Talk Radio 702 has been crowned South Africa's radio station of the year at the inaugural MTN Radio Awards, while Gareth Cliff's Morning Show on 5FM has won the best breakfast show of the year.
702 also swept the boards in a number of other categories including best day- time show; best night-time show, as well as best business and news shows.
Individual presenters at the station won in their respective categories including David O'Sullivan as best daytime talk presenter; Kieno Kammies as best night-time presenter; Bruce Whitfield as best business presenter and Ray White as best news reader.
The station has also won the category: best promotional event for its Discovery Walk The Talk initiative.
O'Sullivan's producer, Mzoxolo Jojwana, won the best talk producer category.
In its first year, the MTN Radio Awards sought to recognise on-air excellence in the burgeoning South African radio sector. Across 20 categories there were more than 200 entries from most major commercial stations.
Other notable winners in the competition included: best music show going to Highveld Stereo and Kfm's Homebrew; best breakfast show presenter, Jacaranda FM's Darren Scott; best sports presenter, Metro FM's Robert Marawa; and best daytime music presenter, 5FM's DJ Fresh.
Judges said 702 had, across all key radio disciplines, demonstrated clear broadcasting excellence. They also said the station was an integral part of listeners' lives and provided an ongoing platform for both relevant dialogue and crucial information.
The surprise win of the awards programme was the MTN Listeners' Choice Radio Station of the year which was voted by audience SMS. The winner was KwaZulu-Natal-based community station Zululand FM 97.0. A clear indication, said the judges, of a station interacting with its audience for a common purpose.
In conjunction with the Wits Radio Academy, student Mpholosane Modiba was presented with a study bursary funded from ticket sales to the event and a percentage of advertising revenue from the awards brochure.
- Full details available at www. mtnradioawards.co.za