Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Encyclopedia
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" (and informally as "Aunty", originally in imitation of the BBC
's nickname), is Australia's national public broadcaster
. With a total budget of A$1.13 billion annually, the corporation provides television, radio, online and mobile services throughout metropolitan and regional Australia, as well as overseas through the Australia Network
and Radio Australia
.
Founded in 1929 as the Australian Broadcasting Company
, it was subsequently made a state-owned corporation on 1 July 1932, as the Australian Broadcasting Commission. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 changed the name of the organisation to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, effective 1 July 1983. Although funded and owned by the government, the ABC remains editorially independent
as ensured through the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983.
, Adelaide
, Perth
and Hobart
following. A licensing scheme, administered by the Postmaster-General's Department
, was soon established allowing certain stations government funding, albeit with restrictions placed on their advertising content.
Following a 1927 Royal Commission
inquiry into radio licensing issues, the government established the National Broadcasting Service which subsequently took over a number of the larger funded stations. It also nationalised the Australian Broadcasting Company
which had been created by entertainment interests to supply programs to various radio stations. On 1 July 1932, the Australian Broadcasting Commission was established, taking over the operations of the National Broadcasting Service and eventually establishing offices in each of Australia's capital cities.
Over the next four years the stations were reformed into a cohesive broadcasting organisation through regular program relays, coordinated by a centralised bureaucracy. The Australian broadcast radio spectrum was constituted of the ABC and the commercial sector.
In 1942 The Australian Broadcasting Act was passed, giving the ABC the power to decide when, and in what circumstances, political speeches should be broadcast. Directions from the Minister about whether or not to broadcast any matter now had to be made in writing, and any exercise of the power had to be mentioned in the Commission's Annual Report. It was used only once, in 1963. In the same year, "Kindergarten of the Air" began on ABC Radio in Perth, and was later broadcast nationally.
, on 5 November with ABV-2 Melbourne following two weeks later, on 18 November. These two stations were later joined by additional services in Brisbane (ABQ-2), Adelaide (ABS-2), Perth (ABW-2
), Hobart (ABT-2) and, eventually, Darwin (ABD-6). James Dibble
read the first television news bulletin for the ABC.
Although radio programs could be broadcast nationally by landline
, television relay facilities were not put in place until the early 1960s. This meant that news bulletins had to be sent to each capital city by teleprinter
, to be prepared and presented separately in each city, with filmed materials copied manually and sent to each state. Other television programs at the time included the popular Six O'Clock Rock
hosted by Johnny O'Keefe
, Mr Squiggle, as well as operas and plays.
In 1975, colour television was introduced into Australia, and within a decade the ABC had moved into satellite broadcasting, greatly enhancing its ability to distribute content nationally. In the same year, the ABC introduced a 24-hour-a-day AM rock station in Sydney, 2JJ (Double Jay), which was eventually expanded into the national Triple J
FM network. A year later, a national classical music network was established on the FM
band, broadcasting from Adelaide. It was initially known as ABC-FM – referring both to its 'fine music' programming and radio frequency.
In 1978 the ABC NSW Staff Association organised a strike against budget cuts and political interference. Sydney ABC was off air for four days. A packed free concert in support was held at the Regent Theatre
and compered by Bob Hudson
. It featured Fred Dagg
and Robyn Archer
.
The ABC budget began to decline in 1976 and was not reversed until 1985. However, Tom Molomby writes:
affairs, comedy, social history and current affairs was significantly expanded, while the Corporation's output of drama was boosted. Local production trebled from 1986–91 with the assistance of co-production, co-financing, and pre-sales arrangements.
The changes also led to the split of television and radio operations into two separate divisions, with an overhaul of management, finance, property and engineering undertaken. Geoffrey Whitehead
was the initial Managing Director, however following his resignation in 1986, David Hill
(at the time chair of the ABC Board) took over his position.
A new Concert Music department was formed in 1985 to coordinate the corporation's six symphony orchestras, which in turn received a greater level of autonomy in order to better respond to local needs. Open-air free concerts and tours, educational activities, and joint ventures with other music groups were undertaken at the time to expand the Orchestras' audience reach.
ABC Radio was restructured significantly in 1985 – Radio One became the Metropolitan network, while Radio 2 became known as Radio National
(callsigns, however, were not standardised until 1990). New programs such as The World Today, Australia All Over, and The Coodabeen Champions were introduced, while ABC-FM
established an Australian Music Unit in 1989. Radio Australia
began to focus on the Asia-Pacific
region, with coverage targeted at the south west and central Pacific, south-east Asia, and north Asia. Radio Australia also carried more news coverage, with special broadcasts during the 1987 Fijian coup, Tiananmen Square massacre, and the First Gulf War.
In 1991, the Corporation's Sydney radio and orchestral operations moved to a new building built by Leighton Holdings
on a single site in the inner-city suburb of Ultimo
. In Melbourne, the ABC Southbank Centre was completed in 1994, and now houses the radio division in Victoria as well as the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
The ABC Multimedia Unit was established in July, 1995, to manage the new ABC website (launched in August). Funding was allocated later that year specifically for online content, as opposed to reliance on funding for television and radio content. The first online election coverage was put together in 1996, and included news, electorate maps, candidate information and live results.
By the early 1990s, all major ABC broadcasting outlets moved to 24 hour-a-day operation, while regional radio coverage in Australia was extended with 80 new transmitters. Live television broadcasts of selected parliamentary sessions started in 1990. ABC NewsRadio
, a continuous news network broadcast on the Parliamentary and News Network
when parliament is not sitting, was launched on 5 October 1994.
International television service Australia Television International was established in 1993, while at the same Radio Australia increased its international reach. Reducing funding in 1997 for Radio Australia resulted in staff and programming cuts.
Australia Television was sold to the Seven Network
in 1998, however the service continued to show ABC news and current affairs programming
up until its closure in 2001. The ABC's television operation joined its radio and online divisions at the corporation's Ultimo headquarters in 2000.
At the same time, the ABC's Multimedia division was renamed 'ABC New Media', becoming an output division of the ABC alongside Television and Radio. Legislation allowed the ABC to provide 'multichannels' – additional, digital-only, television services managed by the New Media division. Soon after the introduction of digital television in 2001, Fly TV
and the ABC Kids Channel
launched, showing a mix of programming aimed at teenagers and children.
In 2002, the ABC launched ABC Asia Pacific
– the replacement for the defunct Australia Television International operated previously by the Seven Network. Much like its predecessor, and companion radio network Radio Australia
, the service provided a mix of programming targeted at audiences throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Funding cuts in 2003 led to the closure of Fly and the ABC Kid's Channel.
The ABC also launched a digital radio service, ABC DiG
, in November 2002, available though the internet and digital television, but not available through any other terrestrial broadcast until DAB+ became available in 2009.
ABC2
, a second attempt at a digital-only television channel, launched on 7 March 2005. Unlike its predecessors the new service was not dependent on government funding, instead running on a budget of A$3 million per year. Minister for Communications Helen Coonan
inaugurated the channel at Parliament House
three days later. Genre restrictions limiting the types of programming the channel could carry were lifted in October, 2006 – ABC2 was henceforth able to carry programming classified as comedy, drama, national news, sport and entertainment.
A high incidence of breast cancer in female staff working at the ABC's offices in Brisbane led to the closure of the site, based in Toowong
, on 21 December 2006. Sixteen women were diagnosed with the disease in a period spanning 1994 to 2007. A progress report released in March, 2007, by an independent panel formed to investigate the occurrences found that the rate of occurrence for breast cancer rate at the offices was eleven times higher than elsewhere – since the closure of the site, the ABC's Brisbane-based television and radio operations were moved to alternate locations around the city, including Ten Brisbane
's studios at Mt Coot-tha. The ABC's Managing Director, Mark Scott
, announced in August, 2007 that new studios would be built on the site, following the final release of the Review and Scientific Investigation Panel's report. The new home of the ABC in Brisbane will be at South Bank, next to the Conservatorium and QPAC.
