The eldest three children, Riaan Cruywagen was raised in a close-knit family in the heart of Johannesburg. His father instilled in him and his siblings to be honest, full of integrity and care for others. These values shaped him into the man he is today.
His father’s collection of encyclopaedia’s sparked his interest and appetite for news. He was only five-years old when he read his ‘first’ news broadcast- in his fathers garage. He knew from an early age he wanted to become a broadcaster and with the support of his family pursued his dream at Stellenbosch University.
The tragic loss of his sister a week before her wedding stregthend his family and he found joy when he met the love of his life, Riana, soon thereafter. Just six weeks after they had wed, they moved to the Netherlands, where he participated in a news correspondence exchange between them and South Africa. It was during his time abroad that he gained a new perspective and politcial awareness about the events in South Africa.
In 1975 he went from being a news producer to reading his first ever news bulletin on television. Another international opportunity arose and in the early 1980’s he packed up his young family and moved to Washington to begin work as a news correspondent. Upon his return he was made a permanent news anchor for the Afrikaans bulletin on his return.
Thirty-seven years after reading his first televsiion broadcast he decided to step away from his chair and go into retiremnet. It was short-lived when he was asked to return to the news desk and 50 years and 9000 news bulletins later, news-man Riaan still has a lot to share and news to read before he passes on the baton.
For even more magic, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter using the hashtag #MNet. You’ll also find us on WeChat on the ID mnettv!.
Don’t forget you can download the M-Net app for Apple and Android. Planning your M-Net viewing has never been so easy.
Â