{"id":23479,"date":"2017-01-18T08:01:47","date_gmt":"2017-01-18T12:01:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=23479"},"modified":"2017-01-18T08:01:47","modified_gmt":"2017-01-18T12:01:47","slug":"outback-workers-fight-closure-of-abcs-shortwave-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/outback-workers-fight-closure-of-abcs-shortwave-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Outback workers fight closure of ABC’s shortwave service"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Many thanks to SWLing Post<\/em> contributors Phil Brennan and London Shortwave for sharing the following story from The Guardian<\/a>\u00a0(my comments follow):<\/p>\n

\n

‘It’s essential’: outback workers fight ABC decision to ditch shortwave radio<\/h2>\n

For some living and working in Australia\u2019s outback, shortwave radio is the only way they can listen to the ABC \u2013 and their main daily contact with the rest of the world. But the ABC will end the service in two weeks<\/h4>\n

“People that live out in contracting camps or mustering stock camps or outstations, and even a lot of the people who live in the bush on cattle stations, spend probably 100% of their waking hours out on the land and have very minimal contact with other human beings,\u201d says Tracey Hayes, the chief executive of the Northern Territory Cattlemen\u2019s Association.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can imagine how isolating that would be without having access to the outside world via radio during the day while you\u2019re out in the workplace. But I don\u2019t think they took that into consideration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hayes is referring to a recent announcement by the ABC that, at the end of January, it would terminate its shortwave radio service, which broadcasts to the NT, Papua New Guinea and some parts of the Pacific region.<\/p>\n

[…]For some people living and working in the outback, shortwave is the only way they can listen to the ABC.<\/p>\n

AM and FM bands don\u2019t have the geographic reach across the sparsely populated territory and online streaming and Vast satellite radio is largely only available at home, close to the required infrastructure.<\/p>\n

But as essential as the service\u2019s supporters say it is, they are few in number. And so the ABC decided in early December it would reinvest the $1.2m into bringing digital radio to Darwin and Hobart.<\/p>\n

Hayes has spent her life on cattle stations. She suggests the ABC decision-makers on the east coast have little understanding of the isolation of outback living and how big a role the ABC can play in people\u2019s mental and emotional wellbeing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s essential, to keep feeling mentally stimulated and feeling like you\u2019re in touch with the world and the rest of the community, to listen to our national broadcaster,\u201d she says, and accuses the ABC of \u201cloftiness\u201d in dismissing their reliance on shortwave.<\/p>\n

Michael Mason, the ABC\u2019s director of radio, said in December the broadcaster would service the \u201climited audience\u201d of shortwave radio \u201cthrough modern technology\u201d instead.<\/p>\n

Hayes says that technology is of little help to people who aren\u2019t in an office or home, and she questions the fairness of the ABC sacrificing their only remote mobile service in order to give city-dwellers yet another way of tuning in.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I live in Darwin I enjoy listening to the radio via the broadcast app, I can hear it in my car, we don\u2019t really need another one,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d certainly like to see the provision of resources go to people to people who are already disadvantaged.\u201d<\/p>\n

[…]The ABC has largely dismissed the backlash, with the managing director, Michelle Guthrie, claiming just a handful of complaints had been made and many of them were from ham radio enthusiasts.<\/p>\n

[…]ABC local radio is the official national emergency broadcaster and all Australians are instructed to tune in during events such as bushfires, floods and cyclones. Ranger services told the ABC\u2019s Country Hour they relied on it during long remote trips, rather than secondhand reports over HF radio.<\/p>\n

