Finding comfort in consistency – the ‘traditional’ Afrikaans news reader

"I love listening to people’s stories and I guess that’s a part of the reason I decided to become a GP all those years ago," says Albert Brink, 62, a medical doctor from Irene in Centurion.

Albert, who lives in an upmarket residential estate with his wife Lynette, 60, built up his family practice over nearly three decades.
Now, he is enjoying the freedom of seeing a handful of patients two or three times a week, while his wife assists, and his adult children, aged 30, 27 and 23 find their own place in the world.

"We’ve always worked hard and taken pride in it, but it is very gratifying to be able to take a slower approach to life and to spend quality time together," Albert says.

The Brink family is your 'traditional' Afrikaans news-reading family. For them, there will rarely be a substitute for their daily printed newspaper and the rituals they have built around reading it.

Based on research conducted by Media24, they would be the ‘traditional’ reader you will be reaching should you want to advertise in Media24’s premium Afrikaans titles.

Daily rhythm

The couple, who have been married for 35 years, take great pleasure in the rituals of their newly established daily rhythm.
"We still wake up bright and early, but instead of getting up and rushing to go to work, Lynette and I both snuggle back into bed with our morning coffee, a home-baked rusk and Beeld newspaper," Albert says.

"I always read the business section in depth, before moving on to the sports pages. Lynette starts with the front page and news headlines, but she is most interested in the editorial pages, where she reads every single column, in-depth article and interview with care. She is a voracious reader, so she reads the book reviews on Mondays and the daily arts page."

Albert has been a loyal Beeld subscriber for over 30 years and cannot imagine life without it.

"Look, I understand why people 'go online', but I don’t like having to swipe all over the place to find the news. Give me words on paper any day, with clear sections where I expect to find them."

Albert returns to the news and editorial pages later in the day but prefers to do so with a cup of tea at the dining room table later in the morning or in the afternoon.

"I like spreading the paper open in front of me and really digging into it. Lynette and I often read bits of articles to each other and discuss the day’s news while on our morning walk with our dogs," Albert says. "We believe it is important to stay informed about what is going on in the country and elsewhere in the world. Not everything we read about is positive, but even negative news is significant. I really trust Beeld for balanced, good reporting and associate with its values."

Valuable content

The Brinks have a fondness for the weekend edition of Beeld, which boasts a tabloid format and a variety of supplements, such as By which is often jam-packed with fascinating articles about everything from politics to science and the lifestyle supplement with its gardening, cooking, health and travel content.

"We usually keep the supplements to read during the week – the content is often timeless," he says. "It is also handy, because I have green fingers and like reading expert advice about gardening, while Lynette is a wonderful cook and often gets inspiration for our Sunday lunches with the kids in the Saturday paper. I can’t tell you how many newspaper cuttings of recipes she has in folders."

"Having our children over for visits is our favourite time of the week. Lynette and I are traditional in the sense that she sees to the menu, while I am in charge of the braai. I buy quality meet at Woolworths and our local butcher and Lynette makes gourmet deserts – she says her malva pudding was inspired by a recipe by Errieda du Toit in Beeld on Saturday."

Out and about

The local travel features in the newspaper have inspired their wandering spirit.
"We love exploring our beautiful country and really make the most of semi-retirement by driving all over in my Toyota Land Cruiser. Let me tell you something, there isn’t another car I would choose to drive all over the country with, it’s fantastic," he says.
The couple make annual trips to the Kruger National Park with their children and their partners.

"I invested in an Invader Duo X Camping trailer with all the trimmings, so we really camp in style. Lynette didn’t used to like the idea of staying in a tent, but now that we have all the necessary equipment, it is a pleasure," he says. "The two of us often spend two weeks at a time in the park, with our children joining us when they can."
Even on holiday, the couple makes sure to find a copy of Beeld when they are staying in or stopping over at a big rest camp with a shop.

"We usually put our Beeld subscription on hold when we go on holiday, but we both need our daily dose of news. Lynette reads to me while I drive and look for the big five," he says with a smile.

Even when they travel to their beach house in Glentana in the Western Cape, the couple make sure to buy their Afrikaans newspaper daily.

"I get on my bicycle in the mornings or we take a walk to the local shop where we buy Die Burger. We enjoy the local flavour of the paper – it’s a nice way of feeling like part of the community in the Western Cape for a month or two a year."

A healthy life

Whether it’s walking on the beach or in their estate, staying fit and healthy is of utmost importance to the Brinks.

"We might not be spring chickens, but we feel young for our age," Albert says with a chuckle. “We have to have good medical aid. I have to visit the cardiologist annually because of high cholesterol and we both have to take chronic meds. Lynette also makes me drink a handful of vitamins and probiotics every day," says Albert
"You know that joke about not having to take a shopping list to DisChem because DisChem will tell you what to buy? That’s definitely true in our case. We go into that shop for our monthly medicine, but come out with healthy rusks, some fancy new shampoo and almonds in bulk!" he continues.

Specials and investments

The Brinks have been congregants of their local NG Church for many years and on Sundays after the service, they usually buy a copy of Rapport at Woolworths, along with a few necessities and treats for the week.
"We both like the fact that there is so much variety in Rapport – from the top news story to the commentary and lifestyle pages," Albert says. "The leaflets from the big stores like Checkers, Pick ‘n Pay and Woolworths are also very handy. Lynette and I enjoy browsing through these to see where we can get good specials – we always compare prices before our big monthly grocery trip for things like dog food, toilet paper and cleaning products."

"We prefer to buy meat and fresh produce at Woolies, Lynette says it lasts longer and we have loyalty cards at Pick ‘n Pay and Checkers too."

The couple recently had to invest in a new fridge and dishwashing machine, after a power surge due to loadshedding damaged their appliances.

"Thank goodness for insurance partially paying out,” Albert says.  “We did research in the leaflets from Game and Herches to find the best quality appliances at the best price. Lynette is a firm believer in the power of a Miele washing machine, and who am I to argue?"

*Profiles have been built based on extensive Media24 research into its loyal Afrikaans readers.