''Red Pepper'' is a daily

tabloid newspaper A tabloid is a newspaper format characterized by its compact size, smaller than a broadsheet. The term originates from the 19th century, when the London-based pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline, Burroughs Wellcome & Co. used the term to de ...

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

that began publication on 19 June 2001. Mirroring tabloid styles in other countries, the paper is known for its mix of

sensationalism In journalism and mass media, sensationalism is a type of editorial tactic. Events and topics in news stories are selected and worded to excite the greatest number of readers and viewers. This style of news reporting encourages biased or emoti ...

, scandal, and frequent nudity. The paper has received the ire of the Ugandan government for publishing conspiracy theories relating to the death of

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

's Vice President

John Garang John Garang De Mabior (June 23, 1945 – July 30, 2005) was a Sudanese politician and revolutionary leader. From 1983 to 2005, he led the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M, Now known as South Sudan People's Defense Forces) as a co ...

in a helicopter crash and revealing that former foreign minister James Wapakhabulo died of

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

History

In August 2006, ''Red Pepper'' published the first names and occupations of prominent Ugandan men who it asserted were gay. This decision was sharply criticized by

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

, which said that the publishing could have exposed the men to government harassment because homosexuality in Uganda remained illegal. The following month, ''Red Pepper'' published a similar list of 13 women who it claimed were lesbians. In an interview published in May 2009, the news editor of ''Red Pepper'', Ben Byarabaha, vowed that the tabloid would continue its campaign against alleged homosexuals by publishing their names, photographs, and addresses. In September 2012, the newspaper was sued about its published nude photo of a herbalist. In January 2018, Red Pepper was reopened by the government.

2013 police raid

Uganda Police raided the premises of ''Red Pepper'' on 20 May 2013. This happened soon after the paper had published a letter allegedly written by Army General David Sejusa, threatening that those opposing

Muhoozi Kainerugaba Muhoozi Kainerugaba (born 24 April 1974) is a Ugandan military officer and the eldest child of President Yoweri Museveni. He serves as the Chief of Defence Forces of the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) and is the chairman of the ''Patri ...

for presidency risked their lives. Kainerugaba is the son of the long-standing President

Yoweri Museveni Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Tibuhaburwa (born 15 September 1944) is a Ugandan politician and Officer (armed forces), military officer who is the ninth and current president of Uganda since 1986. As of 2025, he is the third-List of current state lead ...

. The same letter was also published by another Ugandan newspaper, the ''

Daily Monitor The ''Daily Monitor'' is an independent daily newspaper in Uganda. Launched in 1992 as ''The Monitor'', it established itself as a leading voice critical of the government and is one of the two largest national newspapers, alongside the state-ow ...

'', whose offices were also raided. Both daily newspapers remained closed for ten consecutive days, until the siege was lifted on 30 May 2013.

Rebranding and eviction

Around mid-2021, the company rebranded From Red Pepper to Daily Pepper. However, they later rebranded back to Red Pepper. In early 2022 the newspaper was evicted from its offices. The company then relocated to Bweyogerere-Buto opposite the UNBS headquarters.

Available Newspapers

* ''The Red Pepper'' Newspaper * ''The Saturday Pepper'' * ''The Sunday Pepper'' * ''Kamunye News Paper'' * ''Entasi Weekly News Paper''

References

External links