At midday on 8 February 2008, ABC TV was rebranded as ABC1
, complementing the existing ABC2
digital-only channel which was launched on 7 March 2005 also adding branding for a new kids channel announced in the past throughout the Howard Government based on succeeding the 2007 election but left to 2009 Rudd Government Budget where ABC3
was funded later announced in June. A new online video-on-demand service launched in July of the same year, titled ABC iView
, and the ABC launched digital radio
broadcasts in the same month.
launched on 22 July 2010, and brought with it both new programming content as well as a collaboration of existing news and current affair productions and resources. The ABC launched the 24-hour news channel to both complement its existing 24-hour ABC News Radio
service and compete with commercial offerings on cable TV. It became the ABC's 5th domestic TV channel and the 4th launched within the past 10 years.
Appointments to the ABC Board
made by successive governments have often resulted in criticism of the appointees' political affiliation, background, and relative merit. Past appointments have associated directly with political parties – five of fourteen appointed chairmen have been accused of political affiliation or friendship, include Richard Downing and Ken Myer
(both of whom publicly endorsed the Australian Labor Party
at the 1972 election), as well as Sir Henry Bland. David Hill
was close to Neville Wran
, while Donald McDonald
was considered to be a close friend of John Howard
.
From 2003 the Howard Government
also made several controversial appointments to the ABC Board, including prominent ABC critic Janet Albrechtsen
, Ron Brunton
,
and Keith Windschuttle
.
During their 2007 federal election campaign, Labor announced plans to introduce a new system, similar to that of the BBC, for appointing members to the board. Under the new system, ABC candidates would be considered by a panel established "at arm's length" from the Communications Minister. If the Minister chose someone not on the panel's shortlist, they would be required to justify this to parliament. The ABC Chairman would be nominated by the Prime Minister and endorsed by the Leader of the Opposition.
The new merit-based appointment system was announced on 16 October, in advance of the new triennial funding period starting in 2009.
The board's members:
. In the 2006–07 federal budget, the ABC received A$
823 million of government funding, increased to $840 million in 2008–09. In the 2009-10 federal budget, the ABC received funding of $929.9 million.
Until 1948, the ABC was funded directly by radio licence fees; amendments were also made to the Australian Broadcasting Act that meant the ABC would receive its funding directly from the federal government. Licence fees remained until 1973 when they were abolished by the Whitlam
Labor government, on the basis that the near-universality of television and radio services meant that public funding was a fairer method of providing revenue for government-owned radio and television broadcasters.
The term "where your 8 cents a day goes", coined in the late 1980s during funding negotiations, is often used in reference to the services provided by the ABC. It is estimated that the cost of the ABC per head of population per day is now 7.1 cents a day, based on the Corporation's 2007–08 'base funding' of $543 million.
The Australian Communications Minister, Senator Stephen Conroy
indicated strong support from the Government for the ABC's funding submission for the 2009/10 budget, saying the organisation had been underfunded for many years.
members of parliament and some right wing commentators such as Andrew Bolt
, Piers Akerman
, Tim Blair
and Gerard Henderson
have accused the Corporation of left-wing bias, however similar criticism has come from the left, including former New South Wales premier
Neville Wran
, Bob Hawke
, and Paul Keating
.
Conservative Liberal Party governments in the 1960s and 1970s attempted to influence the Corporation's political coverage by threatening to reduce funding for its news and current affairs division, while the Hawke
government unsuccessfully proposed merging it with the Special Broadcasting Service
.
Soon after coming to office in 1996, the Liberal Party government of John Howard
reduced the ABC's operating grants by 10%. The appointment of Jonathan Shier
, managing director at the time, was also controversial.
A 2004 Roy Morgan media credibility survey found that media professionals regarded ABC Radio
as the most accurate news source in the country.
South Australian state treasurer Kevin Foley
accused ABC Radio of right-wing bias in February 2008 for its reporting of state economic issues, claiming that it is not "an objective media organisation".
A number of former journalists and presenters have moved from positions at the corporation to politics. State and federal Labor MPs Bob Carr
,
Alan Carpenter
,
Clare Martin
, Mary Delahunty
, and Maxine McKew
, as well as the Liberal Party's Pru Goward
, Rob Messenger, Peter Collins, and Eoin Cameron
, all held, or hold, positions at the ABC. Research undertaken by the broadcaster has indicated that out of a total of 19 former staffers moving into party political positions, 10 have joined the Labor Party, and 9 the Liberal Party.
. In addition, DiG Radio
launched on digital platforms in 2002, currently offering three separate stations.
ABC Local Radio
is the Corporation's flagship radio station in each broadcast area. There are 46 individual stations, each with a similar format consisting of locally presented light entertainment, news, talk back, music, sport and interviews, in addition to some national programming such as AM, PM, The World Today
, sporting events and Nightlife.
ABC Radio National broadcasts more than 60 special interest programs per week covering a range of topics including music, comedy, book readings, radio dramas, poetry, science, health, the arts, religion, social history and current affairs.
ABC NewsRadio
is a rolling news service, previously known as the Parliamentary and News Network
. The service was established to broadcast federal parliamentary sittings, to relieve the local ABC radio network from this intermittent task, and to provide a news service at other times. The network broadcasts news on a 24/7 format with updates on the quarter-hour. Much of its news content is produced by the ABC itself, however many programs are relayed from the BBC World Service
, NPR, Deutsche Welle
, Radio Netherlands
and CNN Radio.
ABC Classic FM
was the ABC's first FM radio service. It was originally known simply as "ABC FM", and for a short time "ABC Fine Music". Its format borrowed heavily from community stations that eventually founded the Fine Music Network, as well as BBC Radio 3
.
Triple J
is the national youth radio network, and broadcasts contemporary alternative and independent music; it is targeted at people aged 18–35. While the network plays music from around the world, it has a strong focus on local artists. Triple J was formerly known as "Double Jay" when it launched in Sydney on 19 January 1975.
, the Corporation's original television service, receives the bulk of funding for television and shows first-run comedy, drama, documentaries, and news and current affairs
. In each state and territory
a local news bulletin
is shown at 7.00 p.m. nightly.
In 2001 ABC TV
launched its digital service.
ABC2
, launched in 2005, is a digital-only
channel that shows repeated programs from ABC1, as well as some original content including news programs, children's shows, animation, and music shows.
In September 2007, the Australian government announced a proposal to launch a new digital-only children's channel, to be named ABC3
. An ABC3 channel appeared on television receivers in 2008, as a place holder for the future ABC3 channel. ABC3 was considered by the Australia 2020 Summit
and given as one of the recommendations to the Government. In April 2009, the Government's official response to the Summit approved the idea, and in the 2009–10 Commonwealth Budget $67 million was allocated towards ABC3 as part of the Government's $167 million funding increase to the ABC. The channel launched in December 2009.
In January 2010, the ABC announced its intention to launch Australia's first free-to-air news dedicated channel. ABC News 24
replaced the former ABC High Definition
simulcast of ABC1
and commenced broadcasting at 7:30pm (AEST) 5:30 (AWST
) on Thursday, 22 July 2010.
In 2001 the New Media division became New Media and Digital Services, reflecting the broader remit to develop content for digital platforms such as digital television
. In addition to ABC Online, the division also had responsibility over the ABC's two digital television services, Fly TV
and the ABC Kids Channel
, until their closure in 2003. In March 2005 the division oversaw the launch of ABC2, a free-to-air
digital television channel, in effect a replacement for ABC Kids and Fly.
In conjunction with the ABC's radio division, New Media and Digital Services implemented the ABC's first podcasts in December 2004. By mid-2006 the ABC had become an international leader in podcasting with over fifty podcast programs delivering hundreds of thousands of downloads per week, including trial video podcasts of The Chaser's War on Everything
and jtv
.
In February 2007, the New Media & Digital Services division was dissolved and divided up amongst other areas of the ABC. It was replaced by a new Innovations area, to manage ABC Online and investigate new technologies for the ABC.
, formerly ABC Asia Pacific, is an international satellite television service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, funded by advertising and grants from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
. Aimed at the Asia-Pacific region, the service broadcasts a mixture of English language programming, including general entertainment, sport, and current affairs.
