Timeline of Radio Televisyen Malaysia
This is a timeline of the history of Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM), listing notable milestones for RTM.
1940s and 1950s
- 1946
- 1 April – Radio Malaya was established at Caldecott Hill in Singapore.[1] The first branch station of Radio Malaya was opened in Penang and followed by the opening of its second station in Malacca on the same day.
- 1950
- Radio Malaya began temporary operations in Jalan Young (now Jalan Cenderasari).[1]
- 1954
- 7 June – Radio Sarawak was launched.[2]
- 1955
- 9 November – Radio Sabah was launched.[3]
- 1957
- 31 August – Radio Malaya was split into three separate stations: the original studio in Singapore and a new studio in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya.[4]
- 1959
1960s
- 1961
- 1 April – Orkes Radio Malaya was launched.[6]
- 1963
- 15 February – Voice of Malaysia (VoM) was launched with three languages in the beginning: English, Mandarin and Indonesian.
- 16 September – Radio Malaya was renamed as Radio Malaysia. On the same day, Radio Sabah, Radio Sarawak and Radio Singapura became part of the Radio Malaysia network as state stations for Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore listeners respectively. Orkes Radio Malaysia renamed as Orkes Radio Malaysia.
- 16 November – RTM local station in Kelantan was established.
- 28 December – Televisyen Malaysia was launched and began operations.[7]
- 30 December – The first television news on Televisyen Malaysia began broadcast.
- 1968
- 10 February – RTM local station in Johor was established and began operations.
- 17 February – Angkasapuri was officially opened by the first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman and began operations after two years of construction.[8]
- 1969
- 6 October – Angkasapuri began its first broadcast.[1][9]
- 11 October – Radio Malaysia and Televisyen Malaysia merged to become Radio Televisyen Malaysia.[10] Dol Ramli become its first Director-General. On the same day, Orkes Radio Malaysia changed its name to Orkestra RTM.
- 6 November – Wisma Televisyen was launched.[11]
- 17 November – Rangkaian Kedua was launched and began operations. On the same day, RTM became part of the Ministry of Information.[1][12]
1970s
- 1971
- 1 January – Radio Malaysia rebranded as Rangkaian Nasional and became the first radio stations to be operated for 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- 16 August – Rangkaian Pertama expand its broadcast in Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu.[13]
- 30 December – Rangkaian Ketiga was launched.[14]
- 1972
- January – Radio Malaysia went off the air for a few days following the recent Kuala Lumpur floods.[15]
- 1 January – Thai-languaged version of Voice of Malaysia was launched.
- March – Drama Minggu Ini (This Week's Drama), a weekly local 30-minute drama anthology, began premiered as a monthly local hour-long dramas.[16]
- 9 May – Wisma Radio was launched.
- 19 June – TV Pendidikan began broadcasting on TV1.
- 1 November – Arabic-languaged version of Voice of Malaysia was launched.
- 1973
- 22 October – Tagalog-languaged version of Voice of Malaysia was launched.
- 5 November – Radio Tiga Ibukota was launched.[17]
- 1975
- March – RTM acquire Rangkaian Ketiga from the Government of Sabah.[18]
- 20 June – FM Stereo was launched and went on air, with a frequency focused on the Klang Valley area.[19]
- 30 August – The first TV1 broadcasts began in Sabah and Sarawak.
- 1978
- 28 December – TV1 began broadcasting in colour.[20]
- 1979
- 7 May – TV2 began broadcasting in colour.
1980s
- 1980
- May – Voice of Malaysia expand its reach to Indochina countries, Japan and Europe.
- 31 August – RTM began colour broadcasting in East Malaysia.
