New breed of radio hosts
BYE-BYE BUBBLEGUM BROADCASTING, HELLO GUTSY OPINION 5FM breakfast host confronts the issues of the day.
5FM breakfast show host Dan Corder was made for media – or media was made for him. The 30-year-old media personality is on his way to joining the super-league of iconic South African broadcasters, like Alex Jay, Lawrence Dube, Barney Simon and Shado Twala.
He is of a new generation, and is at the front end of a sociopolitical segue, where bubblegum broadcasting has made way for gutsy opinion, fearless exploration of issues and answer-seeking amidst a perplexing real-world milieu.
And he uses multi-media platforms to get there.
It is not what listeners would expect from 5FM, and Corder’s breakfast show is a great antidote to mindless drivel that morning radio serves up these days.
Born into an environment steeped in academia and activism, Corder’s early life on the University of Cape Town (UCT) campus shaped his world view.
“Technically Cape Town, but really on the UCT campus,” he said of his formative years, surrounded by the intellectual rigour of his academic parents.
This upbringing instilled in him an “insatiable curiosity in the world” and a profound understanding of South Africa’s history and the sacrifices made in the struggle against apartheid.
“My parents taught me to pursue knowledge and justice,” Corder said, noting the influence of his father, a legal scholar, and his mother, a former anti-apartheid protester.
Corder’s career in media was foreshadowed by a great university debating career, earning him
and his partner an African championship title and later setting a record at the World Championships.
However, it was his move from debating to radio during the Rhodes Must Fall movement that marked the beginning of this journey.
His coverage of the protests on campus radio gained prominence and set the stage for his foray into public conversation.
“Storytelling is all that matters.
“The most effective way to convey the significance of issues is through excellent storytelling,” he said.
And while his show tackles issues that could be heavyweight for morning radio, it is the how of what he does that makes it digestible.
Corder veers away from issue-based radio by weaving narratives.
“Ironically, pure arguments are weak. Ideas conveyed through storytelling are much more powerful and persuasive,” he said.
There is transformative power in such an approach when engaging with complex issues.
There is no doubt Corder has strong opinions; his TikTok show The Issue with Dan Corder does
not hold back. There are no holy cows in his world and, surprisingly and unexpectedly, 5FM parent, the South African Broadcasting Corporation, has allowed him his editorial independence.
“The SABC is a public service broadcaster, rather than a state broadcaster, so I am free as a bird,” he said.
He has autonomy in discussing a wide range of topics, and latitude to delve into often challenging discussions that, according to him, are often absent in privately owned media, which tends to be more cautious.
In an election year, a broadcaster like Corder is up for a festival of content.
“South Africa in 2024 has the single most interesting political landscape in the world,” he said, with dynamics at play from the ANC’s declining popularity to the emergence of new parties and the unpredictable nature of electoral outcomes.
Party leaders are a rich source of content.
He considers Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema as “the single most talented politician in South Africa”, noting his ability to command attention and shape narratives. In contrast, he suggested Democratic Alliance leader John Steenhuisen could improve his ability to inspire and rally support and referred to the politician’s often uninspiring complaint-driven politics.
As with the municipal elections in 2021, parties are focusing heavily on mobilising the youth vote, a feat no single organisation has managed to date.
Voter apathy is the scapegoat, but Corder argues that the youth are not disinterested in politics. “South Africa’s young people care deeply about the present and future of our country. But there is a level of disillusionment due to a lack of convincing political leadership capable of inspiring hope for substantive change,” he said. If he were president, Corder said, he would focus purely on fixing the most pressing issues of the day, challenges left unattended to for years.
From fixing Eskom, to launching national infrastructure projects and improving health care, his priorities are what every South African hopes for, every year. State-owned companies and the sustained controversy that surround them do not escape his critique – “Sell now” for SAA; “Choking us” for Eskom and “No sense” for PetroSA. The phrases encapsulate the challenges and frustrations of many South Africans. Corder said when he addresses an issue, it comes from the heart. “When I speak about things, it is clearly full of me,” he said.
Storytelling is all that matters