The Media Development & Diversity Agency (MDDA), led by the Deputy Minister in the Presidency, Thembi Siweya, will on Friday unveil the brand-new state-of-the-art broadcast studios at Thetha FM 100.6, in Golden Gardens, Sedibeng District Municipality in Gauteng.
Golden Gardens is a township located approximately 59km from Johannesburg in Gauteng. It is the Southernmost township of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality.
Thetha FM was established in 1997 by a group of young and enthusiastic community members, who wanted to make a difference in their community.
They saw radio as a tool to educate those around them, motivate people to change their situation and stimulate economic growth and community development.
After six years of organising and negotiating, Thetha FM was granted a four-year broadcasting license in September 2003 by the Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (ICASA).
The community radio station’s first official broadcast across the region on the frequency 100.6 MHz was on 15 November 2005.
Thetha FM is based at Golden Gardens. The community radio station’s payoff line is, ‘Your Soul Connection’. Its geographic licence area covers Orange Farm, Evaton and other peri-urban areas, but also has listeners in the North West, Free State and Mpumalanga provinces.
The community radio station’s broadcast format is 60% talk and 40% music. The broadcast languages are 30% IsiZulu, 30% Sesotho, 15% Setswana, 15% IsiXhosa and 10% English.
The station broadcasts a total of 80 minutes of news per day, 40 minutes is dedicated to local news, 25 minutes to national news and 15 minutes to international news.
The new state-of the art studios will elevate the quality of broadcasting, making it appealing to potential partners and propel Thetha FM 100.6 to even greater heights. – SAnews.gov.za
