It was the 18th of December 1923… The Railway Johannesburg Headquarters held the very first experimental broadcast (WCJ Admin, 2023). After this, the Railway Johannesburg Headquarters made history on 29 December 1923 by establishing the first radio station and was later taken over by The Scientific and Technical Club in Johannesburg on 1 July 1924 (Mishkind, 2023). This was the first step of broadcasting history in South Africa.

From there on, it spread to Cape Town on 15 September 1924, and on 10 December 1924, the Durban Organisation also started broadcasting (Mishkind, 2023). According to Mytton (2023), three organisations were given the go-ahead for broadcasting licenses, and they were:
1. An advertising group
2. A private dub
3. A local authority

However, Mytton (2023) further explains that this fell flat later. Large debt arose, which caused these parties to be purchased by an entrepreneur. This entrepreneur then shaped the stations for commercial use. The government, however, wanted their entity. So, in the search for help to do this, they approached the BBC's first director-general, John Reith (Mytton, 2023). And so the (South African Broadcasting Corporation) was born in August 1936 (SABC, 2023).

What makes radio unique is that it can cater to everyone everywhere. However, that was a bit different in South Africa. Apartheid did have a role in radio, as it only catered to English and Afrikaans audiences. Mozambique hopped on the trend of broadcasting and started a station called Radio Lorenço-Marques (Mytton, 2023), today known as LM Radio. They were competition for the SABC. As a result, Springbok radio was born in 1950 (Mytton, 2023). Apartheid did have a role in radio, as it only catered to English and Afrikaans audiences. Mytton further explains that this was the reason for the creation of Radio Bantu in the 1960s.

South Africa has different radio stations: commercial, public broadcasting, and community. Advertisements and marketing is what drives the stations. Some popular commercial stations in South Africa are Jacaranda FM, 702, KFM, and OFM. Some public broadcasting stations (which are run by the SABC) are RSG, Ukhozi FM, SAfm, and Lesedi FM. And how can we forget the community radio stations, such as Overvaal Stereo, Pretoria FM, Puk FM, Radio Laeveld, and Yours Truly… Life FM.

Many people think radio is a dying medium, but we believe otherwise. With the rise of the internet, many radio stations have used this and social media to their advantage. Now, radio is more accessible than ever before, even with obstacles such as load shedding, living in rural areas, poverty, etc. Anyone can listen to the radio with the tap of a button or the flick of a switch.

As you can see, the journey of South African broadcasting had a long journey, giving light to more achievements and advancements. Radio is the original audio medium, and it will stay for many future generations, especially in South Africa.