2Day FM

HIT 1041 2Day FM

City of license	Sydney
Broadcast area	Sydney, New South Wales
Branding	hit 1041 2Day FM
Slogan	Sydney's Hit Music Station
Frequency	104.1 MHz FM
First air date	2 August 1980 (1980-08-02)
Format	Top 40 (CHR)
Language(s)	English
ERP	80,000 watts
HAAT	224 m
Transmitter coordinates	33°48′20″S 151°10′51″E
Affiliations	Today's Hit Network
Owner	Southern Cross Austereo (Today FM Sydney Pty Ltd)
Sister stations	2MMM
Webcast	2Day FM Player
Website	Official website

Hit 1041 2Day FM (call sign: 2DAY) is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on a frequency of 104.1 MHz, and part of Southern Cross Austereo's Today's Hit Network.

Until November 2013 the station was led by Kyle and Jackie O, who were responsible for an unprecedented 52 radio survey wins in a row. On 11 March 2014, the first radio survey of the year was released, with Kyle and Jackie O tied with Jonesy and Amanda for number 1 breakfast show, with Jules, Merrick and Sophie with Mel B securing only 3% of the audience.

It was speculated that Southern Cross Austereo would rebrand 2Day FM to Hit 1041 in early 2015, and has commenced dual on-air branding of 2Day FM with "Hit". The "Hit" brand was introduced to the network's Adelaide station 5SSA (Formerly branded as SA FM) in October 2014. SCA has submitted a formal trade mark application for the "Hit" brand. The station's rebranding took effect in the early hours of 14 January 2015, with the logo updated on its Facebook page and website. The change coincided with the launch of Dan and Maz on breakfast.

History

1980s

2Day FM was one of three radio stations (along with Triple M and Triple J) to be granted new FM broadcasting licenses in Sydney in 1980, and commenced broadcasting on 2 August of that year. The original owners were well known media personalities John Laws (30%), Mike Willesee (30%), Village (30%) and Graham Kennedy (10%). The station's original programming format was focused towards easy-listening music, but shifted to more pop and rock oriented programming since the late 1980s, with the later addition of Hip-Hop and dance music to their playlists.

Originally the studios were located on the second floor of the Sovereign Inn at 220 Pacific Highway, Crows Nest. The original equipment comprised BMX Pacific Recorder mixing consoles, and CEI cartridge machines.

The station was sold to the Lamb Family in February 1987, who sold it again to radio group Austereo in May 1989.

1990s

In 1995, the station's owner Austereo bought out the Triple M network from Hoyts, and in 1996 2Day FM moved its studios and administration to Level 24, Tower 1, Westfield Bondi Junction at 520 Oxford Street, just one floor below the original home of Triple M since 1980. Austereo also took over Level 26 of the same building for group departments. With the move to new premises, 2Day FM also adopted digital audio playout, incorporating the DCS audio system built by Computer Concepts Ltd, sold and supported in Australia by Techtel.

During the 1990s, 2Day FM enjoyed ratings success, especially with its breakfast program The Morning Crew (featuring well-known Australian comedian Wendy Harmer and television comedian Peter Moon), which consistently topped its segment in the Sydney radio market for years.

From 1995 to 1998, 2Day FM broadcast the highly successful Martin/Molloy drive program with Tony Martin and Mick Molloy. This program was networked to over 50 stations around Australia (from the studios of FOX FM in Melbourne, Victoria), and is considered one of Australia's most successful FM radio shows. Martin and Molloy left the Today Network in late 1998 at the top of the ratings, citing the need for a break from the pressures of radio.

Nights on 2Day FM have also been controversial. In 1997, night announcer David Rymer, host of the then Top 30 Countdown, was castigated in the media for a poorly thought-out on air stunt in which he called a top ranking Year 12 student, pretending to be from the Board of Studies. He told the girl her results were incorrect and that her marks had been adjusted. He played the segment to air after receiving verbal permission to do so from the girl's mother. However, her father was a lawyer and took legal action. The media responded and Rymer was suspended until further notice. He returned to the show a month later but was soon moved to day shifts on sister station Triple M to make way for the new networked night show Ugly Phil's Hot 30, hosted by Phil O'Neil and his then wife Jackie O. The new show was not without its controversy either, with complaints about obscenity and foul language. O'Neil resigned in 2000 and the show disintegrated, followed by their divorce in 2001. O'Neil moved to the UK to present breakfast on Kerrang! 105.2 and was replaced by the Brisbane-based Kyle Sandilands, while Jackie O remained as co-host.