ABC Radio Australia is an international shortwave, satellite and internet radio service with transmissions aimed at East Asia
and the Pacific Islands
, although its signals are also audible in many other parts of the world. It features programs in various languages spoken in these regions, including Mandarin, Indonesian
, Vietnamese
, Khmer
and Tok Pisin
.
Radio Australia bulletins are also carried on WRN Broadcast
, available via satellite in Europe and North America.
.
There are currently six state symphony orchestras:
The orchestras were corporatised in the 1990s but remain under ABC ownership, co-ordinated by Symphony Australia
.
The ABC logo is one of the most recognisable logos in Australia
. In the early years of television, the ABC had been using Lissajous curves as fillers between programs. In July 1963, the ABC conducted a staff competition to create a new logo for use on television, stationery, publications, microphone badges and ABC vehicles. In 1965, ABC graphics designer, Bill Kennard, who had been experimenting with telerecording of the cathode ray oscilloscope displays, submitted a design which was part of the waveform from an oscilloscope. The letters A-B-C were added to the design and it was adopted as the ABC's official logo. Kennard was presented with £
25 for his design.
Since its original introduction in 1965, it has been updated several times, including with the introduction of colour television in 1975. The line was thickened to feature colour in the logo. The 1975 logo is the longest-running logo, with a lifespan of 26 years. In 2001, with the introduction of digital television in Australia, ABC Television adopted a modified version of the logo, featuring a silver 3D look and losing the 'over and under' design. However, despite the launch of this logo, the 1975 logo is still used by the corporation. In July 2002, to celebrate ABC's 70th anniversary, the corporation adopted a new logo across all media. This new logo still used the silver 3D colour, but reverted to its 'over and under' design. The 2002 logo is still in use today.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's nickname), is Australia's national public broadcaster
Public broadcasting
Public broadcasting includes radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing and commercial financing.Public broadcasting may be...
. With a total budget of A$1.13 billion annually, the corporation provides television, radio, online and mobile services throughout metropolitan and regional Australia, as well as overseas through the Australia Network
Australia Network
Australia Network, originally Australia Television International and later ABC Asia Pacific, is a free-to-air international satellite television service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation since 2006. The television and online service broadcasts 24 hours a day on 7 days a week, to...
and Radio Australia
Radio Australia
Radio Australia is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation , Australia's public broadcaster.- History :...
.
Founded in 1929 as the Australian Broadcasting Company
Australian Broadcasting Company
The Australian Broadcasting Company was a consortium of entertainment interests formed in 1929 to supply radio programs for broadcast on the former "A-class" transmitters contracted to the Federal Government's National Broadcasting Service...
, it was subsequently made a state-owned corporation on 1 July 1932, as the Australian Broadcasting Commission. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 changed the name of the organisation to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, effective 1 July 1983. Although funded and owned by the government, the ABC remains editorially independent
Editorial independence
Editorial independence is the freedom of editors to make decisions without interference from the owners of a publication. Editorial independence is tested, for instance, if a newspaper runs articles that may be unpopular with its advertising clientele....
as ensured through the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983.
1920s–40s
The first public radio station in Australia opened in Sydney on 13 November 1923 under the call sign 2SB with other stations in Melbourne, BrisbaneBrisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
and Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
following. A licensing scheme, administered by the Postmaster-General's Department
Postmaster-General's Department
The Postmaster-General's Department was created at Federation in 1901 to control all postal services within Australia. Its minister was the Postmaster-General. In mid-1975 it was disaggregated into the Australian Telecommunications Commission and the Australian Postal Commission...
, was soon established allowing certain stations government funding, albeit with restrictions placed on their advertising content.
Following a 1927 Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...
inquiry into radio licensing issues, the government established the National Broadcasting Service which subsequently took over a number of the larger funded stations. It also nationalised the Australian Broadcasting Company
Australian Broadcasting Company
The Australian Broadcasting Company was a consortium of entertainment interests formed in 1929 to supply radio programs for broadcast on the former "A-class" transmitters contracted to the Federal Government's National Broadcasting Service...
which had been created by entertainment interests to supply programs to various radio stations. On 1 July 1932, the Australian Broadcasting Commission was established, taking over the operations of the National Broadcasting Service and eventually establishing offices in each of Australia's capital cities.
In 1942 The Australian Broadcasting Act was passed, giving the ABC the power to decide when, and in what circumstances, political speeches should be broadcast. Directions from the Minister about whether or not to broadcast any matter now had to be made in writing, and any exercise of the power had to be mentioned in the Commission's Annual Report. It was used only once, in 1963. In the same year, "Kindergarten of the Air" began on ABC Radio in Perth, and was later broadcast nationally.
1950s–70s
The commission commenced television broadcasting in Sydney and Melbourne in 1956. ABN-2 Sydney was inaugurated by the Prime Minister, Robert MenziesRobert Menzies
Sir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....
, on 5 November with ABV-2 Melbourne following two weeks later, on 18 November. These two stations were later joined by additional services in Brisbane (ABQ-2), Adelaide (ABS-2), Perth (ABW-2
ABW-2
ABW is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television station in Perth, Western Australia. The station began broadcasting on 7 May 1960 from studios are in East Perth and its transmitter is at Bickley...
), Hobart (ABT-2) and, eventually, Darwin (ABD-6). James Dibble
James Dibble
James Edward Dibble AM MBE was an Australian television presenter, best known as the presenter of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's Sydney news, reading the first news bulletin in 1956, and remaining with the ABC for 27 years up until his retirement in 1983.-Career:Dibble joined the ABC...
read the first television news bulletin for the ABC.
Landline
A landline was originally an overland telegraph wire, as opposed to an undersea cable. Currently, landline refers to a telephone line which travels through a solid medium, either metal wire or optical fibre, as distinguished from a mobile cellular line, where transmission is via radio waves...
, television relay facilities were not put in place until the early 1960s. This meant that news bulletins had to be sent to each capital city by teleprinter
Teleprinter
A teleprinter is a electromechanical typewriter that can be used to communicate typed messages from point to point and point to multipoint over a variety of communication channels that range from a simple electrical connection, such as a pair of wires, to the use of radio and microwave as the...
, to be prepared and presented separately in each city, with filmed materials copied manually and sent to each state. Other television programs at the time included the popular Six O'Clock Rock
Six O'Clock Rock
Six O'Clock Rock was an Australian Rock and Roll television show which showed on ABC Television from 28 February 1959 to 1962 and was broadcast at 6PM on Saturday evenings....
hosted by Johnny O'Keefe
Johnny O'Keefe
John Michael O'Keefe, known as Johnny O'Keefe was an Australian rock and roll singer whose career began in the 1950s. Some of his hits include "Wild One" , "Shout!" and "She's My Baby"...
, Mr Squiggle, as well as operas and plays.
In 1975, colour television was introduced into Australia, and within a decade the ABC had moved into satellite broadcasting, greatly enhancing its ability to distribute content nationally. In the same year, the ABC introduced a 24-hour-a-day AM rock station in Sydney, 2JJ (Double Jay), which was eventually expanded into the national Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
FM network. A year later, a national classical music network was established on the FM
Frequency modulation
In telecommunications and signal processing, frequency modulation conveys information over a carrier wave by varying its instantaneous frequency. This contrasts with amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier is varied while its frequency remains constant...
band, broadcasting from Adelaide. It was initially known as ABC-FM – referring both to its 'fine music' programming and radio frequency.
In 1978 the ABC NSW Staff Association organised a strike against budget cuts and political interference. Sydney ABC was off air for four days. A packed free concert in support was held at the Regent Theatre
Regent Theatre (Sydney)
The Regent Theatre was a heritage-listed theatre in Sydney, Australia, which was demolished in 1988.-Description and history:The Regent Theatre was Hoyts' showcase "picture palace" in Sydney, designed by the distinguished architect Cedric Ballantyne and built by James Porter & Sons.Located at...
and compered by Bob Hudson
Bob Hudson (Australian singer)
Robert "Bob" Hudson is an Australian singer and radio presenter, his satirical narrative, "The Newcastle Song" topped the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Chart for four weeks in 1975. The single version was an edit of the ten-minute live recording from the related album, Newcastle Song...
