I Aboriginal broadcasting in Australia:

Challenges and promises

Helen Molnar
Faculty of Arts
Swinburne Institute of Technology
P.O. Box 218
Hawthorn Vic, Australia 3122

This article focuses on the expanding use of communication technology

by Australian Aborigines. It examines the programs Aborigines are pro-
ducing and receiving, and how Aboriginal productions are shaped by
community needs, training, funding, and the available technology and
delivery systems.

KEY TERMS: Aboriginal broadcasting; urban, rural, and remote Aboriginal

communities; cultural maintenance; mass media; public radio; com-
munity media; satellite technology; training.

Mass Media and Aborigines

What we want to do is show our people from our view for our people. We know
that white people are misrepresenting us. They have been for almost 200 years.
We need our own information. We need to control our own information.
We need to put out the messages that community needs to hear. (Quigley,
1987, p.2)

T he development of telecommunications and broadcasting in Australia has

focused on the needs of white (European) Australians living in urban
and, to a lesser extent, rural areas. Communication needs in remote Aus-
tralia where traditional Aborigines live (the Top End, which includes sections
of Western Australia, Central Australia, the Northern Territory, Queensland,
and the Torres Strait Islands) have not been well served. Many areas of remote
Australia were not able to receive television or radio signals before the launch
of the Aussat satellite in 1985. Even today, some areas of remote Australia lack
radio, television, or an effective phone service.
There are approximately 16.5 million Australians, and Aborigines make up
just under 2% of the total population. Aboriginal communities are very diverse,
with significant differences between Aborigines living in urban and rural areas
and those living in traditional remote communities. Of the 200 recorded lan-
guages spoken by Aborigines, 50 are still spoken today, and another 100 are

The Howard Joumal of Communications, Vol. 2, No. 2 (Spring 1990), pp. 149-169 149
Copyright " 7990 Howard School of Communications
 spoken by very small and diminishing groups (Black, 1983, p. 3). This cultural
diversity makes questions about Aboriginal media even more complex, because
each group's requirements must be addressed.
Mass media ownership in Australia (radio, television, and print) is heavily
concentrated in the hands of a few European Australians. Commercial television
has increased its Australian content (news, sport, and drama) since the 1970s,
but is still dominated by a large percentage of imported programs, mainly from
the United States. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABCa statutory
institution funded by the federal government and programmed along BBC lines
with no advertisements) features quality news and current affairs, and a large
number of imported British and European programs along with Australian
programs. The Special Broadcasting Service (SBSthe ethnic broadcasting net-
work set up along lines similar to the ABC) broadcasts a range of local and
imported programs and films for ethnic communities. Commercial radio in
Australia is very similar to the radio format in the United States. It operates in
all major cities and rural areas. ABC has three radio networks featuring a variety
of current affairs, technologically sophisticated talk programs, drama, and fine
music. The ABC has the largest radio network in the country, and it is the service
most likely to be heard in remote communities. SBS runs ethnic radio stations
in major cities, backed up by large numbers of volunteers from the groups
concerned, and these groups produce and present special language programs
for their communities. There are also 88 public radio stations operating in rural
and urban areas. These stations are noncommercial and receive little government
funding. They are heavily dependent on volunteers for programs, and their
program content is very diverse.
Aborigines are rarely featured in the Australian mainstream media. They
are, in a sense, invisible. When they do appear. Aborigines are depicted as one
of the following four stereotypesa romantic nomad in travelogs; a victim of
poverty or alcoholism; a criminal; or a radical spokesperson for Aboriginal
causes. These stereotypes cause concern in Aboriginal communities, as they do
little to enhance the self-image of Aborigines, especially younger Aborigines.
Aborigines have a number of supporters in the mass media, but European
program conventions in news and current affairs, combined with insufficient
knowledge of Aboriginal culture and traditions, do not advance understanding
of Aboriginal issues in the Australian mass media. "Media images of and messages
about Australian Aborigines are constructed by non-Aborigines operating within
the dominant Anglo-European cultural framework for consumption principally
by those who share this framework" (Jennett, 1983, p. 28).
Aboriginal broadcasters feel Aboriginal media can help counter these ste-
reotypes:
I see Aboriginal radio as enlightening people. I'm sure that the zimount of racism
that exists in Australia is basically because of ignorance and stereotyping by the
media, and we have to break down that. Then I think we're going to have better
race relations in Australia for sure. (Rose, 1986)

Only since the 1970s have Aboriginal actors actually portrayed Aborigines
in Australian films. In 1967, a film called "Journey Out of Darkness" still had

