Bongani Bingwa

Birthday September 1, 1974

Birth Sign Virgo

#350,387 Most Popular

About

South African radio host, journalist, and television presenter known for hosting the flagship breakfast show 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa on Radio 702 along with his television presenting work on Carte Blanche, anchoring SABC's Full View, and for hosting the 2019 elections current affairs series Democracy Gauge on SABC 3. He is also known for his early acting appearances on South African television series such as Generations, Isidingo, and Zero Tolerance.

Before fame

He developed a fascination with radio at a young age and would often listen closely to presenters and study their delivery. He pursued higher education at University of the Witwatersrand and majored in English and History. He began his media career in 1993 by initially working in television before transitioning into radio and investigative journalism. His early broadcasting career began in radio as a news anchor at Radio 702 in 2005 where he first gained experience delivering news bulletins. He then transitioned into hosting by taking on programs such as Talk at Nine talk radio. He became well known through his work on Carte Blanche as an investigative journalist from around 2005 to around 2017. His big break came in July 2017 when he rejoined 702 as the host of the Afternoon Drive show. He was promoted to the station's breakfast slot in January 2018.

Trivia

He was featured in a July 2007 issue of Vanity Fair as part of a group of notable African media professionals. He was selected as a fellow of the African Leadership Initiative in 2019 as part of its Class XV. He won Best Breakfast Presenter for Commercial Radio at the Telkom SA Radio Awards in 2024. He is fluent in Xhosa, Zulu, and English. He was an anchor host in 2014 on Channel 199 during the Oscar Pistorius trial coverage.