Big revamp for second season of Show Me Love starting 3 June on Moja Love; local talk show to broadcast live, add politics, with new location, new studio, new panellists and more daring content.

Show Me Love on Moja Love (DStv 157) is undergoing a revamp for its second season that is set to start on Monday 3 June, with the local talk show that is undergoing several changes including new faces, a new studio and new location, adding some political discussions and topics to the mix, and switching to a live broadcast format or recording episodes as close to the broadcast date as possible.

The Show Me Love hosts around the glass table recently changed, with Unathi Msengana and Abigail Visagie who are both gone without explanation.

They have been replaced by Ntsiki Mazwai as well as the doctor and sexual health expert Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng (Dr T) who have joined Nontobeko Sibisi and KG Moeketsi who remain part of the panel.

"The most important thing as a whole production team was saying 'When do we need to go back to the drawing board? What do we need to fix? And in what way do we fix it in a way that it is still relevant and resonates with our audience?" said Nontobeko Sibisi.

Nontobeko Sibisi spoke at Moja Love's 2019 Content Showcase that was held for the media last week at the World of Yamaha Theatre in Sandton, Johannesburg where the new Show Me Love panellists formed part of the on-stage talent who appeared before the press.

"More importantly, in the second season of Show Me Love we will continue to have a real, authentic conversation," she said.

Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng said about Show Me Love "that we have to remind women about the power that they have and give them the space to own and accept that power".

"If you want to talk about sex - one of the episodes that we were shooting the other day, we were talking about self-pleasuring - giving South African women permission to say it's not only boys with the right to play with themselves. As a woman you can do that".

"I think that that's the beauty of Moja Love as a channel - we're having conversations that other people never had the courage to have, and we're opening it as wide as possible. We're daring, we're courageous but we're also fun."

TVwithThinus asked how the new season of Show Me Love will be different.

KG Moeketsi said "Obviously we're beginning a new season, come 3 June. The intention as we sit here now is to go live. Last year we were filming live-to-tape, but we would be airing about a week into the episodes that we shot."

"We want to stay as current as possible, that's why we want to go live - new location, new studio, new panellists, new everything and more daring content."

"The intention is for us to go live. If we're forced to be recorded - forced by circumstances to pre-record, it will probably be a case of  'record today, the episode airs tomorrow'. We want to get as close as possible - particularly this year - to the issues at hand in South Africa as they happen."

"Especially as far as politics are concerned, we are going to add a bit of that."

"South Africa is just a lovely place, and robust, if you're interested in the politics of the country. And it's exciting that Show Me Love will start going live just a week and a half after South Africa's new president has been inaugurated so we're excited, we're very excited," said KG Moeketsi.


ALSO READ: IN IMAGES. 24 photos of Moja Love's 2019 Content Showcase.
ALSO READ: The Moja Love 2019 Content showcase sizzle reel.
ALSO READ: With daring, boundary-pushing reality shows, the Moja Love channel on DStv says it's aspiring "to innovate, to change and challenge the South African TV landscape". 
ALSO READ: New Moja Love conflict reality show exposing cheating lovers, Uyajola 9/9, is "not for the faint-hearted" warns presenter Jub Jub. 
ALSO READ: After delays, the reality show, Zodwa Wabantu Uncensored, is starting on Moja Love on Saturday 25 May as the Vosho Queen gives viewers a glimpse of her surreal life with a "16-ish" age restriction. 
ALSO READ: TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. So, the Moja Love channel on DStv held a content showcase event and it was basically perfect - with 2 things that were a pleasant surprise and positives for SA's TV biz.
ALSO READ: TV CRITIC's NOTEBOOK. For a channel with 'love' in its name, Moja Love's content is built on a collection of conflict. For how long will its viewers thirst to watch the fight?

Siyaya TV's new Moja Love channel on DStv hopes to lure female viewers with love and relationship programming.

The new Moja Love channel aimed at a black female viewership is starting today, on Valentine's Day at 17:30 with little fanfare on MultiChoice's DStv on channel 157, hoping to make inroads in a highly competitive TV landscape where competitors like Lifetime and Discovery Networks' TLC already exist.