150 The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990)

non-Aboriginal actors in Aboriginal roles. Campaigns by Aboriginal actors in
the 1970s changed "the golliwog image," and now Aboriginal actors play them-
selves in film and on television (Bostock, 1983, p. 36). An SBS television series,
"Change of Face," produced and presented by Aborigines (1989), claims that
white Australians can cope with the idealized "noble savage" image of Aborigines
living traditionally, but that they are reluctant to accept contemporary blacks.
One example the program gave of this was the apparent censorship that occurred
in a popular Australian series "The Flying Doctors." In 1987 a segment featuring
a kissing scene between an Aboriginal actress and a white actor was allegedly
cut, the implication being that the audience was not ready for it (Alcorn, 1988b,
P- 5).
Very few Aborigines have been employed behind the scenes in the media
because they have lacked the opportunity to gain entry, and consequently the
necessary training and experience. This is changing slowly in some areas (A,BC,
SBS, and public broadcasting), but overall Aborigines are making very little
impact on the mainstream media.
It has become increasingly clear in the 1980s that this situation will not change
unless Aborigines have the ability to control and have access to their own com-
munication technology, and are, thus, able to produce programs for their own
communities. A well-known Aboriginal broadcaster, John Macumba, emphasized
this point when he said:
Aboriginal broadcasting can only be developed by Aborigines themselves, on
their own terms; it must come from the grass roots and develop upwards, not
be "created" by some government agency at the top and then imposed. (Noble
& Elsegood, 1984, p. 64)

Mass Media and Aboriginal Culture

The launch of the Aussat satellite in 1985, with its long-term consequences
for remote area communications, was one of the major reasons for examining
the possibilities of Aboriginzd broadcasting. The delivery of the mainstream
media via satellite to remote areas raised questions about the potential harm
these signals and/or messages might have on Aboriginal lifestyles and the already
disappearing Aboriginal languages. It also encouraged Aboriginal groups, and
relevant government departments to consider what the options for Aboriginal
program content were, given the availability of this new delivery system. Both
the federal government and the Aboriginal groups were worried about the
impact of television, in particular, with its glossy local and overseas productions.
Many assumed that urban and rural Aborigines will be better served by
gaining access to public radio and, if possible, the mainstre<un media, because
they need to live within the dominant framework of a European society. This
view was certainly indicated in a spedal report on Aboriginal broadcasting com-
missioned by the federal government, OiU of the Silent Land (1984). On the other
hand, the government appears to have recognized the needand the right
of traditional communities to control and produce their own information in
remote areas, and is working with Aboriginal groups to set up a media structure

The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990) 151

that will facilitate this. This has generated a great deal of effort being put into
remote area communications while urban and rural Aboriginal media groups
are being left largely to use their own resources. (This approach to urban and
rural Aboriginal broadcasting is questioned later in this article.) It does, however,
raise the immediate concern that the federal government may see its responsi-
bility vis-a-vis Aboriginal broadcasting as extending only to remote communi-
cations, and may ignore the distincdy different requirements of urban and rural
Aborigines.
Many Aborigines in remote areas are excited by the possibilities offered by
radio and television. But one tribal elder reacted to news of the satellite in this
way:
That's why Aboriginal people got, the land back... to keep away from European
things. Now the Government's chasing after us with satellites to interrupt our
tribal law. (Michaels, 1987b, p. 9)
The question of what impact the mass media will have on remote Aboriginal
communities cannot be answered with simple cause and effect theories. This is
an extremely complex area that requires a detailed knowledge of Aboriginal
culture. Michaels has written extensively on the issue, and in The Aboriginal
Invention of Television (1986) he says that five associated topics need to be con-
sidered when examining questions of impact:
1. Aboriginal cultural values versus televised values
2. The impact of imported languages on traditional ones
3. Social organization of households and communities
4. Aborig;inal community schedules versus television schedules
5. Ownership and control of facilities in local communities, (p. 129)
Aboriginal languages, customs, and information are highly localized. The
rights to have access to that information and social authority are derived from
an essential relationship to a geographical place (Michaels, i985). Michaels ex-
plains this further:
The sources of wisdom are land-based, and this system underlies a political
system, social structure and religious ideology (collectively called "the iaw") in
which each individual is entitled to become expert about particular locations for
which s/he mjiintains speaking/decision making rights, (p. 69)
What is relevant for one community, therefore, may be totally inappropriate for
another.
Aborigines see their local areas as the center from which information em-
anates. Their informationycommunications model is the reverse of the European
model, which sees urban cities as the center and remote communities as the
periphery. The mass media not only ignore local boundaries (Aboriginal coun-
tries), but also make information accessible to jill viewers. This raises another
complex issue. How can the mass media ensure that material that may be of-
fensive to one Aboriginal community or group is not shown?
Aboriginal societies are oral societies, wherein knowledge and law are stored
with certain members of the community. Elders impart this information to youn-
ger Aborigines at the appropriate times, thus restricting and controlling infor-