2000s

Peter Moon left the breakfast show in 2002 after infighting with Harmer became unbearable for him. He was replaced by yet another Melbourne comedian, Greg Fleet, who was poorly received by the Sydney radio listeners.

When Harmer resigned in 2003, the station replaced her with Melbourne comedienne Judith Lucy. Lucy was given free rein over the new show and installed two friends, Peter Helliar and Kaz Cooke, to co-host. The show was not a success in the ratings and the station received some of the worst breakfast ratings in its history.

2Day FM continued to broadcast from Bondi Junction until October 2005, when both 2Day FM and Triple M moved into new premises at World Square, Goulburn Street, Sydney. The new premises included state of the art Klotz Digital equipment, and a street level studio. 2Day FM started 2005 with a number of changes, the most significant of which was moving the drive show team of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O to breakfast and employing a young and unknown Craig Lowe as the host of the nightly networked show Lowie's Hot30. This was short-lived, however, after yet another on air gaffe later in the year that involved a porn star relating sexually charged experiences live to air which resulted in a breach of codes finding. Lowie was forced to resign as host of the Hot30 in November 2006. Tim Lee and co-host Carla Bignasca (Biggsy) were announced as his replacements in February 2007.

2009 child rape victim incident

In 2009, 2Day FM were ordered to provide increased protection for children after a 14-year-old child was attached to a lie detector and pressured into discussing her sex life live on air. Kyle Sandilands, the radio show host, encouraged both the girl and her mother to discuss whether she was sexually active, to which the girl responded: "I've already told you the story of this and don't look at me and smile because it's not funny. Oh, okay. I got raped when I was 12 years old." To which the host replied: "Right. And is that, is that the only experience you've had?"

2010s

2012 royal hoax call incident

Main article: Death of Jacintha Saldanha

In December 2012, the Hot 30 program hosts, Mel Greig and Mike Christian, obtained information about The Duchess of Cambridge's health by impersonating Queen Elizabeth II and The Prince of Wales in a phone call to King Edward VII's Hospital Sister Agnes, where the Duchess was being treated for hyperemesis gravidarum. The call, made at about 5.30 am London time (GMT) on 4 December, was answered at the reception by nurse Jacintha Saldanha as no switchboard receptionist was on duty. Saldanha transferred the call to the nurse treating the Duchess, who gave details of her condition.

Christian, who had only started on the show a day earlier, proposed calling the hospital in the hope of getting the Duchess on the air. The stunt was cleared by 2Day FM lawyers prior to airing. When hospital chief executive John Lofthouse learned it was a prank, he condemned it as an act of "journalistic trickery" that no nurse should have to deal with.

While the hospital has expressed concern that the prank may have broken the law, the CEO of Southern Cross Austereo, Rhys Holleran, stated that he did not believe any laws were broken. Later, Holleran said that station officials tried to contact the nurses whose voices were recorded at least five times prior to greenlighting the stunt for air. However, at least one legal expert told ABC News that the stunt may have broken New South Wales state law forbidding the recording of private conversations without the other party's consent. At a Federal Court hearing it became known that Australian media watchdog Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) had prepared a confidential, preliminary report saying that the Radio Royal hoax 'broke law'. 2Day FM acted illegally by airing the phone call without consent.

The King Edward VII Hospital has stated that the radio station "did not speak to anyone in hospital senior management, or anyone at the company that handles our media enquiries" following the hoax call.

Just before 9.30 am (GMT) on 7 December, Saldanha was found dead at her accommodation near the hospital in a suspected suicide. Police said the death was being treated as "unexplained" and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge said they were "deeply saddened" by the news. 2Day FM continued to promote the prank for a time after Saldanha's death. Holleran said the presenters were both "deeply shocked" and would not return to their radio show until further notice. With advertisers boycotting the station or threatening to do so, Southern Cross Austereo suspended all advertising on 2Day FM until at least 10 December.

