Radio RSA

Last updated

Radio RSA: The Voice of South Africa was the international broadcasting service of the Republic of South Africa. It was run by the South African Broadcasting Corporation from its inception on 1 May 1966 until its demise in 1992 following the end of the apartheid era. Radio RSA broadcast news and opinion programming that was mostly pro-government, and the message of its broadcasts reflected those views. Following the fall of the apartheid government, the service was renamed Channel Africa.

Contents

Management

Radio RSA, as part of the South African Broadcasting Corporation, was originally part of the Department of Information, which was established after the National Party's victory in the 1948 South African general election.

The Department of Information's task was to promote the image of South Africa internationally and reduce criticism of apartheid. After the Muldergate scandal of the late 1970s, the functions of the Department of Information were split. The Department of Foreign Affairs took over control of Radio RSA. [1] The annual budget was about 20 million rands.

In 1976, Radio RSA transmitted for 36 hours a week. [2] Radio RSA broadcast in 12 languages in 1976 [3] including English, French, Portuguese, and Afrikaans. In 1984, 11 languages were broadcast. [4]

Facilities

The studios of Radio RSA were initially located at Broadcast House, Commissioner Street in Johannesburg, relocating to Auckland Park in 1976. Additional facilities were located in Bloemendal near Meyerton, Gauteng.

Transmitters operated at 100, 250 and 500 kW power.

Identification

The station identification in English was “"This is Radio RSA, the Voice of South Africa, from Johannesburg", with similar announcements in other languages: "Ici R. RSA, la Voix de l'Afrique de Sud". [5] [6]

In 1992, following the fall of apartheid and the election of an ANC government, the service was renamed Channel Africa. [7]

Related Research Articles

International broadcasting, in a limited extent, began during World War I, when German and British stations broadcast press communiqués using Morse code. With the severing of Germany's undersea cables, the wireless telegraph station in Nauen was the country's sole means of long-distance communication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Television in South Africa</span>

Television in South Africa was introduced in 1976. The country is notable for the late introduction of widespread television broadcasting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SABC</span> State-owned public broadcaster in South Africa

The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is the public broadcaster in South Africa, and provides 19 radio stations (AM/FM) as well as six television broadcasts to the general public. It is one of the largest of South Africa's state-owned enterprises.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SABC 1</span> South African television channel

SABC 1 is a South African public television network operated by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) which carries programming in English and Nguni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SABC 3</span> South African television channel

SABC 3 is a South African free-to-air public television network owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). It carries programming in English and, few in other South African languages. It has a number of its own reality and talk shows and had lately introduced a new series called “The Estate”.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SABC 2</span> South African television channel

SABC 2 is a South African family public television channel owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). SABC 2 broadcasts programming in English, Afrikaans, Venda, and Tsonga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation</span> State-controlled broadcaster in Zimbabwe

The Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) is the state-owned broadcaster in Zimbabwe. It was established as the Rhodesian Broadcasting Corporation (RBC), taking its current name in 1980. Like the RBC before it, the ZBC has been accused of being a government mouthpiece with no editorial independence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mass media in South Africa</span>

The mass media in South Africa has a large mass media sector and is one of Africa's major media centres. While South Africa's many broadcasters and publications reflect the diversity of the population as a whole, the most commonly used language is English. However, all ten other official languages are represented to some extent or another. Afrikaans is the second most commonly used language, especially in the publishing sector.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soweto uprising</span> 1976 student-led protests in South Africa that were violently suppressed

The Soweto uprising was a series of demonstrations and protests led by black school children in South Africa during apartheid that began on the morning of 16 June 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radio Taiwan International</span> International broadcasting service of Taiwan

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mass media in Ethiopia</span>

The mass media in Ethiopia consist of radio, television and the Internet, which remain under the control of the Ethiopian government, as well as private newspapers and magazines. Ten radio broadcast stations, eight AM and two shortwave, are licensed to operate in Ethiopia. The major radio broadcasting stations include Radio Fana a private station, Radio Voice of One Free Ethiopia, and the Voice of the Revolution of Tigray. The only terrestrial (broadcast) television networks are government owned and include EBC and other regional stations. In keeping with government policy, radio broadcasts occur in a variety of languages including Amharic, Afaan Oromo, Tigrigna, and more. There are also many video sharing websites which are a popular way of getting information as well as entertainment in Ethiopia.