. It featured Fred Dagg
Fred Dagg
Fred Dagg is a fictional archetype satirist from New Zealand created and acted on stage, film and television by satirist John Clarke. Clarke graced New Zealand TV screens as Dagg during the mid to late 1970s, "taking the piss" out of the post-pioneering Kiwi bloke and ‘blokesses’.When Clarke first...
and Robyn Archer
Robyn Archer
Robyn Archer AO CdOAL is an Australian singer, writer, stage and director, artistic director, and public advocate of the arts, in Australia and internationally.-Life:Archer was born Robyn Smith in Prospect, South Australia...
.
The ABC budget began to decline in 1976 and was not reversed until 1985. However, Tom Molomby writes:
- "The effects of the budget reductions had been so badly handled that the organisation was to remain seriously crippled for years."
1980s–90s
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 changed the name of the organisation from the "Australian Broadcasting Commission" to the "Australian Broadcasting Corporation" effective 1 July 1983. At the same time, the newly-formed Corporation underwent significant restructuring – program production in indigenousIndigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
affairs, comedy, social history and current affairs was significantly expanded, while the Corporation's output of drama was boosted. Local production trebled from 1986–91 with the assistance of co-production, co-financing, and pre-sales arrangements.
The changes also led to the split of television and radio operations into two separate divisions, with an overhaul of management, finance, property and engineering undertaken. Geoffrey Whitehead
Geoffrey Whitehead
Geoffrey Whitehead is an English actor. He has appeared in a huge range of television, film and radio roles. In the theatre, he has played at the Shakespeare Globe, St...
was the initial Managing Director, however following his resignation in 1986, David Hill
David Hill
-Politicians:* David B. Hill , Governor of the U.S. state of New York, 1885–1891, U.S. Senator from New York, 1892–1897* David Jayne Hill , politician from New York, United States Assistant Secretary of State, 1898–1903...
(at the time chair of the ABC Board) took over his position.
A new Concert Music department was formed in 1985 to coordinate the corporation's six symphony orchestras, which in turn received a greater level of autonomy in order to better respond to local needs. Open-air free concerts and tours, educational activities, and joint ventures with other music groups were undertaken at the time to expand the Orchestras' audience reach.
ABC Radio was restructured significantly in 1985 – Radio One became the Metropolitan network, while Radio 2 became known as Radio National
Radio National
ABC Radio National is an Australia-wide non-commercial radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.Radio National broadcasts national programming in areas that include news and current affairs, the arts, social issues, science, drama and comedy...
(callsigns, however, were not standardised until 1990). New programs such as The World Today, Australia All Over, and The Coodabeen Champions were introduced, while ABC-FM
ABC Classic FM
ABC Classic FM is a classical music radio station available in Australia, and internationally online. It is operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It was established in 1976 as "ABC-FM", and later for a short time was known as "ABC Fine Music" , before adopting its current name...
established an Australian Music Unit in 1989. Radio Australia
Radio Australia
Radio Australia is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation , Australia's public broadcaster.- History :...
began to focus on the Asia-Pacific
Asia-Pacific
Asia-Pacific or Asia Pacific is the part of the world in or near the Western Pacific Ocean...
region, with coverage targeted at the south west and central Pacific, south-east Asia, and north Asia. Radio Australia also carried more news coverage, with special broadcasts during the 1987 Fijian coup, Tiananmen Square massacre, and the First Gulf War.
Leighton Holdings
Leighton Holdings is Australia's largest project development and contracting group. It is active in the telecommunications, engineering and infrastructure, building and property, mining and resources, and environmental services industries...
on a single site in the inner-city suburb of Ultimo
Ultimo, New South Wales
Ultimo is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Ultimo is located 2 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Sydney....
. In Melbourne, the ABC Southbank Centre was completed in 1994, and now houses the radio division in Victoria as well as the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
The ABC Multimedia Unit was established in July, 1995, to manage the new ABC website (launched in August). Funding was allocated later that year specifically for online content, as opposed to reliance on funding for television and radio content. The first online election coverage was put together in 1996, and included news, electorate maps, candidate information and live results.
By the early 1990s, all major ABC broadcasting outlets moved to 24 hour-a-day operation, while regional radio coverage in Australia was extended with 80 new transmitters. Live television broadcasts of selected parliamentary sessions started in 1990. ABC NewsRadio
ABC NewsRadio
ABC NewsRadio is an Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio service devoted to delivering live and 24-hour news updates and information. The service is available on a number of broadcasts right around Australia, including AM/FM radio, some pay-TV platforms and online via the Internet.Originally...
, a continuous news network broadcast on the Parliamentary and News Network
Parliamentary and News Network
Parliamentary News Network was an Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio network dedicated to broadcasting the Australian Parliament's "Question Time" sessions. It was established in the 1960s, parliamentary broadcasts previously being carried by contracted stations.It was taken over by the...
when parliament is not sitting, was launched on 5 October 1994.
International television service Australia Television International was established in 1993, while at the same Radio Australia increased its international reach. Reducing funding in 1997 for Radio Australia resulted in staff and programming cuts.
Australia Television was sold to the Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
in 1998, however the service continued to show ABC news and current affairs programming
ABC News and Current Affairs
ABC News and Current Affairs is the name of the division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that controls content classified as news, public affairs and business and finance....
up until its closure in 2001. The ABC's television operation joined its radio and online divisions at the corporation's Ultimo headquarters in 2000.
2000s
In 2001, digital television commenced after four years of preparation. In readiness, the ABC had fully digitised its production, post-production and transmission facilities – heralded at the time as 'the greatest advance in television technology since the introduction of colour.' The first programs to be produced in widescreen were drama series Something in the Air, Grass Roots and In the Mind of the Architect.At the same time, the ABC's Multimedia division was renamed 'ABC New Media', becoming an output division of the ABC alongside Television and Radio. Legislation allowed the ABC to provide 'multichannels' – additional, digital-only, television services managed by the New Media division. Soon after the introduction of digital television in 2001, Fly TV
Fly TV
Fly TV was an ABC Television channel available to viewers of digital terrestrial television in Australia. The channel featured programming aimed towards teenagers and young adults. It was launched nationally on 1 November 2001, and aired alongside the children's-oriented ABC Kids Channel, which...
and the ABC Kids Channel
ABC Kids Channel
The ABC Kids Channel was an ABC Television channel available to viewers of digital terrestrial television in Australia. Launched on 1 August 2001, the channel offered repeats of popular ABC Kids programmes both simulcast and timeshifted....
launched, showing a mix of programming aimed at teenagers and children.
In 2002, the ABC launched ABC Asia Pacific
Australia Network
Australia Network, originally Australia Television International and later ABC Asia Pacific, is a free-to-air international satellite television service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation since 2006. The television and online service broadcasts 24 hours a day on 7 days a week, to...
– the replacement for the defunct Australia Television International operated previously by the Seven Network. Much like its predecessor, and companion radio network Radio Australia
Radio Australia
Radio Australia is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation , Australia's public broadcaster.- History :...
, the service provided a mix of programming targeted at audiences throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Funding cuts in 2003 led to the closure of Fly and the ABC Kid's Channel.
The ABC also launched a digital radio service, ABC DiG
ABC DiG
ABC DiG is a digital radio service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation which began in November 2002, emerging from formats developed by Bill Gates and Phil Cullen at ABC Coast FM, which broadcast an Adult Alternative music format and was for many years ABC Radio's only continuous...
, in November 2002, available though the internet and digital television, but not available through any other terrestrial broadcast until DAB+ became available in 2009.
ABC2
ABC2 is a national public television channel in Australia. Launched on 7 March 2005, it is the responsibility of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television division, and is available nationally to digital television viewers in Australia...