With the obligatory local telenovela - every channel now starts one of these serialised staples - and a flurry of talk show and self help programmes loosely modeled on popular American daytime TV formats, Moja Love, produced and packaged by Siyaya TV, will predominantly focus on women's issues and relationships.

"Moja" meaning good or alright, is packaged for MultiChoice by Siyaya TV that got a pay-TV licence from the broadcasting regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) but failed to start it's own service, just like eSat that ended up producing eNCA for DStv.

Siyaya TV's Moja Love is made available to DStv Premium, DStv Compact Plus, DStv Compact and DStv Family subscribers and will run 24-hours per day with repeat blocks and have 22 shows including several new local productions.

New programmes will be broadcast between 17:00 and 22:30 daily on Moja Love with the rest of the late night and daytime schedule then consisting of repeats.

"For us at MultiChoice, it's important to offer our customers a range of different entertainment options and to provide a platform for local stories to be heard," says Yolisa Phahle, CEO for general entertainment at MultiChoice.

"Moja is a slang word that means 'everything is good' and while love is a universal emotion, Moja Love shall explore love from the unique perspective of the modern South African woman using honest, reflective, hopeful and humorous storytelling," says Jacqui Setai, Moja Love channel head.

New programmes on Moja Love include a new local weekday talk show, similar to The Real in America as a panel discussion show with women talking about female issues. Show Me Love will have KG Moeketsi, Unathi Msengana, Abigail Visagie and Nontobeko Sibisi as part of the panel.

Show Me Love that has been commissioned for 260 episodes will be broadcast on Moja Love on weekdays at 17:30 with a repeat on weekday mornings at 08:00.

"These dynamic hosts meet daily to schwashwata on every topic that concerns women at one time or another. With no topic off limits, the show provides a safe place for women to air any issue, in the company of their sistas," says Moja Love.

The local telenovela Hope with 208 episodes stars Nimrod Nkosi, as Pastor Buthelezi, a well-meaning pastor of a small congregation who is about to go through challenges when a new church opens up across the street. Hope will show on weekdays at 19:00.

"It sets in motion a story of love, deceit and betrayal, which unravels in the exciting world of

churches. As brother is pit against father, church members hide dark secrets, and pastors compete

for the soul of the community, take comfort that there is always hope in a dark world," says Moja Love.

Papgeld on Saturdays at 18:30 is an investigative reality show about children and will track fathers, and in some cases mothers, who are not living up to their parental responsibilities,

A spin-off show Let’s Talk Papgeld, Saturdays at 19:00 will try to help viewers with tips and guidelines from a range of experts and service providers in the social services and child maintenance sector.

Judge Khambule on Saturdays at 18:00 is a sitcom set in a courtroom that features characters caught up in various legal issues. Judge Khambule is played by Thenjiwe Mosley.

Other shows on Moja Love include Highly Inappropriate with Phat Joe, a reality beauty makeover show Beat, the sex advice show Thrills with Dr T, presented by sexologist Dr Tlaleng on Wednesdays at 21:00, and Sofa Slahlane, with the presenter and veteran journalist Mzilikazi wa Afrika on Thursdays at 17:00.

Moja Love will also broadcast Sisters in Law, Food Police, Nairobi Diaries, Direct Flight, Amagugu, Curvy Girls and Nomakanji.

Katleho Sinivasan is the TV presenter winner of The Search: E! Host South Africa; will visit E! headquarters in Los Angeles followed by a TV special.

It became a full circle moment for E! Entertainment (DStv 124) on Wednesday night when The Search: E! Host South Africa show ended with Katleho Sinivasan whose new career as a South African red carper presenter is now starting, when he was announced as the winner of E!'s first South African presenter search programme.

The media as well as NBCUniversal Networks International executives who flew in from overseas, together with fans, advertising executives, Miss South Africa finalists and local celebrities all converged on Taboo to watch the last episode of The Search: E! Host South Africa where Kat Sinivasan was crowned the new king of the red carpet.


ALSO READ: Interview: Katleho Sinivasan becomes E! first South African correspondent: 'I'm just aboy from Soweto, and this time I'm the perfect fit".


