Visit to BEST.FM Radio Station

On 2 December 2025, a study visit to BEST.FM was conducted as part of an industrial exposure activity for the Diploma in Journalism programme. The session was hosted by Encik Azhar, the Programme Manager, and Encik Irfan from Sales and Marketing. Attending the session were Asna Zukrina Binti Ahmad Zukni as the accompanying lecturer and Kelly Gan, a student from the Diploma in Journalism. The visit provided an in-depth understanding of radio operations, programming structure, target audience management, and the strategies used by BEST.FM to remain relevant as a private radio station despite operating with limited resources.

During the discussion, the hosts shared the station’s establishment history, highlighting its growth and role as one of Johor’s active private radio stations. They explained that BEST.FM caters to a wide demographic of listeners, many of whom have remained loyal since as young as 12 years old. This long-term engagement reflects strong audience attachment, trust, and the station’s ability to maintain relevance over the years. Despite having a smaller budget compared to national stations, BEST.FM continues to stay competitive through strategic content planning, community engagement, active external promotional activities, and by maintaining a contemporary and upbeat brand identity that resonates with audiences.

Listeners are particularly drawn to BEST.FM because of its holistic and balanced content, which includes contemporary hits that are not outdated, topical content that reflects current issues, and programming that celebrates Malaysia’s major cultural festive seasons. The team also actively engages in community outreach, often spending 30 minutes to one hour outside the studio to meet listeners and promote the station directly. The hosts further elaborated on the daily programming lineup, beginning with the station’s highest-rated and strongest prime-time segment, “Geng Best Pagi,” airing from 6:00 AM to 10:00 AM and hosted by Kudin, AD, and Aiman. This is followed by “Ika Best Hitz” from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, which focuses on music and lifestyle content. Another major prime-time slot, “Best Petang with Hilmi,” runs from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM and attracts high listenership during the drive-home hours, while “Best Night,” hosted by Aiman from 8:00 PM to 12:00 AM, caters to late-night listeners seeking relaxed and relatable content.

In terms of news gathering, the station does not operate its own newsroom but instead relies on verified information from other strong media called ‘media arus perdana” such as Bernama, RTM, Astro Awani, and Harian Metro or Berita Harian. These updates are then broadcast through their segment Buletin Best.FM, especially during the morning sessions. This ensures that the news delivered remains accurate, credible, and aligned with national sources.

The visit provided significant hands-on learning and real-world exposure for Kelly. She was given the opportunity to enter the actual radio control room, where she gained firsthand experience observing how a professional radio station operates. The BEST.FM team explained the important elements on the on-air screen interface, including the identification of paid segments and commercials, understanding DJ talk sets, managing music queues, sequencing playlist rotations, and monitoring timing to ensure smooth transitions. Kelly also learned practical skills related to listener engagement, such as picking up phone calls, screening callers, handling short interactions, and preparing them before going on air. This experience enhanced her understanding of proper radio etiquette and professional communication techniques. Additionally, the sharing session with Encik Irfan provided valuable insights into how sales, marketing, and programming departments integrate their efforts, particularly in matching paid slots, sponsorships, and promotions with suitable on-air content.

Through this visit, Kelly developed strong industry awareness, experience in interviewing expert industry, gaining insights into radio broadcasting trends, the ways local stations compete with digital platforms, and the strategies used by BEST.FM to build a relatable radio brand and retain audience loyalty. Overall, the visit proved to be a meaningful industrial exposure opportunity that strengthened her understanding of professional radio operations while revealing the collaborative dynamics behind content creation and station management.

One of the most significant outcomes of the visit was the establishment of a new collaboration opportunity between BEST.FM and Southern University College. Through the discussion and interview session, BEST.FM expressed strong interest in conducting an open audition session specifically for SUC students. The audition will be held at the Studio New Media Centre in Southern University College on 10 December 2025, in collaboration with the Department of Journalism and Communication, with Asna Zukrina serving as the Person-in-Charge. BEST.FM will be using SUC’s studio facilities to host the audition, providing students with a real platform to explore radio announcing opportunities and potentially be shortlisted for future on-air roles. A full proposal for this initiative has already been submitted and coordinated, marking the beginning of a promising industry–academic partnership that will greatly benefit SUC students, particularly those pursuing media and communication programmes.