- 1982
- 1983
- 31 August – TV2 began broadcasting in Sabah and Sarawak.[24]
- 1984
- 1985
- 1987
- June – RTM's Voice of Malaysia shortwave broadcasts were upgraded.[29]
- 14 June – RTM reduced the broadcasting hours of its television channels and removing the midnight movie slot.[30]
- 29 June – RTM's news programming was reformatted with a new look for its newscasts and the debut of national and international news bulletins. Berita Wilayah, a new regional newscast with updates from RTM's regional studios everyday of the week, was introduced and began airing.[31]
- 27 December – RTM launched a new logo and a new corporate slogan, "Teman Setia Anda".[32]
- 1988
- 1 February – TV2's English, Mandarin and Tamil news broadcasts were extendee from 20 minutes to 25 minutes long.[33]
- 17 December – The earth-satellite complex in Angkasapuri was opened, costing RM 3 million, marking RTM's entry into "direct satellite broadcasting".[34]
- 1989
- 1 January – Rangkaian Nasional rebranded as Radio 1.
1990s
- 1990
- RTM1 and RTM2 rebranded as TV1 and TV2.
- First broadcast of Forum Perdana Ehwal Islam, an Islamic talk show.
- January – Radio 4, 5 and 6 increased its broadcasting from 10 hours to 18 hours a day.[35]
- January – RTM working on an agreement to supply news footage to CNN and One World Channel, which was later finalized.[36]
- January — RTM's television channels were being seen through the Palapa satellite, reaching viewers in ASEAN countries, Papua New Guinea and Australia.[37]
- April – RTM and TV3 began collaborated for the Mandarin news broadcasting, but did not imposed any payments for the service.[38]
- 16 August – RTM local stations in Selangor and Negeri Sembilan was established and began operations.
- 1991
- 1992
- December – RTM's five radio stations began to broadcast in FM as an effort to refrain Malaysians living in border areas from listening to radio broadcasts from neighbouring countries.[41]
- 1993
- February – Prime time slots on TV1 and TV2 were extended to 11:30 pm in stages instead of 7 pm to 10 pm.
- April – RTM began restructured and reorganized program schedule for its television and radio stations gradually.[42]
- 1994
- 1 March – TV1 began daytime broadcasting.[43] TV Pendidikan shifted to TV2.
- March – Memandu Bersama Petronas began airing on four of RTM's radio stations in collaboration with Petronas.[44]
- May – RTM discontinued the BBC World Service Television following a dispute with the BBC.[45]
- August – Radio 2 began 24-hour broadcasting.[46]
- 1995
- November – RTM introduced sign language in its television news broadcasts.[47]
- 27 December – RTMNet website was launched and becoming the first broadcaster in Asia to broadcast over the internet with six national radio stations streaming over the service.[48]
- 1996
- 1 April – RTM celebrates its 50th anniversary as a Government-owned broadcasting corporation. TV1 began 24 hour broadcast for the first time while TV2 began 18 hour broadcast.[49]
- August – RTM began transmitting from the Kuala Lumpur Tower.[50]
- 25 October – RTM became the first broadcaster in Asia to stream the Budget on the internet, partnering with local computer company MCSB Systems.[51]
- 1997
- August – RTM began broadcasting of Suara Islam radio to Malaysian listeners, with content available in Malay, English and Arabic.[52]
- 1998
- 11 March – Radio Irama Melayu Asli (RiMA) began broadcasting.[53]
- May – Crime prevention slogans began broadcast on TV1 and TV2 in partnership with the Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF).[54]
- 1999
2000s
- 2000
- January – TV2 began daytime broadcasting.
- October – A memorandum of understanding (MoU) between RTM and Fuji Television for the TV programs and news exchanges was signed.[56]
- 2001
- April – Restructuring of scheduling time for TV1 and TV2.[57]
- 2002
- 7 January – First broadcast of Panorama, a magazine documentary.[58]
- 2003
- 1 January – TV1 and TV2 underwent programme rescheduling.[59]
- 2004
- 2005
- 1 April – Rebranding of all RTM's radio stations.[62]
- 2006
- 1 April – RTM celebrates its 60th anniversary and began non-stop broadcasting for 60 hours and airs programs in selected locations on its radio and TV networks.[63] TV1 and TV2 rebranded for the second time as RTM1 and RTM2.[64]
- 3 April – TV2 began 24-hour broadcasting.[65]
- 12 August – Klasik Nasional was created from the merger of Klasik FM and Nasional FM.[66]
- September – Implementation of trial period of digital broadcasting, which lasted for six months.[67]
- 2008
- 2009
- First broadcast of Salam Baitullah.[70]
- 1 January – RTM1 and RTM2 reverted back to its original channel names respectively with the introduction of new logo and slogan.[71] RTM branch station in Keningau, Sabah was launched and began operations.