But the ABC has sought to reassure people emergency alerts and weather updates can still be heard, via the Bureau of Meteorology and the rural flying doctors service\u2019s HF broadcasts. It\u2019s also urged people to tune into VHF radio, primarily used by mariners.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just about picking up the weather, it\u2019s about picking up a lot more than that,\u201d says Jay Mohr-Bell, a cattle station manager 100km southwest of Katherine.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re discounting the value of everything else that\u2019s being picked up \u2013 even just a bit of local news. You listen to a show like the Country Hour and it\u2019s info you wouldn\u2019t get anywhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mohr-Bell claims he and others in the Katherine region approached the ABC a few years ago about moving local radio to the AM band so they could pick it up more often. He says the ABC refused at the time, specifically citing the shortwave service as a reason it was unnecessary.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt just goes to show it\u2019s a decision that was made and they don\u2019t care about the consequences and it\u2019s done and dusted,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

[…]\u201cYou should be left in no doubt that the ABC has failed to adequately or properly assess the needs of Territorians who see shortwave as their only option.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mohr notes there are lower level ABC staff, including rural reporters, who understand the importance of the service, but there\u2019s nothing they can do. It\u2019s the final nail in the coffin for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce they shut this down for us out here, we\u2019ve got no relevance with the ABC. We won\u2019t be continuing to support them at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ABC did not respond to questions.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Click here to read the full story on The Guardian<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The closure of the Northern Territory shortwave service reminds me very much of Radio Canada International’s closure in 2012<\/a>. With the number of other quality international broadcasters on shortwave (The BBC, DW, Radio Australia, RFI, Radio Japan, etc.) and with the cuts to RCI’s programming from previous years, in comparison RCI wasn’t a big a player on the international scene.<\/p>\n

However, the\u00a0CBC North Quebec Service–which was relayed from the RCI Sackville site on 9,625 kHz shortwave–covered a vast broadcast footprint into the northern reaches of Canada. The North Quebec relay could be heard in remote First Nations communities scattered across Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, Iqaluit, and even\u00a0into the Northwest Territories. Many of these communities are only accessible by air or sea. The CBC replaced the service with FM relays, but of course the reach of an FM site in no way compares to\u00a0that of a shortwave service.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, some remote communities in Labrador and possibly further west can still receive the CKZN shortwave relay from St. John\u2019s Newfoundland. At 1,000 watts of power, however, it has a less reliable reach than the North Quebec Service did for so many decades.<\/p>\n

It’s easy to turn a blind eye to communities with which you simply have no connection. I would never fault a commercial broadcaster from pulling the plug when they have no viable audience to cover the costs of sponsoring their content.<\/p>\n

When you have a public<\/em> broadcaster like the ABC–which is funded in part by taxpayers from remote, rural communities–I believe the needs of the full audience must be taken into consideration\u00a0and must be taken…well…seriously.<\/p>\n

The ABC should revisit their published Diversity and Inclusion statement<\/a> which specifically points out providing quality, diverse content in audience-accessible forms.<\/p>\n

