Lotus is losing its listeners

SOUTH African radio listeners are tuning out of Lotus FM. According to statistics released this week by the Broadcast Research Council of South Africa (BRC) – whose role is to commission and oversee the delivery of radio and television audience measurement research for broadcasters, advertising and marketing – the public broadcaster is down to 127 000 listeners.

From January 2016 to September 2018 the station lost 154 000 listeners. The station has been rocked by claims of sexual harassment, abuse and unfair dismissal in recent months.

Lack of community engagement could be a cause in the dwindling number of listeners, said community leader and head of the South African Hindu Maha Sabha, Ashwin Trikamjee.

He said Lotus FM needed to do a complete reassessment of its role in the community.

“The station was born as a community station, and its success was based on that.

“They have moved from the community ethos. A number of people are tuning in to other local community stations. The management needs to look at their community involvement and engage with community leaders,” said Trikamjee.

SABC spokesperson Neo Momodu confirmed the BRC statistics.

“The SABC has developed and is implementing revenue-generating strategies across its businesses and platforms, which strategies aim to, among other things, grow audiences by offering relevant content,” said Momodu.