Channel Africa is the international broadcasting service of the South African Broadcasting Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ghana Broadcasting Corporation</span> Ghanaian public service broadcaster

The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) was established by law in 1968 with a triple mandate as a State Broadcaster, Public Service Broadcaster, and a Commercial Broadcaster in Ghana. Headquartered in the capital city, Accra, it is funded by grants, broadcasting television commercials and the levying of a television licence, costing 36 cedis and 60 cedis for one or more TV sets in the same house every year. TV set repairers and sales outlets are to pay an annual sum of between 60 cedis to 240 cedis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Namibian Broadcasting Corporation</span> Public TV and radio broadcasting corporation

The Namibian Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) is the public broadcaster of Namibia. It was established in 1979, under the name South West African Broadcasting Corporation (SWABC).

United Nations Radio was created on 13 February 1946. In 2017, United Nations Radio and the UN News Centre merged to form UN News, producing daily news and multimedia content in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Swahili, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Hindi. In its new iteration, UN News Audio continues to produce daily news and feature stories about the work of the UN and its member countries in eight languages for more than 2,000 partner radio stations around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commonwealth Broadcasting Association</span>

The Commonwealth Broadcasting Association (CBA) is a representative body for public service broadcasters throughout the Commonwealth, founded in 1945. A not-for-profit non-government organisation, the CBA is funded by subscriptions from 102 members and affiliates from 54 countries. The stated goal of the CBA is to promote best practices in public service broadcasting and to foster freedom of expression. It also serves to provide support and assistance to its members through training, bursaries, consultancies, networking opportunities and materials for broadcast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ukhozi FM</span> Radio station

Ukhozi FM is a South African national radio station & owned by SABC, based in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal that caters to the needs of the Zulu-speaking community. Founded in 1960, it is the largest radio station in South Africa and Africa. The station has a broadcasting licence from ICASA.

The Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) is a Zambian television and radio station, formerly state owned, now technically a statutory body but still essentially under government control. It is the oldest, widest, and largest radio and television service provider in Zambia. It was established by an Act of Parliament in 1987, which was passed to transform the Zambia Broadcasting Services from being a Government Department under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services into a statutory body called the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation.

Voice of Namibia (VoN) was a pirate radio station propagating Namibian independence, and the political mouthpiece of the South West African People's Organization (SWAPO) during the Namibian War of Independence. It operated from 1966 until Namibian independence in 1990 from different hosting stations in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Felicia Mabuza-Suttle is a South African talk show hostess and entrepreneur. In the TV show Great South Africans, she was voted as the 70th greatest South African of all time in an informal public poll.

References

  1. ↑ Horwitz, Robert Britt. Communication and Democratic Reform in South Africa . 2001, page 287
  2. ↑ Sandra Van der Merwe., The Environment of South African Business. 1976, Maskew Miller. ISBN   0-623-00948-X, page 35
  3. ↑ Michael O'Mara. Facts About the World's Nations. 1999, H.W. Wilson. ISBN   0-8242-0955-9, p. 863
  4. ↑ Roberts, Steven. International Directory of Telecommunications: Market Trends, Companies. 1984, Longman. ISBN   0-582-90021-2. p 17
  5. ↑ Johansen, Oluf Lund. World Radio and TV Handbook: 1978 edition, page 146
  6. ↑ World Radio TV Handbook, 1992 edition, p. 168
  7. ↑ South Africa Yearbook, South African Communication Service, 1995, page 292


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.