1.2 million dollars–while a lot of money to most of us–is a drop in the bucket<\/em> when compared with other items in the Australian budget<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In reality? It sounds like the ABC isn’t even prepared to acknowledge the needs of their rural audiences, let alone address them.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors Phil Brennan and London Shortwave for sharing the following story from The Guardian\u00a0(my comments follow): ‘It’s essential’: outback workers fight ABC decision to ditch shortwave radio For some living and working in Australia\u2019s outback, shortwave radio is the only way they can listen to the ABC \u2013 and their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[56,960,3,43],"tags":[2924,5484,5738,5451,2704,4743,368,2796,5708,34],"class_list":["post-23479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-broadcasters","category-international-broadcasting","category-news","category-shortwave-radio","tag-abc-cuts","tag-abc-northern-territories","tag-abc-northern-territory-shortwave","tag-abc-northern-territory-shortwave-services","tag-london-shortwave","tag-phil-brennan","tag-radio-australia","tag-radio-australia-shortwave","tag-radio-australia-shortwave-closure","tag-shortwave"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-66H","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":23685,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/letter-from-australian-leader-of-the-opposition-to-the-prime-minister-regarding-nt-shortwave-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":23479,"position":0},"title":"Letter from Australian Leader of the Opposition to the Prime Minister regarding NT shortwave service","author":"Thomas","date":"January 27, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, \u00a0Phil Brennan, who shares the following letter sent to The Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP, Prime Minister, by Bill Shorten MP, Leader of the Opposition: The Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP Prime Minister Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600 Dear Prime Minister I write in relation to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/NorthernTerritory-Australia.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/NorthernTerritory-Australia.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/NorthernTerritory-Australia.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/NorthernTerritory-Australia.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23506,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/ross-knows-firsthand-the-importance-of-abcradio-australia-shortwave\/","url_meta":{"origin":23479,"position":1},"title":"Ross knows firsthand the importance of ABC\/Radio Australia shortwave","author":"Thomas","date":"January 19, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, we posted a\u00a0news item\u00a0regarding the importance of the ABC's shortwave service to those working and living in the Australian Outback.\u00a0It appears\u00a0the ABC has no intention of reversing the decision in any meaningful way. A follow-up piece from The Guardian: The ABC has remained steadfast in its decision to scrap\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Radio-Dial-2-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Radio-Dial-2-1024x576.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Radio-Dial-2-1024x576.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23218,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/with-loss-of-northern-territory-service-abc-recommends-amfm-and-a-satellite-phone\/","url_meta":{"origin":23479,"position":2},"title":"With loss of Northern Territory service, ABC recommends AM\/FM and a satellite phone","author":"Thomas","date":"January 7, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, London Shortwave, who shares this tweet from Northern Territory resident, Lisa Herbert. https:\/\/twitter.com\/MsLisaHerbert\/status\/814242065781358593 https:\/\/twitter.com\/LondonShortwave\/status\/816116105081159681 Read about the cuts to the ABC NT service and Radio Australia by clicking here.","rel":"","context":"In "AM"","block_context":{"text":"AM","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/am\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/ABC-Shortwave-Ad-932x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/ABC-Shortwave-Ad-932x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/ABC-Shortwave-Ad-932x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23156,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/abc-friends-plea-for-urgent-ministerial-action-to-retain-nt-service\/","url_meta":{"origin":23479,"position":3},"title":"ABC Friends: “Plea For Urgent Ministerial Action” to retain NT service","author":"Thomas","date":"January 5, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Phil Brennan, who shares the following press release from ABC Friends. ABC Friends represents the community\u2019s interest in independent national public broadcasting: MEDIA RELEASE 5\/1\/2017 NEW THREAT TO LIVES IN OUTBACK PLEA FOR URGENT MINISTERIAL ACTION An urgent call for ministerial action to protect\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/ABC-Friends_logo.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":25023,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/04\/radio-outbackistan-the-next-shortwave-broadcaster-for-rural-australia\/","url_meta":{"origin":23479,"position":4},"title":"Radio Outbackistan: “the next shortwave broadcaster for rural Australia”–?","author":"Thomas","date":"April 3, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"(Source: ABC Rural via London Shortwave) Could Radio Outbackistan be the next shortwave broadcaster for rural Australia? In response to the ABC abolishing its HF shortwave radio service, the Northern Territory Cattlemen's Association (NTCA) president has turned to humour to propose his own broadcast alternative. On Friday, in front of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Broadcasters"","block_context":{"text":"Broadcasters","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/broadcasters\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Radio-Outbackistan.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Radio-Outbackistan.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Radio-Outbackistan.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Radio-Outbackistan.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23801,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2017\/01\/radio-australias-final-day-broadcasting-on-shortwave\/","url_meta":{"origin":23479,"position":5},"title":"Radio Australia’s final day broadcasting on shortwave","author":"Thomas","date":"January 30, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"As I write this post, I'm listening to Radio Australia on 9,580 and 12,065 kHz. Other than the sports reports and weather, world news is chock-full of stories--many of which are quite sad. This will likely be the last morning I listen to Radio Australia on shortwave. 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