2025年12月2日，新闻学文凭课程的学生作为产业实习与实务曝光活动的一部分，前往 BEST.FM 电台进行参访学习。 本次活动由节目经理 Encik Azhar 以及市场与销售部代表 Encik Irfan 接待。随行讲师为 Asna Zukrina Binti Ahmad Zukni，参与学生为新闻学文凭课程学生 Kelly Gan。此次参访让学生深入了解广播电台的日常运作模式、节目编排结构、目标听众管理，以及 BEST.FM 作为一家资源有限的私人电台，如何持续保持市场竞争力与时代相关性。

在交流过程中，接待人员分享了电台的创立历史，强调其成长历程及作为柔佛州活跃私人电台之一的重要角色。他们指出，BEST.FM 的听众群体覆盖广泛，许多听众自 12 岁起便开始收听至今，体现出听众对电台的高度黏着度、信任度及长期支持。尽管与全国性电台相比预算有限，BEST.FM 仍通过精准的内容策划、积极的社区互动、频繁的对外宣传活动，以及年轻、活力与现代化的品牌形象，成功在市场中保持竞争优势。

听众之所以喜爱 BEST.FM，是因为其节目内容全面且均衡，涵盖不落伍的流行音乐、紧贴时事的资讯内容，以及配合马来西亚各大文化节庆的特别节目。电台团队也积极参与社区推广活动，经常走出直播室，与听众面对面互动，每次活动约 30 分钟至 1 小时不等。主持人也详细介绍了每日节目的编排结构，其中收听率最高的黄金时段节目为早上 6:00 至 10:00 播出的《Geng Best Pagi》，由 Kudin、AD 与 Aiman 共同主持。接下来是 10:00 至 14:00 播出的《Ika Best Hitz》，主打音乐与生活方式内容。另一黄金时段为 15:00 至 19:00 的《Best Petang with Hilmi》，主要吸引下班时段的听众；而晚间 20:00 至 24:00 的《Best Night》由 Aiman 主持，专为夜间听众提供轻松且贴近生活的内容。

在新闻制作方面，BEST.FM 并未设立独立新闻编辑室，而是依靠国家主流媒体（“媒体主流”）所发布的权威资讯，如马新社（Bernama）、马来西亚广播电视台（RTM）、Astro Awani，以及《光明日报》《每日新闻》等。经核实的新闻内容将通过《Buletin Best.FM》节目播出，尤其集中于早间时段，以确保新闻资讯的准确性、公信力与全国同步性。

此次参访为 Kelly 提供了宝贵的实务学习机会与真实职场体验。她获准进入真实的电台控制室，亲眼观摩专业电台的运作流程。BEST.FM 团队向她讲解了播出系统介面的关键功能，包括识别付费时段与广告内容、DJ 说话节奏的安排、歌曲队列管理、播放清单轮播顺序，以及时间监控与节目衔接等。她也学习了实际的听众互动技巧，如接听电话、筛选来电、处理简短交流，以及在来电者正式上线前做好准备。这些实务体验大大提升了她对广播礼仪与专业沟通技巧的理解。此外，Encik Irfan 的分享也让她深入了解销售、市场与节目部门如何紧密配合，特别是在付费时段、赞助及宣传活动与节目内容之间的协调机制。

通过此次参访，Kelly 不仅建立了良好的行业认知，也获得了与专业人士交流及访问的经验，并深入了解当前广播行业的发展趋势、本地电台如何与数码平台竞争，以及 BEST.FM 如何塑造亲民品牌形象并维持听众忠诚度。整体而言，本次参访是一项极具意义的产业实务曝光活动，有效强化了她对专业广播运作模式的理解，同时也揭示了内容制作与电台管理背后的团队协作精神。

此次参访最重要的成果之一，是促成了 BEST.FM 与南方大学学院（Southern University College）之间全新的合作契机。通过此次交流与访谈，BEST.FM 表达了强烈意愿，希望为南方大学学院学生举办一场公开试音（Open Audition）活动。该试音活动将于 2025 年 12 月 10 日 在南方大学学院新媒体中心录音室举行，并由新闻与传播系协办，Asna Zukrina 担任本次活动的负责人（Person-in-Charge）。BEST.FM 将使用 SUC 的录音室作为试音场地，为学生提供一个真实的平台，探索广播主持的发展机会，并有机会被遴选进入未来的电台主持阵容。目前，该计划的完整提案已完成提交与协调，标志着一项极具潜力的产学合作正式启动，预计将为南方大学学院，尤其是媒体与传播课程的学生带来长远而深远的实质性益处。