, a second attempt at a digital-only television channel, launched on 7 March 2005. Unlike its predecessors the new service was not dependent on government funding, instead running on a budget of A$3 million per year. Minister for Communications Helen Coonan
Helen Coonan
Helen Lloyd Coonan is a former Australian politician, who was a Liberal member of the Australian Senate representing New South Wales from July 1996 to August 2011.-Early life:...
inaugurated the channel at Parliament House
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia, also known as the Commonwealth Parliament or Federal Parliament, is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It is bicameral, largely modelled in the Westminster tradition, but with some influences from the United States Congress...
three days later. Genre restrictions limiting the types of programming the channel could carry were lifted in October, 2006 – ABC2 was henceforth able to carry programming classified as comedy, drama, national news, sport and entertainment.
A high incidence of breast cancer in female staff working at the ABC's offices in Brisbane led to the closure of the site, based in Toowong
Toowong, Queensland
Toowong is an inner suburb of Brisbane, Australia which is located 5 km west of the Brisbane CBD. At the centre of Toowong is a commercial precinct including Toowong Village and several office buildings...
, on 21 December 2006. Sixteen women were diagnosed with the disease in a period spanning 1994 to 2007. A progress report released in March, 2007, by an independent panel formed to investigate the occurrences found that the rate of occurrence for breast cancer rate at the offices was eleven times higher than elsewhere – since the closure of the site, the ABC's Brisbane-based television and radio operations were moved to alternate locations around the city, including Ten Brisbane
TVQ-10
TVQ is the Brisbane television station of Network Ten in Australia.The channel was allocated channel 0 on the VHF band and was launched on 1 July 1965 as TVQ-0...
's studios at Mt Coot-tha. The ABC's Managing Director, Mark Scott
Mark Scott (businessman)
Mark Walter Scott AO is the current Managing Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. He took up his position in July 2006, having previously been the Editorial Director at John Fairfax, responsible for the editorial content of the group's major newspapers including The Sydney Morning...
, announced in August, 2007 that new studios would be built on the site, following the final release of the Review and Scientific Investigation Panel's report. The new home of the ABC in Brisbane will be at South Bank, next to the Conservatorium and QPAC.
At midday on 8 February 2008, ABC TV was rebranded as ABC1
ABC1
ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
, complementing the existing ABC2
ABC2
ABC2 is a national public television channel in Australia. Launched on 7 March 2005, it is the responsibility of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television division, and is available nationally to digital television viewers in Australia...
digital-only channel which was launched on 7 March 2005 also adding branding for a new kids channel announced in the past throughout the Howard Government based on succeeding the 2007 election but left to 2009 Rudd Government Budget where ABC3
ABC3
-Future shows:Programming confirmed for future broadcast will include:* After School Care * Bindi's Boot Camp * Bushwacked! * Dance Academy * Dancing Down Under...
was funded later announced in June. A new online video-on-demand service launched in July of the same year, titled ABC iView
ABC iView
ABC iview is a video on demand and Catch up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The service became available on 24 July 2008. This was the next step after the podcasting of programmes since July 2006. Currently, this site is only viewable to users in Australia. The site...
, and the ABC launched digital radio
Digital radio in Australia
Digital radio in Australia uses the DAB+ standard and is currently available in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and Darwin. The national government owned networks, the ABC and SBS, provide their current services and a few digital-only services on the new platform, while the...
broadcasts in the same month.
2010s
ABC News 24ABC News 24
ABC News 24 is an Australian 24-hour news channel launched and owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The channel replaced the former ABC High Definition simulcast of ABC1 and commenced broadcasting at 7:30pm 5:30 on Thursday, 22 July 2010.-Pre-launch:The ABC announced in January 2010...
launched on 22 July 2010, and brought with it both new programming content as well as a collaboration of existing news and current affair productions and resources. The ABC launched the 24-hour news channel to both complement its existing 24-hour ABC News Radio
ABC NewsRadio
ABC NewsRadio is an Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio service devoted to delivering live and 24-hour news updates and information. The service is available on a number of broadcasts right around Australia, including AM/FM radio, some pay-TV platforms and online via the Internet.Originally...
service and compete with commercial offerings on cable TV. It became the ABC's 5th domestic TV channel and the 4th launched within the past 10 years.
Structure
Below is the divisional structure of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.| ABC Secretariat | Director of Editorial Policies | Chief of Staff | Director of Corporate Development | General Counsel Rob Simpson |
Chief Operating Officer David Pendleton |
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| ABC Board ABC Board The ABC Board is the body responsible for the operations of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It is made up of five to seven directors chosen by the Federal government, a Managing Director appointed by the Board itself, and until 2006 a staff-elected director.-Members:The Governor-General,... Managing Director Mark Scott Mark Scott (businessman) Mark Walter Scott AO is the current Managing Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. He took up his position in July 2006, having previously been the Editorial Director at John Fairfax, responsible for the editorial content of the group's major newspapers including The Sydney Morning... |
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| Innovation ABC Innovation ABC Innovation is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation formed in early 2007 as 'an incubator for digital development across the ABC'... Director Ian Carroll |
Radio and Regional Content ABC Radio and Regional Content ABC Radio and Regional Content is the division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for radio output and regional content.-Origins:... Director Kate Dundas |
Television ABC Television ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas.... Director Kim Dalton |
News and Current Affairs ABC News and Current Affairs ABC News and Current Affairs is the name of the division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that controls content classified as news, public affairs and business and finance.... Director Kate Torney |
International, Corporate Strategy & Governance Director Murray Green |
Commercial ABC Commercial ABC Commercial is the commercial arm of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It is responsible for making a profit through the creation, marketing and retailing of ABC products and services worldwide.-History:... Director Lynley Marshall |
Communications Director Michael Millett |
Management
The operations of the ABC are governed by a board of directors, consisting of a Managing Director, five to seven Directors, and until 2006, a staff-elected director. The Managing Director is appointed by the board for a period of up to five years, but is eligible for renewal. The authority and guidelines for the appointment of directors is provided for in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983.Appointments to the ABC Board
ABC Board
The ABC Board is the body responsible for the operations of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It is made up of five to seven directors chosen by the Federal government, a Managing Director appointed by the Board itself, and until 2006 a staff-elected director.-Members:The Governor-General,...
made by successive governments have often resulted in criticism of the appointees' political affiliation, background, and relative merit. Past appointments have associated directly with political parties – five of fourteen appointed chairmen have been accused of political affiliation or friendship, include Richard Downing and Ken Myer
Ken Myer
Kenneth Baillieu Myer AC DSC was an American-born Australian patron of the arts, humanities and sciences; diplomat; administrator; businessman; and philanthropist...
(both of whom publicly endorsed the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
at the 1972 election), as well as Sir Henry Bland. David Hill
David Hill (businessman)
David Hill is a British-born Australian businessman who has held a number of high profile senior positions with public authorities in Australia. He is also a writer....
was close to Neville Wran
Neville Wran
Neville Kenneth Wran, AC, CNZM, QC was the Premier of New South Wales from 1976 until 1986. He was National President of the Australian Labor Party from 1980 to 1986 and Chairman of both the Lionel Murphy Foundation and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation from 1986...
, while Donald McDonald
Donald McDonald (ABC chairperson)
Donald Benjamin McDonald AC is an Australian arts administrator and between 1996 and 2006 was chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia's national public broadcaster...
was considered to be a close friend of John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
.
From 2003 the Howard Government
Howard Government
The Howard Government refers to the federal Executive Government of Australia led by Prime Minister John Howard. It was made up of members of the Liberal–National Coalition, which won a majority of seats in the Australian House of Representatives at four successive elections. The Howard Government...
also made several controversial appointments to the ABC Board, including prominent ABC critic Janet Albrechtsen
Janet Albrechtsen
Janet Kim Albrechtsen is a conservative Australian opinion columnist with the News Limited-owned newspaper, The Australian. From 2005 through 2010, she was a member of the Board of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia's state-owned national broadcaster.-Early life and...
, Ron Brunton
Ron Brunton
Dr Ron Brunton is an Australian anthropologist. He is currently the Director of Encompass Research Pty Ltd and was a Director of the Board of the public broadcaster, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation for a five year term from 1 May 2003....
