Thousands of reel-to-reel tapes containing Somalia’s 20th-century history are stored in an air-conditioned archive at Radio Mogadishu, the country’s largest public broadcaster. Founded in 1951 during the Italian colonial era, Radio Mogadishu grew to dominate the urban Somali soundscape, becoming a key platform for musicians, poets, playwrights, and producers.

The tapes include news bulletins, speeches, music, and voices dating back to the early 1950s. A small team is currently working to digitise and organise approximately 400,000 hours of broadcasts before the magnetic tapes deteriorate beyond recovery. According to UNESCO, more than 85 percent of the tapes remain playable, but around 10 percent have deteriorated with age and over 5 percent have been destroyed or severely damaged.

Though Somali audiences have also accessed BBC Somali, Radio Hargeisa, and opposition stations since the late 20th century, Radio Mogadishu maintained its dominant role. Archivist Robleh described it as a "national factory of talent" that "made Somalia’s stars."

In related news, Somali intelligence has assisted the US in arresting an alleged leader of a fraud operation in Minnesota.

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