- March – Muzik Aktif began broadcasting.[72]
- 1 May – Arab, Burmese and Thai language services of Voice of Malaysia ceased broadcasting.
2010s
- 2011
- 2012
- 4 January – Klasik Nasional was demerged, with Klasik FM and Nasional FM returns as a separate radio stations.
- 18 April – RTM Mobile was launched.[74]
- 21 August – TV1 began 24-hour broadcasting.[75]
- 2013
- 2016
- 1 April – RTM celebrates its 70th anniversary.
- 2017
- 9 April – First broadcast of Tumit Tinggi, a magazine program focusing on womanhood.[78]
- 2019
2020s
- 2020
- 6 April – TV Pendidikan returned to RTM after 21 years and debuted on TV Okey.[82]
- 25 June – Berita RTM was launched.[83]
- 2021
- 2022
- 30 April – Tagalog language service of Voice of Malaysia ceased broadcasting.[87]
- 2023
- Implementation of the 2021–2025 Strategic Plan and the 2021–2023 Transformation Plan which involving four pillars.[88]
- November – An MoU between RTM and Prasar Bharati was signed and was approved by the Indian cabinet.[89]
- 2024
- 6 January – 34 Je - Kita Suka began live broadcast for the first time on Nasional FM.[90]
- 25 May – RTM partnered with Astro to initiate Malaysia4Palestine, dedicated to highlighting the humanitarian crisis in Palestine in the wake of the ongoing Gaza war.[91]
- 2025
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "RTM promotes unity, fosters national development: Najib". New Straits Times. 31 March 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
- ^ Marilyn Ten (1 August 2022). "Radio broadcasting still crucial in Sarawak". The Borneo Post. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ Anthea Peter (6 August 2022). "RTM Sabah has achieved much the past 70 years". Daily Express. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
- ^ a b Raihanah Abdullah (23 March 1997). "Kenangan perpindahan stesen Radio Malaysia". Berita Minggu. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- ^ "Sejarah Radio 7". Radio Televisyen Malaysia. Archived from the original on 9 June 2002. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
- ^ Hasnurul Mohamed (18 January 2011). "Orkestra RTM terima pengiktirafan". Utusan Malaysia. Archived from the original on 2017-03-15. Retrieved 15 March 2017.
- ^ "Tengku to inaugurate TV Malaysia on Dec. 28". The Straits Times. 27 November 1963. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
- ^ "Tengku Buka Angkasapuri 17 February". Berita Harian. 20 January 1968. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ "Siaran Talivisyen dari Angkasapuri Mulai Isnin". Berita Harian. 5 October 1969. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ "Radio, TV akan di-satukan". Berita Harian. 28 May 1969. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ "Idea of Angkasapuri mooted". The Straits Times. 17 November 1969. p. 4. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
- ^ "Second TV channel on Nov. 17". The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB). 6 September 1969. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "TV for K. Trengganu after eight years". The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB). 17 August 1971. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "Sabah to get TV next year". The Straits Times (retrieved from NLB). 20 April 1970. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
- ^ "Untitled". The Straits Times. 27 January 1971. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
- ^ "TV Malaysia to screen more local films". The Straits Times. 5 February 1972. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ "Era penyiaran kian berubah". Harian Metro (in Malay). 6 August 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
- ^ a b Barlocco, Fausto (March 2013). "An Inconvienient Birth: The formation of a modern Kadazan culture and its marginalisation within the making of the Malaysian nation (1953–2007)". Indonesia and the Malay World. 41 (119): 132. doi:10.1080/13639811.2013.766010.
- ^ "Info seni". Berita Harian. 4 July 2005. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
- ^ "MALAYSIA TO HAVE COLOUR TV BY 1975". The Straits Times. 21 December 1972. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ "SBC shows for Johore viewers". The Straits Times. 19 March 1982.