,
and Keith Windschuttle
Keith Windschuttle
Keith Windschuttle is an Australian writer, historian, and ABC board member, who has authored several books from the 1970s onwards. These include Unemployment, , which analysed the economic causes and social consequences of unemployment in Australia and advocated a socialist response; The Media: a...
.
During their 2007 federal election campaign, Labor announced plans to introduce a new system, similar to that of the BBC, for appointing members to the board. Under the new system, ABC candidates would be considered by a panel established "at arm's length" from the Communications Minister. If the Minister chose someone not on the panel's shortlist, they would be required to justify this to parliament. The ABC Chairman would be nominated by the Prime Minister and endorsed by the Leader of the Opposition.
The new merit-based appointment system was announced on 16 October, in advance of the new triennial funding period starting in 2009.
The board's members:
- Mark ScottMark Scott (businessman)Mark Walter Scott AO is the current Managing Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. He took up his position in July 2006, having previously been the Editorial Director at John Fairfax, responsible for the editorial content of the group's major newspapers including The Sydney Morning...
– Managing Director, appointed 5 July 2006 - Maurice NewmanMaurice NewmanMaurice Lionel Newman AC is the current Chairperson of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, as well as former chair of the board of the Australian Stock Exchange. He was Chancellor of Macquarie University until 2008....
AC – Chairperson, appointed 1 January 2007
- Steven SkalaSteven SkalaSteven Michael Skala AO is the Vice Chairman of Deutsche Bank for Australia and New Zealand, and a member of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's board of directors since 6 October 2006. He is also a director of the Australian Ballet and the neo-liberal/conservative think tank, the Centre for...
– appointed 6 October 2005 - Peter HurleyPeter HurleyPeter Hurley is the President of the South Australian branch of the Australian Hotels Association and on the board of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.-Notes:...
– appointed 14 June 2006 - Keith WindschuttleKeith WindschuttleKeith Windschuttle is an Australian writer, historian, and ABC board member, who has authored several books from the 1970s onwards. These include Unemployment, , which analysed the economic causes and social consequences of unemployment in Australia and advocated a socialist response; The Media: a...
– appointed 14 June 2006 - Julianne Schultz - appointed 27 March 2009
- Michael Lynch - appointed 27 March 2009
- Cheryl BartCheryl BartCheryl Sarah Bart AO is an Australian lawyer and company director.Bart was educated at Moriah College in Sydney and graduated from the University of New South Wales with degrees in commerce and law...
- appointed 3 June 2010
Funding
As opposed to many of its international counterparts such as the BBC, the ABC is funded entirely by the Australian government, in addition to some revenue received from its retail outletsABC Commercial
ABC Commercial is the commercial arm of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It is responsible for making a profit through the creation, marketing and retailing of ABC products and services worldwide.-History:...
. In the 2006–07 federal budget, the ABC received A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
823 million of government funding, increased to $840 million in 2008–09. In the 2009-10 federal budget, the ABC received funding of $929.9 million.
Until 1948, the ABC was funded directly by radio licence fees; amendments were also made to the Australian Broadcasting Act that meant the ABC would receive its funding directly from the federal government. Licence fees remained until 1973 when they were abolished by the Whitlam
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam, AC, QC , known as Gough Whitlam , served as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia. Whitlam led the Australian Labor Party to power at the 1972 election and retained government at the 1974 election, before being dismissed by Governor-General Sir John Kerr at the climax of the...
Labor government, on the basis that the near-universality of television and radio services meant that public funding was a fairer method of providing revenue for government-owned radio and television broadcasters.
The term "where your 8 cents a day goes", coined in the late 1980s during funding negotiations, is often used in reference to the services provided by the ABC. It is estimated that the cost of the ABC per head of population per day is now 7.1 cents a day, based on the Corporation's 2007–08 'base funding' of $543 million.
The Australian Communications Minister, Senator Stephen Conroy
Stephen Conroy
Stephen Michael Conroy is an Australian politician and the current Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy in the Gillard Ministry...
indicated strong support from the Government for the ABC's funding submission for the 2009/10 budget, saying the organisation had been underfunded for many years.
Politics and criticism
The ABC has often been accused of having a bias to the left wing of politics. CoalitionCoalition (Australia)
The Coalition in Australian politics refers to a group of centre-right parties that has existed in the form of a coalition agreement since 1922...
members of parliament and some right wing commentators such as Andrew Bolt
Andrew Bolt
Andrew Bolt is an Australian newspaper columnist, radio commentator, blogger and television host. Bolt is a columnist and associate editor of the Melbourne-based Herald Sun. He has appeared on the Nine Network, Melbourne Talk Radio, ABC Television, Network Ten and local radio...
, Piers Akerman
Piers Akerman
Piers Akerman is a right-wing commentator and columnist for The Daily Telegraph.-Brief biography:Born in Wewak, Papua New Guinea, Piers Akerman was raised in Perth by his parents, John, an Australian Government doctor, and Eve Akerman , a newspaper columnist and reviewer in Western Australia. He...
, Tim Blair
Tim Blair
Tim Blair is a conservative journalist, commentator and blogger working in Sydney, Australia.Blair began his journalism cadetship in 1988 at 23, working for the now-closed Truth newspaper in Melbourne. In 2004, the Sydney Morning Herald said that "Blair, 39, is top dog among the new Australian...
and Gerard Henderson
Gerard Henderson
Gerard Henderson is a conservative Australian newspaper columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald.. He is also Executive Director of the Sydney Institute, a privately funded current affairs forum. His wife Anne Henderson is Deputy Director.-Education:Henderson attended the Jesuit Xavier College in...
have accused the Corporation of left-wing bias, however similar criticism has come from the left, including former New South Wales premier
Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in some countries and states.-Examples by country:In many nations, "premier" is used interchangeably with "prime minister"...
Neville Wran
Neville Wran
Neville Kenneth Wran, AC, CNZM, QC was the Premier of New South Wales from 1976 until 1986. He was National President of the Australian Labor Party from 1980 to 1986 and Chairman of both the Lionel Murphy Foundation and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation from 1986...
, Bob Hawke
Bob Hawke
Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
, and Paul Keating
Paul Keating
Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...
.
Conservative Liberal Party governments in the 1960s and 1970s attempted to influence the Corporation's political coverage by threatening to reduce funding for its news and current affairs division, while the Hawke
Bob Hawke
Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....
government unsuccessfully proposed merging it with the Special Broadcasting Service
Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
.
Soon after coming to office in 1996, the Liberal Party government of John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
reduced the ABC's operating grants by 10%. The appointment of Jonathan Shier
Jonathan Shier
Jonathan Shier is an Australian-born media executive who lived in the United Kingdom from 1976 until 1999, who is best known for his controversial tenure as managing director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from 1999-2002.- References :...
, managing director at the time, was also controversial.
A 2004 Roy Morgan media credibility survey found that media professionals regarded ABC Radio
ABC Radio and Regional Content
ABC Radio and Regional Content is the division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for radio output and regional content.-Origins:...
as the most accurate news source in the country.
South Australian state treasurer Kevin Foley
Kevin Foley
Kevin Owen Foley , Australian politician, is the current Minister for Industry and Trade and Minister for Federal/State Relations in the Rann Labor government. He previously served as Treasurer of South Australia and Deputy Premier of South Australia from 2002 until his resignation in 2011...
accused ABC Radio of right-wing bias in February 2008 for its reporting of state economic issues, claiming that it is not "an objective media organisation".
A number of former journalists and presenters have moved from positions at the corporation to politics. State and federal Labor MPs Bob Carr
Bob Carr
Robert John "Bob" Carr , Australian statesman, was Premier of New South Wales from 4 April 1995 to 3 August 2005. He holds the record for the longest continuous service as premier of NSW...
,
Alan Carpenter
Alan Carpenter
Alan John Carpenter is a former Australian politician. He was the 28th Premier of Western Australia, serving from 2006 to 2008. He took office following the resignation of Dr Geoff Gallop...
