SAfm

Broadcast area	South Africa
Frequency	104–107 MHz FM[1][2]
Programming
Format	News radio, talk radio
Ownership
Owner	SABC
History
First air date	1936
Former names	"A" Programme English Service (1937–1985) Radio South Africa (1985–1995)
Links
Webcast	www.antfarm.co.za/clients/safm/safm_22.asx
Website	safm.co.za

SAfm is a national, English-language public radio station in South Africa. It has been operated by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) since its founding in 1936.^[3]

History

SAfm was the SABC's first radio station, and the country's first public radio station. From 1924 to 1936, the only radio service in South Africa was a privately owned station called JB, which broadcast to the cities of Johannesburg, Durban, and (later) Cape Town. An Act of Parliament in 1936 made official the conversion of JB into a public broadcaster.^[4]

In its early days as a public radio service, the station was called the "A" Programme. When the SABC started an Afrikaans-language station in 1937, the two stations came to be called the English Service and the Afrikaans Service, respectively. In 1985 the English Service was renamed Radio South Africa; it has had its current name, SAfm, since 1995.^[3] The SAfm studio is now in SABC Radio Park, in the Johannesburg suburb of Auckland Park.^[5]

Programming

From 1995 to 2003, it gradually reduced the scope of its programming from a general, multi-genre format to a news and talk radio format. In 2006, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa required SAfm to re-add drama and children's radio programmes, and these are now among the station's offerings.^[3] In 2012, SAfm was broadcasting 24 hours per day.^[1]

Audience figures

Most SAfm listeners are in age range of 35 to 49, and LSM groups 7–10.^{[1][3][further explanation needed]}