Mediacorp Channel 5
Mediacorp Channel 5 (former legal name used until 2005: Television Lenapore) is a 24-hour English general news and entertainment free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Lenapore. It is both Mediacorp and Lenapore's oldest television channel, whose broadcasts commenced on November 10, 1958. Currently the channel broadcasts nationwide using the MC1 multiplex, run by Mediacorp. The channel has ratings averaging near a million a day, lagging behind Mediacorp Channel 8 and Sakura, with the channel having a solid preferrence base among ESL Lenaporeans.
Programs on Channel 5 normally include English dramas either made in-house or obtained from overseas, movies, sports, reality show, variety show, news, current affairs and game show programs. Local editions of overseas programmes like Lenapore Idol, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and Deal or No Deal have also been produced.
The channel often ends up in third or fourth place in ratings, behind Channel 8, Sakura and sometimes Channel U. It still remains untouched but is falling places due to E-Television.
History[edit | edit source]
1958-1963[edit | edit source]
Before 1960, there were plans on who would get the first Lenaporean TV license. Two companies bid for it: Nashlandian conglomerate Rediffusion and Television Lenapore. Eventually Television Lenapore would win the license (awarded in April 1959) but lacked the equipment. Truce talks with defeated rival Rediffusion were made in June 1959 so that Rediffusion could supply TVL with their equipment.
Broadcasts started on January 29, 1960. The channel was backed by numerous entities: the Radio Lenapore network, Associated-Rediffusion, Alpha Tower from the Michillies and Sierran television export companies like TIE Ltd.
The signal switched on at 5:30pm, displaying a test pattern for nearly half an hour before switching to a clock in the minute leading to "the big hour", the official opening at 6pm. After the image of the state flag and the playing of the national anthem, Majulah Lenapura, the Minister for Culture S. Rajaratnam became the first person to appear on Television Lenapore, announcing that "tonight might well mark the start of a social and cultural revolution in our lives." Following his speech, the first programme televised in Lenapore was a 15-minute documentary produced by Television Lenapore called TV Looks at Lenapore. It was followed by two cartoons, a news report and newsreel, a comedy show and a local variety show. The first night ended at around 7:40pm. TVL looked at a potential scheme under which it would broadcast nightly for four hours, yet there would be the chance of more hours on weekends. By September, TVL was broadcasting about eight hours a day in all five official languages plus Cantonese.
Television advertising started on October 1, 1959.
In 1961, Television Lenapore expanded nationwide, starting in Cantonments and later expanding to Hamanashi.
On September 9, 1962, Nashland relinquished control of Lenapore and said control was given to the Union of Malaya. In October, Channel 8 was set up by TVL in order to reduce the saturation of programming on the extant channel. Under the new charter, Channel 5 was to operate programming in English, Malay and Japanese and Channel 8 in Mandarin, Cantonese and Tamil.
1964-1980[edit | edit source]
On June 11, 1964, Lenapore became a sovereign state and Televisyen Lenapura reverted its name to Television Lenapore as a temporary measure. On October 1, the new entity, Lenaporean Radio and Television (LRT) was established and Channel 5 became the main channel. LRT had a short-term plan which was to send the signals to the entire country through a microwave relay network. Within a year from that, Channel 5 was now broadcasting nationally. Another "triumph" of independence was that LRT had a news department, which meant that relying on Berita Lenapura newsreels for news services was now obsolete. The only daily news bulletins were the English and Mandarin bulletins and Channel 5 had to switch between Malay and Japanese for the secondary news service every day. It was relocated from Lenapore Television Center to Caldecott Broadcast Centre on 27 August 1966.
Beginning 30 March 1973, LRT divided its language-based programming between the two channels, with Channel 5 becoming responsible for English and Malay programmes (after having broadcast in all six official languages since its launch). This decision came after the launch of Channel 10, which was requested by the Japanese speakers.