,
Clare Martin
Clare Martin
Clare Majella Martin is a former Australian politician. She is the current CEO of the Australian Council of Social Service . A former journalist, she was elected to the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly in a shock by-election win in 1995...
, Mary Delahunty
Mary Delahunty
Mary Delahunty is an Australian journalist and retired politician with the Australian Labor Party.-Early life:Delahunty was born in Victoria, Australia and educated at Loreto College, in Victoria. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Latrobe University.-Media career:Delahunty...
, and Maxine McKew
Maxine McKew
Maxine Margaret McKew , is a former Australian politician and journalist; she was the Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government in the Rudd Ministry and the First Gillard Ministry. Between 2007 and 2010, she was the member of the House of...
, as well as the Liberal Party's Pru Goward
Pru Goward
Prudence Jane Goward MP , an Australian politician, is the Minister for Community Services and Women in the O'Farrell Liberal-National Coalition Government since 2011. Goward is a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing Goulburn for the Liberal Party of Australia since 2007...
, Rob Messenger, Peter Collins, and Eoin Cameron
Eoin Cameron
Eoin Harrap Cameron is a popular radio personality in Perth, Western Australia. He currently works the ABC's Perth local station 720 ABC Perth breakfast show, regularly receiving top ratings for the most popular breakfast radio show....
, all held, or hold, positions at the ABC. Research undertaken by the broadcaster has indicated that out of a total of 19 former staffers moving into party political positions, 10 have joined the Labor Party, and 9 the Liberal Party.
Radio
The ABC operates 46 local radio stations, in addition to four national networks and international service Radio AustraliaRadio Australia
Radio Australia is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation , Australia's public broadcaster.- History :...
. In addition, DiG Radio
Dig
-Music:* Dig , an American rock bandAlbums* Dig , or the title song* Dig * Dig * Dig , or the title song* Dig...
launched on digital platforms in 2002, currently offering three separate stations.
ABC Local Radio
ABC Local Radio
ABC Local Radio is a network of publicly owned radio stations in Australia, operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.ABC Local Radio stations broadcast across the continent using terrestrial transmitters and satellites...
is the Corporation's flagship radio station in each broadcast area. There are 46 individual stations, each with a similar format consisting of locally presented light entertainment, news, talk back, music, sport and interviews, in addition to some national programming such as AM, PM, The World Today
The World Today
BBC World News is the standard news bulletin featuring the latest international news broadcast throughout most of the day on BBC World News. Some editions also feature brief business and sport reports as well...
, sporting events and Nightlife.
ABC Radio National broadcasts more than 60 special interest programs per week covering a range of topics including music, comedy, book readings, radio dramas, poetry, science, health, the arts, religion, social history and current affairs.
ABC NewsRadio
ABC NewsRadio
ABC NewsRadio is an Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio service devoted to delivering live and 24-hour news updates and information. The service is available on a number of broadcasts right around Australia, including AM/FM radio, some pay-TV platforms and online via the Internet.Originally...
is a rolling news service, previously known as the Parliamentary and News Network
Parliamentary and News Network
Parliamentary News Network was an Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio network dedicated to broadcasting the Australian Parliament's "Question Time" sessions. It was established in the 1960s, parliamentary broadcasts previously being carried by contracted stations.It was taken over by the...
. The service was established to broadcast federal parliamentary sittings, to relieve the local ABC radio network from this intermittent task, and to provide a news service at other times. The network broadcasts news on a 24/7 format with updates on the quarter-hour. Much of its news content is produced by the ABC itself, however many programs are relayed from the BBC World Service
BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is the world's largest international broadcaster, broadcasting in 27 languages to many parts of the world via analogue and digital shortwave, internet streaming and podcasting, satellite, FM and MW relays...
, NPR, Deutsche Welle
Deutsche Welle
Deutsche Welle or DW, is Germany's international broadcaster. The service is aimed at the overseas market. It broadcasts news and information on shortwave, Internet and satellite radio on 98.7 DZFE in 30 languages . It has a satellite television service , that is available in four languages, and...
, Radio Netherlands
Radio Netherlands
Radio Netherlands Worldwide is a public radio and television network based in Hilversum, producing and transmitting programmes for international audiences outside the Netherlands...
and CNN Radio.
ABC Classic FM
ABC Classic FM
ABC Classic FM is a classical music radio station available in Australia, and internationally online. It is operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation . It was established in 1976 as "ABC-FM", and later for a short time was known as "ABC Fine Music" , before adopting its current name...
was the ABC's first FM radio service. It was originally known simply as "ABC FM", and for a short time "ABC Fine Music". Its format borrowed heavily from community stations that eventually founded the Fine Music Network, as well as BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
.
Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
is the national youth radio network, and broadcasts contemporary alternative and independent music; it is targeted at people aged 18–35. While the network plays music from around the world, it has a strong focus on local artists. Triple J was formerly known as "Double Jay" when it launched in Sydney on 19 January 1975.
Television
Within Australia, the ABC operates four channels. ABC1ABC1
ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
, the Corporation's original television service, receives the bulk of funding for television and shows first-run comedy, drama, documentaries, and news and current affairs
ABC News and Current Affairs
ABC News and Current Affairs is the name of the division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that controls content classified as news, public affairs and business and finance....
. In each state and territory
States and territories of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...
a local news bulletin
ABC News (Australia)
ABC News is a national news service produced by the News and Current Affairs division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation - the division is responsible for all newsgathering and production of news output for ABC television, radio and online services...
is shown at 7.00 p.m. nightly.
In 2001 ABC TV
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
launched its digital service.
ABC2
ABC2
ABC2 is a national public television channel in Australia. Launched on 7 March 2005, it is the responsibility of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's television division, and is available nationally to digital television viewers in Australia...
, launched in 2005, is a digital-only
Digital television in Australia
Digital television in Australia comes in many forms:* Australian digital terrestrial television, branded as Freeview* VAST, a free-to-view satellite service, replacing Optus Aurora....
channel that shows repeated programs from ABC1, as well as some original content including news programs, children's shows, animation, and music shows.
In September 2007, the Australian government announced a proposal to launch a new digital-only children's channel, to be named ABC3
ABC3
-Future shows:Programming confirmed for future broadcast will include:* After School Care * Bindi's Boot Camp * Bushwacked! * Dance Academy * Dancing Down Under...
. An ABC3 channel appeared on television receivers in 2008, as a place holder for the future ABC3 channel. ABC3 was considered by the Australia 2020 Summit
Australia 2020 Summit
The Australia 2020 Summit was a convention, referred to in Australian media as a summit, which was held on 19-20 April 2008 in Canberra, Australia, aiming to "help shape a long term strategy for the nation's future"...
and given as one of the recommendations to the Government. In April 2009, the Government's official response to the Summit approved the idea, and in the 2009–10 Commonwealth Budget $67 million was allocated towards ABC3 as part of the Government's $167 million funding increase to the ABC. The channel launched in December 2009.
In January 2010, the ABC announced its intention to launch Australia's first free-to-air news dedicated channel. ABC News 24
ABC News 24
ABC News 24 is an Australian 24-hour news channel launched and owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The channel replaced the former ABC High Definition simulcast of ABC1 and commenced broadcasting at 7:30pm 5:30 on Thursday, 22 July 2010.-Pre-launch:The ABC announced in January 2010...
replaced the former ABC High Definition
ABC HD (Australia)
ABC HD was a national public television channel in Australia. It was available nationally to digital terrestrial and cable television viewers in Australia....
simulcast of ABC1
ABC1
ABC1 was a United Kingdom based television channel from Disney using the branding of the Disney owned American network, ABC.The channel initially launched exclusively on the British digital terrestrial television platform Freeview on 27 September 2004. On 10 December 2004 it was launched on...
and commenced broadcasting at 7:30pm (AEST) 5:30 (AWST
AWST
AWST may refer to:* Australian Western Standard Time. See Time in Australia* Aviation Week & Space Technology...
) on Thursday, 22 July 2010.