- ^ "Plan to allow private companies to sponsor films on TV". The Straits Times. 9 March 1982. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "Two newscasters on TV from next week". The Straits Times. 12 October 1982. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "Second TV channel for Sabah and Sarawak next year". The Straits Times. 16 May 1982. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "Latar Belakang Selamat Pagi Malaysia". Hijau. Archived from the original on 14 July 1997. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
- ^ "RTM woos its viewers". The Straits Times. 3 March 1984. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "RTM revamp aimed at improving news presentation". The Straits Times. 25 November 1984. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "SBC's effort to upgrade Malay TV drama". The Straits Times. 27 November 1985. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ "Radio service to be improved for Malaysians overseas". The Straits Times. 22 June 1987. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
- ^ "RTM cuts telecast time to save cash". The Straits Times. 15 June 1987.
- ^ "Greater range of news on RTM". The Straits Times. 29 June 1987. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "RTM unveils its new logo". The Straits Times. 29 December 1987. p. 8. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
- ^ "RTM to privatise most local TV shows". The Straits Times. 30 January 1988. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "Dancing-in a new satellite complex". The Straits Times. 19 December 1988. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "RTM to increase air time for 3 languages". The Straits Times. 31 December 1989.
- ^ "RTM news clips to give West 'correct' picture". The Straits Times. 3 January 1990. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "Global TV groups 'helping to thwart anti-KL campaigns'". The Straits Times. 29 January 1990. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "RTM sedia bantu". Berita Harian. 21 April 1990. p. 2. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
- ^ Zulkifli Shukor (25 September 1991). "It's subscription news service". New Straits Times. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
- ^ "TV2 to run longer on Fridays, says minister". The Straits Times. 30 December 1991. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "Major radio channels to go FM by end of year". The Straits Times. 29 July 1992. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "RTM susun semula program tv, radio". Berita Harian. 3 April 1993. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
- ^ Zulkefli Ali (1 March 1994). "Siaran jam 6 pagi bermula hari ini". Berita Harian. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
- ^ Zainuri Misfar (25 March 1994). "Rancangan Memandu Bersama Petronas di radio". Berita Harian. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
- ^ "RTM axes BBC news programmes". Business Times. 5 May 1994. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "Malaysia seeks to replace HK as broadcast centre". The Straits Times. 2 August 1994. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
The government ... would introduce 24-hour music on its Radio 2 station which currently operates 18 hours a day.
- ^ "Ministry to bring back sign language on TV". The Straits Times. 13 November 1995. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ "Mahathir to be first leader to go live on the Internet". The Straits Times. 25 December 1995. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ Ainul Zaharah (30 March 1996). "RTM celebrates its 50th anniversary". The Malay Mail. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
- ^ "'Response reflects acceptance of tower as a national landmark'". New Straits Times. 2 October 1996. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
- ^ "KL Budget today 'live' on the Net". The Straits Times. 25 October 1996. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
- ^ "Religion on radio for local listeners too". The Straits Times. 28 August 1997. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ Tun Mamat (15 March 1998). "Kisah Radio Melayu Asli". Berita Harian. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ^ "RTM to telecast crime prevention slogans". Business Times. 2 May 1998. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
- ^ "Prime-time TV news broadcast lengthened to widen coverage". New Straits Times. 14 June 1999. Retrieved 26 January 2021.
- ^ Akmal Abdullah (13 October 2000). "RTM - Fuji TV Network wujudkan kerjasama". Berita Harian. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Akmal Abdullah (2 April 2001). "RTM susun semula jadual rancangan". Berita Harian. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ "Enam Wajah Baru, 'Panorama' Musim 10 Tampil Konsep Lebih Segar". mStar Online. 22 July 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2022.
- ^ "RTM1, RTM2 disaran jadual semula program". Berita Harian. 13 January 2003. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
- ^ Omar Osman (7 June 2004). "RTM tumpu maklumat terkini". Berita Harian. Retrieved 13 February 2021.
