This does not search all of the articles published by the group’s newspapers.
Can I buy content from IOL?
You can buy content from IOL. Please use our feedback system to request more information.
I want to place a link to IOL - or to a story on IOL - on my site. Can I?
Placing a link to IOL or to an IOL article on your site is fine.
Can I publish an IOL article or picture on my site?
No, not without permission. Independent Newspapers invests significant amounts of money to produce the content in its newspapers and on the IOL website. To request permission to republish an article please use our feedback system. Please include details of where you want to publish the article, including any relevant links. Please bear in mind that we also make use of many wires services which do not allow us to reassign publishing rights.
I’m a book publisher. Can I use an article/picture in my book/textbook?
To request permission to use articles/pictures in books please contact janet.smith@inl.co.za for more information.
How do I place an advert on IOL? How do I contact your advertising department?
To request information on IOL advertising, or to book an advert, please contact IOL’s commercial manager, Chris Naidoo on chris.naidoo@inl.co.za.
How do I book an advert in one of your newspapers?
To request a rate card or book an advert in one of Independent Newspaper’s print newspapers (see list above) please contact one of our regional offices:
Alternatively, please contact Pat Young for assistance in this regard on pat.young@inl.co.za or 021-488-4242.
I want to place a classified advert in one of your papers. Who do I contact?
To place an advert both in the classifieds and online you can visit wegotads.co.za.
I think something I have seen in an Independent newspaper is incorrect, or I am offended by something in an Independent newspaper. Who do I contact?
If your concern is specific to one of the newspapers we publish please contact the newspaper directly. You can do this by phoning one of the regional numbers and ask them to put you through to the newsdesk for the newspaper in question.
There are a list of contact numbers for newspapers here.
Please do not contact IOL with print-related questions as we will not be able to assist you.
I would like to submit a letter for publication in one of your newspapers. Where do I send it?
Before you fire off your letter, remember that the editors of all Independent publications require a physical address and name. Some publications are prepared to use a nom de plume, and some not. You can find contact details below for the various newspapers.
I have an idea for a news story. How do I get hold of the newsdesk at your newspapers?
To contact one of the newspaper newsdesks you can phone one of the regional numbers and ask for the newsdesk of the relevant publication.
I need the email address of an Independent newspaper journalist. Where can I get it?
In general, Independent Newspaper email addresses are formatted in the following way: [firstname].[secondname]@inl.co.za (replace the sections in square brackets with the right names and separate first and second names with a full-stop.
If that does not work you can contact the newsdesk of the journalist’s paper and ask for that information. A list of newsdesk contacts can be found above.
I am looking for a back issue of one of your newspapers. Who can I contact?
For newspapers published in Gauteng you can contact 011-633-9111 and they will assist you with back copies. For KwaZulu-Natal- and Western Cape-based papers please contact the relevant switchboard and ask for the back copies department:
Print Subscriptions
To subscribe to, renew or query your subscription to any of Independent Newspapers’ publications you can either visit our subscription site or phone one of our regional call centres:
Cape Town - 0800 22 07 70
Gauteng - 0860 32 62 62
Durban - 0800 20 47 11
Electronic subscriptions
Most print titles published by Independent Newspapers are also available as an electronic subscription. These e-editions are complete editions of the various papers that you can view online or on a mobile device. To subscribe to any the e-editions you can visit their individual e-edition sites:
I have a technical problem with the e-edition. Who can I contact?
The e-edition versions of our newspapers are managed for us by Newspaper Direct. If you need assistance with your e-edition subscription please contact Newspaper Direct. To do this, visit the appropriate page listed above (ie, your e-edition title) and from that page click on “Request Support”. That page also has additional information on how to get the most out of your electronic subscription.
I have a subscription problem with the e-edition. Who can I contact?
Please see the section above and contact Newspaper Direct with all support queries.
Is there an IOL app for the iPad and Android devices?
There is a free IOL app available for the iPad. Simply search for IOL in the app store to download a copy. We do not yet have an Android app.
Are their iPad/Android apps available for each of the print newspaper titles?
Independent Newspapers makes a number of its newspapers (though not all of them yet) available on the iPad and is finalising details for Android-based versions as well. We already have versions of The Star, Saturday Star, Pretoria News and the Sunday Independent available for the iPad. To subscribe simply search the app store for the name of your preferred title.
What is RSS?
RSS (or Really Simple Syndication) feeds are free content feeds from your favourite websites including IOL. They contain headlines, a summary or teaser paragraph, and a link to the article on the website. You can use these feeds to browse headlines in a newsreader such as Google Reader or many other RSS readers. To do that you need to set up a reader account and then paste in the address for the specific feed you want to view. Any news updates will automatically be refreshed in your reader account.
You can also use RSS feeds to your website and most popular online publishing platforms have built-in tools to add RSS feeds to your site.
Does IOL have RSS feeds?
Yes, we do. You can find a long list of these on our RSS page.
Does IOL have a Twitter and Facebook account?
IOL has a number of social media accounts including separate accounts for individual interest groups. We also have Twitter and Facebook accounts for most of our newspapers.
You can find IOL on Twitter at @IOL. You can also find us on Facebook. To find other Twitter and Facebook accounts that might be of interest to you you can look at the specific section on the news site (Motoring or The Star for example) and follow the links from there.
I have a consumer complaint or query. Who do I contact?
Please do not contact IOL as we have no reporting staff and are unable to investigate complaints.
Consumer complaints should be directed to a specific newspaper (see newspaper contacts here).
Buying a car has never been easy. Motoring.co.za contains a large database of car listings with a user friendly search.
Start searching today »
Get your TV Highlights here
Get your Horoscopes here
Business Directory
You are here: IOL / About IOL
We like to make your life easier
Mobile
Browse IOL on your phone at m.iol.co.za.
Newsletters
Subscribe to our newsletters. News delivered to your inbox!