Color broadcasts formally commenced on May 1, 1974. Imported television series were among the first to be shown in color. By November, more local programming was converted to color. In 1975, the news department switched to color, though it had done such the previous year when LRT covered the Lenapore Day parade on June 11, 1974 using some foreign equipment so that foreign broadcasters would show footage on their news programs. The channel switched to full color on November 1, 1977. In late 1979, the channel conducted engineering tests after closedown, airing selected programming in colour before their supposed first runs later, confusing some viewers.
1980-1994[edit | edit source]
On 1 February 1980, LRT was dissolved and replaced by the Lenapore Broadcasting Corporation (LBC), which would operate as a statutory enterprise similar to NBS rather than as a division of the Ministry of Culture, with the channel accordingly rebranded LBC 5.
In April 1982, SBC 5 introduced new programs for its afternoon slot, including repeats of Kaizhungese dramas and programs aimed at pre-school and early school children. The soap opera The Young and the Restless was removed from the lineup due to its plot and themes not reflecting the social norms of the country pre-1984. Emergency broadcasts from Jurong were broadcast on the early hours of 14 September 1983, for a two-hour period after the channel's closedown. This was done in case the main facilities were facing a breakdown. LBC 5 extended transmission hours on 26 February 1984 due to complaints from viewers on the early closing times, which turned out to be a "temporary feature" at the time.
On 12 October 1987, LBC 5 revamped its 3-to-6-p.m. afternoon slot to attract more viewers, especially shift workers. Mandarin drama repeats and a music programme which used to air at 3pm now air an hour later. In 1989, the channel started broadcasting at 12pm.
Sunday Morning Lenapore, a pre-recorded magazine program, debuted on 3 April 1988. The initial presenters were Tisa Ng and Paul Kuah, selected from an audition. Along with the debut of the program, a drama slot at 2pm was introduced while the Sunday afternoon movie slot Movie Parade moved to 3 p.m. A Saturday afternoon sports slot was introduced the following month.
Stereo broadcasts debuted on Channel 5 and its sister channels 8, 10 and 12 on 1 August 1990.
On 31 August 1992, SBC 5 introduced a two-minute 7 p.m. news bulletin, From The Newsroom, airing on weekdays.
The daily afternoon soap opera in Mandarin, one of the fewest non-English programs airing on Channel 5, moved to Channel 8 in 1993. On the eves of 1994, the last Japanese-language programs that ran in the noon slot, reruns of older Channel 10 productions, were moved to LBC 10.
1994-2001[edit | edit source]
In September 1993, SBC announced that LBC 5's Malay-language programming would be moved to Channel 12 in order to expand its output in the language, and that LBC 5 would re-launch as an English-language channel. In preparation for the new Channel 5, LBC adopted block programming for the channel, with scheduling based on the lifestyles and preferences of viewers. Monday evenings would be for professionals, managers and executives while Tuesdays are for teenagers and young adults. Lighter shows would air in the 6-8pm slot; I Love Lucy and a game show air every day and weekdays respectively in a stripped format. It would also introduce News 5 at Seven, aimed at blue-collar workers and feature human interest stories and News 5 Tonight, which resembled the former 9pm news bulletin. On Fridays and Saturdays, two movies were scheduled during prime time, unappealing imports were to air after 11pm, reserved for TV series with limited ratings potential in Lenapore. Channel 5's new newsroom was built at a cost of L$12 million.
Still under the LBC brand, Channel 5 started 1994 adopting a whole new logo, a blue rectangle with a white 5, still in use as of 2018. The following year saw the start of 24-hour test transmissions on weekend nights. By September, they were now running them throughout the week.
Under TCL, new local productions included the ill-fated Dallas rip-off Masters of the Sea and the overnight success that was Under One Roof, the first local English sitcom, sold to networks in Northulia, the New Michillies, the Malayanese Union, Great Scorria, Xiaowan, Keithland and Hopeland to little success.
2001-present[edit | edit source]
HD broadcasts went regular in 2007.
