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5FM
5FM is a South African FM radio station forming part of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), South Africa's public broadcaster. 5FM follows a Top 40 music format aimed at a youth market, together with news and sports coverage.
Originally named Radio 5, the station was re-branded as "5FM" in 1992, and has as its current logo a red "5" and superscripted "FM" within a circle and the words "The Power of" inscribed along the upper periphery of the circle.
The station is currently managed by Masixole Mdingane, Business Unit Manager of the PCS Combo (Good Hope FM & 5FM).
Formerly known as "Radio 5", the station developed from a commercial station, LM Radio, which had been broadcasting to a South African youth audience from Lourenço Marques (now Maputo) in neighbouring Mozambique. When LM Radio was shut down by the incoming Frelimo government after Mozambique gained its independence, the South African government instructed the SABC to take over the staff and the service.[citation needed] The station was renamed Radio 5, and former LM Radio presenter Nick Megans presented the first live show starting at 05:00 on 13 October 1975 from SABC Broadcast House in Commissioner Street. Radio 5 broadcast in the medium wave band from transmitters at Welgedacht, Maraisburg, Pietersburg, Durban, Bloemfontein, Brackenfell, Port Elizabeth and Grahamstown. Broadcasting was later moved to the basement of the Broadcast Centre, Auckland Park in Johannesburg.
The name Radio 5 indicated that it was the SABC's fifth national radio channel at that time, after Radio Suid-Afrika, Radio South Africa, Springbok Radio and Radio Bantu.
Initially the government-controlled SABC required Radio 5 to be bilingual with an equal weighting of English and Afrikaans. Music content was strictly controlled and censored. Radio 5 competed with the independent Channel 702 (later renamed to Radio 702) broadcasting from Bophuthatswana and Capital 604 from the Transkei. Radio 702 changed its music format to a Top 40 format, on the advice of an American consultant, Bob Hennaberry, and head hunted the former Radio LM presenter John Berks from Radio 5. Within a year 702 claimed nearly a million listeners from the PWV area (now Gauteng) while the nationwide Radio 5 had less than 150,000.
Malcolm Russell, a former Rhodesian TV and radio host, who hosted host the new Radio 5 Breakfast Show, was appointed Programme Director and initiated a mandate to improve the station, with the support of Riaan Eksteen who became Director General of the SABC in 1984. English became the primary broadcast language and commercial scheduling was overhauled to be less intrusive. Presenters were re-engaged on an annual freelance contract with shows named for and designed by them.
New evening shows were launched to compete with television one of them being Chris Prior - the "Rock Professor". FM stereo was introduced nationally, and broadcasts extended to 24/7. The Chuckle and Chat, a live phone-in show interspersed with music, was introduced as the first talk show on a South African music station, presented by David Blood and Tony Sanderson. It became the most popular programme with listenership peaking at around 1 million nightly.
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5FM
5FM is a South African FM radio station forming part of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), South Africa's public broadcaster. 5FM follows a Top 40 music format aimed at a youth market, together with news and sports coverage.
Originally named Radio 5, the station was re-branded as "5FM" in 1992, and has as its current logo a red "5" and superscripted "FM" within a circle and the words "The Power of" inscribed along the upper periphery of the circle.
The station is currently managed by Masixole Mdingane, Business Unit Manager of the PCS Combo (Good Hope FM & 5FM).
Formerly known as "Radio 5", the station developed from a commercial station, LM Radio, which had been broadcasting to a South African youth audience from Lourenço Marques (now Maputo) in neighbouring Mozambique. When LM Radio was shut down by the incoming Frelimo government after Mozambique gained its independence, the South African government instructed the SABC to take over the staff and the service.[citation needed] The station was renamed Radio 5, and former LM Radio presenter Nick Megans presented the first live show starting at 05:00 on 13 October 1975 from SABC Broadcast House in Commissioner Street. Radio 5 broadcast in the medium wave band from transmitters at Welgedacht, Maraisburg, Pietersburg, Durban, Bloemfontein, Brackenfell, Port Elizabeth and Grahamstown. Broadcasting was later moved to the basement of the Broadcast Centre, Auckland Park in Johannesburg.
The name Radio 5 indicated that it was the SABC's fifth national radio channel at that time, after Radio Suid-Afrika, Radio South Africa, Springbok Radio and Radio Bantu.
Initially the government-controlled SABC required Radio 5 to be bilingual with an equal weighting of English and Afrikaans. Music content was strictly controlled and censored. Radio 5 competed with the independent Channel 702 (later renamed to Radio 702) broadcasting from Bophuthatswana and Capital 604 from the Transkei. Radio 702 changed its music format to a Top 40 format, on the advice of an American consultant, Bob Hennaberry, and head hunted the former Radio LM presenter John Berks from Radio 5. Within a year 702 claimed nearly a million listeners from the PWV area (now Gauteng) while the nationwide Radio 5 had less than 150,000.
Malcolm Russell, a former Rhodesian TV and radio host, who hosted host the new Radio 5 Breakfast Show, was appointed Programme Director and initiated a mandate to improve the station, with the support of Riaan Eksteen who became Director General of the SABC in 1984. English became the primary broadcast language and commercial scheduling was overhauled to be less intrusive. Presenters were re-engaged on an annual freelance contract with shows named for and designed by them.
New evening shows were launched to compete with television one of them being Chris Prior - the "Rock Professor". FM stereo was introduced nationally, and broadcasts extended to 24/7. The Chuckle and Chat, a live phone-in show interspersed with music, was introduced as the first talk show on a South African music station, presented by David Blood and Tony Sanderson. It became the most popular programme with listenership peaking at around 1 million nightly.