Online
An experimental Multimedia Unit was established in 1995, charged with developing policy for the ABC's work in web publishing. This unit continued until 2000, when the New Media division was formed, bringing together the ABC's online output as a division similar to Television or Radio. The division had over a million pages of material published by late 2003.In 2001 the New Media division became New Media and Digital Services, reflecting the broader remit to develop content for digital platforms such as digital television
Digital television
Digital television is the transmission of audio and video by digital signals, in contrast to the analog signals used by analog TV...
. In addition to ABC Online, the division also had responsibility over the ABC's two digital television services, Fly TV
Fly TV
Fly TV was an ABC Television channel available to viewers of digital terrestrial television in Australia. The channel featured programming aimed towards teenagers and young adults. It was launched nationally on 1 November 2001, and aired alongside the children's-oriented ABC Kids Channel, which...
and the ABC Kids Channel
ABC Kids Channel
The ABC Kids Channel was an ABC Television channel available to viewers of digital terrestrial television in Australia. Launched on 1 August 2001, the channel offered repeats of popular ABC Kids programmes both simulcast and timeshifted....
, until their closure in 2003. In March 2005 the division oversaw the launch of ABC2, a free-to-air
Free-to-air
Free-to-air describes television and radio services broadcast in clear form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring a subscription or one-off fee...
digital television channel, in effect a replacement for ABC Kids and Fly.
In conjunction with the ABC's radio division, New Media and Digital Services implemented the ABC's first podcasts in December 2004. By mid-2006 the ABC had become an international leader in podcasting with over fifty podcast programs delivering hundreds of thousands of downloads per week, including trial video podcasts of The Chaser's War on Everything
The Chaser's War on Everything
The Chaser's War on Everything is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation television station ABC1. It has won an AFI Award. The cast perform sketches mocking social and political issues, and often feature comedic publicity stunts...
and jtv
Jtv
triple j tv is the name given to a series of Australian television programmes which started broadcast in July 2006 as a television spin-off of national radio broadcaster Triple J. They are broadcast on ABC1 and ABC2 as well as available online...
.
In February 2007, the New Media & Digital Services division was dissolved and divided up amongst other areas of the ABC. It was replaced by a new Innovations area, to manage ABC Online and investigate new technologies for the ABC.
International
Australia NetworkAustralia Network
Australia Network, originally Australia Television International and later ABC Asia Pacific, is a free-to-air international satellite television service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation since 2006. The television and online service broadcasts 24 hours a day on 7 days a week, to...
, formerly ABC Asia Pacific, is an international satellite television service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, funded by advertising and grants from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is a department of the government of Australia charged with advancing the interests of Australia and its citizens internationally...
. Aimed at the Asia-Pacific region, the service broadcasts a mixture of English language programming, including general entertainment, sport, and current affairs.
ABC Radio Australia is an international shortwave, satellite and internet radio service with transmissions aimed at East Asia
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
and the Pacific Islands
Pacific Islands
The Pacific Islands comprise 20,000 to 30,000 islands in the Pacific Ocean. The islands are also sometimes collectively called Oceania, although Oceania is sometimes defined as also including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago....
, although its signals are also audible in many other parts of the world. It features programs in various languages spoken in these regions, including Mandarin, Indonesian
Indonesian language
Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....
, Vietnamese
Vietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
, Khmer
Khmer language
Khmer , or Cambodian, is the language of the Khmer people and the official language of Cambodia. It is the second most widely spoken Austroasiatic language , with speakers in the tens of millions. Khmer has been considerably influenced by Sanskrit and Pali, especially in the royal and religious...
and Tok Pisin
Tok Pisin
Tok Pisin is a creole spoken throughout Papua New Guinea. It is an official language of Papua New Guinea and the most widely used language in that country...
.
Radio Australia bulletins are also carried on WRN Broadcast
WRN Broadcast
WRN Broadcast, formerly known as WRN, is an international broadcast services company that works with television channels and radio broadcasters, media owners and brands enabling them to deliver content to target audiences worldwide....
, available via satellite in Europe and North America.
Commercial
ABC Commercial is the division of the ABC responsible for pursuing new sources of revenue for the Corporation. It is composed of ABC Retail, ABC Consumer Publishing and Content Sales, as well as ABC Resource Hire. ABC retail outlets were established in 1974. All profits from the sale of consumer product and production services return to the Corporation to reinvest in program-making.Orchestras
Up until the installation of disc recording equipment in 1935, all content broadcast on the ABC was produced live, including music. For this purpose, the ABC established broadcasting orchestras in each state, and in some centres also employed choruses and dance bands. This became known as the ABC Concert Music Division, which was controlled by the Federal Director of Music – the first of whom was W. G. JamesWilliam G. James
William Garnet James was an Australian pianist and composer and a pioneer of music broadcasting in Australia.-Early years:...
.
There are currently six state symphony orchestras:
- Adelaide Symphony OrchestraAdelaide Symphony OrchestraThe Adelaide Symphony Orchestra was founded as a 17 player radio ensemble in 1936, in Adelaide, South Australia. The orchestra reformed in 1949 as the 55 member South Australian Symphony Orchestra. It reverted to its original and present title, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, in late 1974, and...
- Melbourne Symphony OrchestraMelbourne Symphony OrchestraThe Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra based in Melbourne, Australia. It has 100 permanent musicians. Melbourne has the longest continuous history of orchestral music of any Australian city and the MSO is the oldest professional orchestra in Australia...
- Sydney Symphony OrchestraSydney Symphony OrchestraThe Sydney Symphony Orchestra , commonly known as the Sydney Symphony, is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney...
- Queensland Symphony OrchestraQueensland Symphony OrchestraThe Queensland Symphony Orchestra is an Australian orchestra, based principally in Brisbane in the state of Queensland.The QSO played its first concert on 26 March 1947, with the orchestra consisting of 45 musicians, conducted by Percy Code. John Farnsworth Hall was recruited from the Sydney...
- Tasmanian Symphony OrchestraTasmanian Symphony OrchestraThe Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra is a symphony orchestra based in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is the smallest of the six orchestras established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation .-Activities:...
- West Australian Symphony OrchestraWest Australian Symphony OrchestraThe West Australian Symphony Orchestra , often known as the "Orchestra of the West", is the premier professional orchestra of the state of Western Australia.-History:...
The orchestras were corporatised in the 1990s but remain under ABC ownership, co-ordinated by Symphony Australia
Symphony Australia
- Symphony Services International :Formerly Symphony Services Australia Limited , Symphony Services International has been orchestrating excellence for many years....
.
The Lissajous curve logo
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. In the early years of television, the ABC had been using Lissajous curves as fillers between programs. In July 1963, the ABC conducted a staff competition to create a new logo for use on television, stationery, publications, microphone badges and ABC vehicles. In 1965, ABC graphics designer, Bill Kennard, who had been experimenting with telerecording of the cathode ray oscilloscope displays, submitted a design which was part of the waveform from an oscilloscope. The letters A-B-C were added to the design and it was adopted as the ABC's official logo. Kennard was presented with £
Australian pound
The pound was the currency of Australia from 1910 until 13 February 1966, when it was replaced by the Australian dollar. It was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.- Earlier Australian currencies :...
25 for his design.
Since its original introduction in 1965, it has been updated several times, including with the introduction of colour television in 1975. The line was thickened to feature colour in the logo. The 1975 logo is the longest-running logo, with a lifespan of 26 years. In 2001, with the introduction of digital television in Australia, ABC Television adopted a modified version of the logo, featuring a silver 3D look and losing the 'over and under' design. However, despite the launch of this logo, the 1975 logo is still used by the corporation. In July 2002, to celebrate ABC's 70th anniversary, the corporation adopted a new logo across all media. This new logo still used the silver 3D colour, but reverted to its 'over and under' design. The 2002 logo is still in use today.
External links
- ABC website
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983
- Friends of the ABC
- Film Australia Digital Learning – digital resources tagged with ‘ABC’
- Australian National Museum The museum holds a substantial collection of materials related to the ABC including the first ABC Outside Broadcast van.