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SA image alive

With Jackomania petering out after the funeral of Michael Jackson, it might be worth noting some momentary highlights that would have largely passed unnoticed - if not unheralded - in the hype of Tuesday's hugely attended and televised memorial service in honour of the pop legend.

With Jackomania petering out after the funeral of Michael Jackson, it might be worth noting some momentary highlights that would have largely passed unnoticed - if not unheralded - in the hype of Tuesday's hugely attended and televised memorial service in honour of the pop legend.

These were the two occasions when the South African brand received an immense boost with the mention of two local icons - Nelson Mandela and Johannesburg - in a speech by the Reverend Al Sharpton and in a poem by Maya Angelou read by Queen Latifah during the service in Los Angeles.

With many South Africans having resigned themselves to the reality of our much-maligned international image, the important soundbites - in the gaze of millions of TV viewers worldwide - would have come as a breath of fresh air.

Viva South Africa!

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