Consistent in winning various challenges throughout the 6-episode presenter search series, Kat Sinivasan beat out ANN7 (DStv 405) news reader Abigail Visagie who together were the last two contestants left standing.

E!'s South African presenter search winner was announced right back where it all began originally: The trendy nightclub Taboo, nestled in the most glamorous square kilometre in Africa - the exact spot where E! did its very first media launch to herald its arrival as a TV channel in December 2004 in South Africa and across Africa when the channel was added to MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV platform.

Taboo was a more that fitting venue for the The Search: E! Host South Africa winner.

Just over 13 years ago bathed in white and red neon lights, Taboo on Wednesday evening was filled with angular grey couches and striking white and black E! blocking to mirror the comfy interior of Los Angeles' E! News interior seen on television.

While the champagne flowed, the well-heeled guests - most dressed in black and white - snacked on a wide array of finger food and watched the final episode, with an offline version of the episode - four minutes ahead of the actual broadcast on E! on DStv - shown on giant screens.

"Being part of The Search: E! Host South Africa was an honour in itself, and to win the highly coveted title of the first-ever E! South Africa host exceeds any expectation I had going in," says Katleho Sinivasan in a statement.

"Representing E! on the red carpet is truly one of the greatest jobs in the entertainment industry and a dream come true for me. I can't wait to start my journey with E!"

He will immediately be putting his red carpet skills to the test, co-hosting the E! Beyond the Red Carpet: SAFTAs alongside Bonang Matheba that will be broadcast on E! Entertainment on 21 March at 20:00.

On 17 May at 20:00 Kat Sinivasan will also front the once-off TV special, E! Host SA: Hollywood Special that will detail his win and his once-in-a lifetime trip to Los Angeles and E! headquarters.

Katleho was a strong and memorable contender from the moment The Search: E! Host South Africa commenced and we feel his win is greatly deserved," says Chrystele Fremaux, the vice president for programming for the UK and emerging markets for NBCUniversal International Networks.

"We are excited to welcome Katleho to the E! family and look forward to working with him on our upcoming original productions as we continue to bring South African viewers more local content on E!."

Andile Ncube to present E! Entertainment's The Search: E! Host South Africa, Terry Pheto judging; while Urban Brew alums show up in the Urban Brew produced show.

Andile Ncube is the presenter of E! Entertainment's new presenter search, The Search: E! Host South Africa that will start in February looking for a South African presenter for the channel while actress Terry Pheto will be the main judge.

Meanwhile several faces who are already known TV presenters and who worked for the production company before - the same production company now doing the show for E! - form part of the 8 contestant group.

Ordinary South Africans were not allowed to enter for the show seeking "up-and-coming talent from across the country".

The Search: E! Host South Africa, produced by Urban Brew for the African channel feed of the NBCUniversal International Networks channel on MultiChoice's DStv pay-TV platform, will start on 1 February at 20:55.

Similar to SABC3's Top Billing Presenter Search and Presenter Search on 3 and Discovery Networks International's TLC's Next Great Presenter, the 8 contestants live together in a mansion and are whittled down through weekly TV tasks to test their television presenting skills.

Raising eyebrows from a production perspective is that several contestants chosen for The Search: E! Host South Africa has previous TV experience with Urban Brew Studios across various of its productions - the company now doing the presenter search show for E! Entertainment (DStv 124).

Included in the 8 contestant group for The Search: E! Host South Africa are ANN7 news reader Abigail Visagie, Hotel Rwanda actress Mosa Kaiser, former SABC1 YO.TV and Mzansi Insider presenter Katleho Sinivasan, Sian Moss, HashtagRadio presenter Juan-Martin Jordt and former SABC1 YO.TV presenter Jessica Tims.

Also included are the TV presenters Danine Naidoo and Ayanda Nhlapo who both presented shows on the [ED] channel on DStv.

The [ED] channel was also produced and packaged until the end of November 2016 by Urban Brew Studios - the same production company now producing The Search: E! Host South Africa that raises interesting conflict of interest and credibility issues.

Besides [ED], YO.TV where Katleho Sinivasan and Jessica Tims had gigs is an Urban Brew produced show; as was SABC1's One Day Leader where Jessica Tims is a presenter.

