Mediacorp celebrates 80 years of radio with slew of initiatives

SINGAPORE — Here’s a reason to tune in to the radio for the entire year — in fact, a full 80 years’ worth of reasons.

Mediacorp is marking eight decades of radio broadcasting by rolling out Radio 80, a slew of initiatives throughout 2016 in a bid to engage listeners, advertisers and the community at large.

Among the highlights are Voice Of Radio, a search for the next generation of Chinese-speaking radio talents by radio stations LOVE 97.2FM, YES 933 and Capital 95.8FM, where winners will be offered deejay contracts; a concert giveaway series called 80 In 80, where Class 95, Gold 905, 987FM and Lush 99.5 FM will offer 80 “concert experiences” to listeners; and a carnival and concert called Viva Karnival & Rentak Singapura ROCK 80! to celebrate Malay rock hits from the 1980s, courtesy of Warna 94.2FM and Ria 89.7 FM.

Meanwhile, Oli 96.8FM will be presenting Mother’s Day Extravaganza to honour eight 80-year-old mothers; and the initiative Radio Gives Back is returning, with Mediacorp providing 80 needy families with household necessities for an entire year. It was first launched in 2011 to celebrate 75 years of radio broadcasting in Singapore and this edition will see Daikin Airconditioning (Singapore), Chan Brothers Travel and Harvey Norman coming in as sponsors.

Elsewhere, an exhibition on eight decades of radio will be presented at the National Museum of Singapore as part of this year’s Singapore HeritageFest; the radio app MeRadio will be getting a fresh update; and Mediacorp Channel 5 will be launching a 13-part comedy about a fictional radio station.

“People love radio for its personal and portable nature. Our radio stations have thrived by focusing on listeners, and remaining informative and entertaining. In a disruptive media landscape, we will continue to adapt, so look forward to more innovations from us to take radio beyond 80 years,” said Debra Soon, head of the Family (English) and Premier segments, as well as chairperson of the Radio 80 committee.

Radio transmission in Singapore began in June 1936, with a lone radio station operating from Empress Place. Today, Mediacorp has a network of 13 FM stations broadcasting in the four national languages and reaching out to more than 80 per cent of the population, with listeners spending more than three hours a day tuning in.