- ^ "Kadir unveils new RTM logo". New Straits Times. 2 August 2004. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
- ^ "Format 32 stesen radio RTM lebih menarik". Harian Metro. 30 March 2005. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
- ^ Akmal Abdullah (31 March 2006). "60 acara sempena 60 tahun RTM". Berita Harian. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ Ramlah Zainal (29 October 2005). "KADIR PUAS HATI PROGRAM RTM". Harian Metro. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ Mumtaj Begum (24 March 2006). "RTM to launch third channel". The Star (Malaysia). Retrieved 30 October 2022.
- ^ Zainuri Misfar (17 July 2006). "Nasional FM, Klasik FM digabung". Berita Harian. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
- ^ "RTM cuba siaran digital September". Berita Harian. 15 August 2006. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ "RTM dan TVRI gabung berita". Berita Harian. 19 August 2008. p. 8. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
- ^ "RTM launches Disaster Unit". The Nut Graph. 30 December 2008. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
- ^ Affan Rostam (19 June 2023). "Salam Baitullah fokus penonton muda". Berita Harian. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
- ^ Rozdan Mazalan (29 December 2008). "RTM1, RTM2 kembali jadi TV1, TV2". Berita Harian. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ "RTM perkenal Muzik Aktif". Berita Harian. 7 March 2009. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ "Saluran TV khas untuk Sabah, Sarawak". Berita Harian. 7 April 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ^ "Aplikasi RTM Mobile Dilancarkan – Siaran Radio Dan TV RTM Pada Peranti Mudah-Alih". Amanz. 18 April 2012. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- ^ Murshid Eunos (3 August 2012). "Agenda menarik TV1, TV2". Harian Metro. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ "RTM launches Internet news channel 'Portal 1News'". Malaysiakini. 19 April 2013. Archived from the original on 23 April 2013. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
- ^ "Jubli Emas: TV Malaysia pamer kematangan". mStar Online. 30 December 2013. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
- ^ Budiey (24 March 2017). "Program Majalah Wanita Terbaharu RTM, Tumit Tinggi di TV1". Sensasi Selebriti. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
- ^ Ruzaini Zulkepli (22 March 2018). "TV OKEY, saluran baharu di Sabah dan Sarawak". Astro Awani. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
- ^ "Visual radio RTM's new direction, says Gobind". New Straits Times. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
- ^ "Selepas 73 tahun RTM masih relevan dan kukuh, kata Gobind". Malaysiakini. 1 April 2019. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
- ^ Kirat Kaur (4 April 2020). "TV learning channel launched for students who can't access Internet during MCO". The Rakyat Post. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
- ^ Jerry Choong (25 June 2020). "Saifuddin launches RTM's own 24-hour news channel, aimed at combatting 'fake news'". The Malay Mail. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
- ^ "RTM Charts New Directions To Cope With Digital-Era Challenges". Bernama. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
- ^ "RTM makes history as it celebrates 75th anniversary, 60 years of RTM Orchestra". The Malaysian Reserve. 1 April 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Omar Zin (1 April 2021). "Saluran Sukan RTM dilancar, Angkasapuri dinaik taraf ke Bandar Media". Utusan Malaysia. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
- ^ "Suara Malaysia-Tagalog radio station to cease operations at midnight, says Annuar Musa". The Star Online. 29 April 2022. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
- ^ "RTM continues to play essential role in disseminating national agendas - Fahmi". New Straits Times. 1 April 2023. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
- ^ "India, Malaysia sign MoU for broadcasting cooperation between Prasar Bharati and RTM". The Economic Times. India Times. 27 December 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
- ^ Affan Rostam (6 January 2024). "34-Je Kita Suka himpun 34 stesen radio di bawah RTM". Berita Harian. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
- ^ "Astro, RTM tayang saluran khas 24 jam #Malaysia4Palestine mulai hari ini". Astro Awani. 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "RTM perkenal platform baharu guna teknologi Metaverse". Berita RTM. 12 February 2025. Retrieved 26 May 2025.
External links
- History of RTM (in Malay)