E! didn't immediately respond to a media enquiry on Friday seeking comment about why people who have been involved with Urban Brew as TV presenters before have been included in this presenter search show done by the same company.

It's likely that The Search: E! Host South Africa in 2017 will probably add fuel to the fiery existing and ongoing #OpenUpTheIndustry debate about why there's a perceived lack of brand-new TV presenter faces in shows on South African screens, with existing presenters constantly being used and re-used again and again.

In late 2016 Colin McLeod, the managing director for UK and emerging markets at NBCUniversal International Networks said The Search: E! Host South Africa will be "a once-in-a-lifetime chance for up-and-coming talent from across the country to pursue this unique opportunity" to represent E! in Africa.

There were no public auditions for South Africans to become contestants in the show, with the 8 who were pre-selected through a casting process according to criteria that according to E! included "presenting experience, pop culture knowledge, and a passion for the E! brand".

Guest judges who will appear in The Search: E! Host South Africa to help choose the best TV presenter include fashion designers like David Tlale and Gert-Johan Coetzee, as well as Mzansi Magic's Idols presenter and co-producer ProVerb and TV and radio presenter Bonang Matheba who will be the first guest judge.

Similar to the other presenter search shows - this being E!'s first South African reality series - cameras will capture the tension and drama among the The Search: E! Host South Africa contestants in the Johannesburg based mansion.

The camera mansion includes a "glam-room" where contestants have their own make-up artists and stylists as they compete against each other to become E!'s presenter face in South Africa.

ANN7 dumps Juliet Newell from prime time and ANN Prime, keeps delaying new schedule roll-out and relaunch of morning show Vuka Africa.

Juliet Newell has been dumped from prime time and moved to an afternoon timeslot less than a month after ANN7 (DStv 405) confirmed that Juliet Newell is the new prime time anchor taking over its flagship show ANN7 Prime after Chantal Rutter Dros left.

ANN7 confirmed in January that Juliet Newell is their new prime time anchor, saying she "is the new prime anchor for ANN7 Prime, weekly from 19:00 to 20:00".

Less than a month later she disappeared to ANN7's afternoon line-up, with the inexperienced TV news reader Nzinga Qunta, who is not a journalist, now anchoring prime time.

ANN7's Infinity Media has not responded with answers to multiple media enquiries made since mid-February about Juliet Newell's appearance and her abrupt and quick exit from its prime time slot and why it happened - nor about the young Nzinga Qunta who took over.

Nzinga Qunta has been with ANN7 since the TV news channel launched.

Meanwhile ANN7's relaunch of its morning breakfast show anchored by Peter van Onselen, Vuka Afrika between 06:00 and 09:00 on weekdays, has been pushed back yet again, already missing two previous deadlines for the revamped show to start.

ANN7 morning anchor Abigail Visagie was supposed to join Peter van Onselen from the beginning of March as part of a "new" Vuka Africa, but that deadline has now also come and gone.

Since launch ANN7 has battled to overcome issues of credibility and professionalism with ongoing on-air gaffes and a lack of transparency.

Meanwhile ANN7 which in 2014 saw a dramatic loss of executives and on-air talent as several TV reporters and anchors - unhappy with the TV channel - decided to leave, is yet again advertising for TV reporters.

ANN7 is looking for news reporters, political reporters, provincial reporters, as well as entertainment and features reporters with at least two years' experience in the industry to beef up the channel's news reporting.

ANN7 adds new show, Face in the Crowd, with Abigail Visagie on Fridays at 13:45, celebrating young achievers.

ANN 7 (DStv 405) has added a new show, Face in the Crowd, with presenter Abigail Visagie, celebrating young South African achievers and the challenges they've overcome.

Face in the Crowd started this past Friday on ANN7 and is broadcast on Fridays at 13:45. The show looks at young and ambitious South Africans, where they come from, where they are going, their struggles, their achievements, how they got there and what they had to sacrifice.

Face in the Crowd breaks down their story - in a similar way that eNCA's (DStv 403) Against All Odds with Mpho Lakaje does - to uncover the road they travelled to achieve success, and the process they undertook to start from the bottom and work their way up.