The hospital chairman, Lord Glenarthur, wrote a letter to Southern Cross Austereo protesting Greig and Christian's actions: "King Edward VII's Hospital cares for sick people, and it was extremely foolish of your presenters even to consider trying to lie their way through to one of our patients, let alone actually make the call." Southern Cross Austereo chairman Max Moore-Wilton wrote back to Lord Glenarthur promising "immediate action" and a full review of the process by which the broadcast was cleared. At an emergency meeting, Austereo announced that advertising would remain suspended on 2Day FM until at least 12 December. It also formally cancelled the Hot 30 program and suspended prank-call stunts on all Austereo stations, effective immediately. That night, Greig and Christian gave their first interviews since Saldanha's death, telling Nine Network's A Current Affair and Seven Network's Today Tonight that they were still badly shaken over the tragedy. Austereo also cancelled its yearly Christmas party for the employees in its Sydney cluster out of respect for Saldanha's family and donated the money it planned to spend on the party to Beyond Blue and Lifeline.

On 12 December, Southern Cross Austereo announced that advertising on 2Day FM would resume the next day. It will donate the remainder of station advertising proceeds for 2012—a minimum of $A500,000 (£320,000)—to a memorial fund that will benefit Saldanha's family.

The Metropolitan Police made contact with NSW Police about the incident as part of their investigation into the death.

On 13 December, ABC News reported that the Australian Communications and Media Authority opened a formal investigation into the prank call. The same day, The Guardian reported about three suicide notes left by Jacintha before her death, two of which were found at the scene and one in her belongings. It said one of them dealt with the prank call, another contained requests for her funeral and the third was critical of the staff of the hospital.

On 27 January 2013, Southern Cross Austereo announced on its Facebook page that the Hot 30 show responsible for the prank would not be returning, and instead replaced it with a new, networked night show titled The Bump Show hosted by O'Loughlin. For a brief period it was replaced by an international syndication of Ryan Seacrest.

Mike Christian returned to broadcasting in February 2013. Mel Greig, however, received counselling for depression, never went back on air and quit her job with the station after a year. It was reported that she had objected to the broadcast but was overruled by station managers.

Departure of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O

In November 2013, breakfast team of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O announced their departure from the station and the network. Whilst they were present at 2Day FM, the station held the number 1 breakfast show for 52 radio surveys in a row, and kept the station as the number 1 FM station in Sydney. Hours after the duo finished their final show at 2Day FM, rival Australian Radio Network (ARN) announced the pair would be moving to a new look Mix 106.5. On 8 December, ARN announced the station would rebrand as KIIS 106.5, with Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O on breakfast.

On 11 March 2014, the first radio survey of the year was released, with the Kyle & Jackie O show tied with Jonesy and Amanda for number 1 breakfast show, with Jules, Merrick and Sophie with Mel B securing only 3% of the audience.

In August 2014, Mel B left the breakfast team coming to the end of her six-month contract.

In November 2014, a 30 second ad on 2Day FM in breakfast cost $850 and in drive cost $700 (with 2Day FM holding a 3.3% and 4.3% share respectively in these slots at the time).

In January 2015, Dan and Maz will begin doing the breakfast slot.

Shows

• 6am-9:00am - The Dan & Maz Show
• 9:00am-1:30pm - Ellie Angel
• 1:30pm-6pm - Tim Lee
• 6pm-7pm - Jules Lund
• 7pm-10pm - Shazam Top 20 with Angus O'Loughlin and Ash London
• Weekends/Fill ins - Alex Louran (Alex Jnr), Violet Merhi (Vee) and Tom Whitaker (Tom)

News

• Amy Goggins (Breakfast)
• Geoff Field (Drive)
• Alexandra Bryant
• Desiree Savage
• Deborah Clay (News Director)

Transmission

The station transmits from the Hampden Road Artarmon Tower, jointly owned by television stations Seven, Nine and Ten. It shares an antenna with three other stations, Triple M, WS FM and KIIS 106.5, under the collective banner of Sydney FM Facilities. The base broadcast power is 20 kilowatts and is currently delivered by a Harris ZD20 solid state transmitter.

It has an alternate transmission facility on the Broadcast Australia tower at Gore Hill, with an output power of 16 kilowatts delivered by an NEC FBN11K20E valve transmitter. Though almost 20 years old it is fed with all-digital input equipment.

Digital radio

2Day FM is simulcast on digital radio in Sydney. The station launched Choose The Hits, a station only broadcast on digital radio, was launched on 1 February 2010 and closed on 26 May 2010. In addition to FM radio, listeners can also tune in through the station's smartphone application.

External links

• Official website