152 The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990)

mation. Information is restricted not only between communities but also within
communities, between men and women, and between elders and younger people.
Consequently, in traditional communities there are rights to know or own in-
formation, to hear or see information, and to speak (perform or paint), and
these rights are highly regulated (Michaels, 1985).
There is concern that the elders' positions in these remote communities will
be undermined by the external and impersonal information received through
television broadcasting, especially if the young have unrestricted access to this
information. Noble and Elsegood (1984) found in their study that:
whereas in communities without broadcast television, senior members of house-
holds are better informed than their offspring, in television coinniunities the
reverse is true. There is some danger therefore, that access to broadcast TV
may upset the traditional value structure and possibly downgrade the position
of "elder" in such communities, (p. 70)
In European communities, where nuclear families are dominant, it is as-
sumed that parents will regulate children's viewing. However, in extended Ab-
original families, it cannot be assumed that parents will be present to regulate
viewing. Traditional families can have from five to thirty members, and women
(young and old) and young men may live in separate camps. Camps, therefore,
are comprised of not only families, but age-sets and gender-sets (Michaels, 1986,
p. 133). It is, therefore, more appropriate to see the entire community as the
family, with certain people being authorized to select programming from a
central point for that community.
Aborigines also forbid the airing or screening of names and images of the
dead. This can be controlled in Aboriginal media, but not in European media.
In one community, the death of a local Aborigine was not mentioned on the
community radio news, but the ABC broadcast mentioning the dead man's name
was allowed to air. European programs will present Aborigines with many similar
dilemmas.
Another major concern about the effect of mass media is the loss or dilution
of Aboriginal languages. Traditional Aborigines see their language as the heart
of their culture. But, a number of younger Aborigines speak English as their
first language, and have lost touch with their traditional languages. Most of the
existing Aboriginal languages are located in the top half of Australiathe areas
to be served by the Aussat satellite. Aborigines in these areas may speak at least
three Aboriginal languages, with little, if any, English. Although there are no
studies on the impact of the media on Aboriginal languages, there is a sense
that the media, along with other factors (such as education), are breaking down
traditional languages.
The number of languages that do exist in certain areas (e.g., 22 in Central
Australia) presents another problem. How can the media, either at a community
or mass media level, serve audiences having so many different languages? This
could necessitate choosing among Aboriginal languages, with some being given
more value than others, thereby downgrading the culture of the communities
whose languages were not featured.
Another concern about European television is that some of the programs

The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990) 153

and commercials are offensive to Aboriginal culture and build up unrealistic
expectations. Examples include commercials for Christmas toys that parents can't
afford, and advertisements for alcohol that mitigate the work being done in
Aboriginal communities to "beat the grog."
Television is already having an ef^fect on the daily life of Aboriginal com-
munities. Some have attempted to restrict the hours that television is watched
so the community can go about its traditional activities; others, however, are
finding this increasingly difficult. In other communities, television is being used
as a babysitter (S. Paton & H. Grant, personal communication, April 6, 1989).
On the positive side, it is felt that exposure to television results in higher levels
of political awareness, and a better working knowledge of how to live in a
predominantly European society (Noble & Elsegood, 1984, p. 70)."
What often is not considered when discussing the impact of European mass
media on remote Aborigines is that the Aborigines' interpretations of television
images may differ completely from those of urban white audiences. Michaels
(1986) found that during hb work at Yeundumu.
It became dear that European interpretation of videos was radically different
from Aboriginal interpretation at Yeundumu. We laughed in different places,
got upset at different scenes, and afterward, told different stories about what
we had seen. (p. 46)

Aboriginal Media
Radio
By the late 1970s, Aboriginal broadcasting groups were actively canvassing
the possibilities for Aboriginal media. The sodal problems affecting Aboriginal
people (unemployment, lack of education, housing, and alcoholism) provided a
practical and immediate reason for them to supply appropriate information to
their communitiesurban, rural, and remote.
In the early 1980s, public radio was the first medium to open up Aboriginal
broadcasting in urban and rural areas. Radio is a perfect extension of Aboriginal
oral society. It is also a very personal medium, which, at its best, features people
talking to the audience, not at them, as television does. This suits the personal
nature of Aboriginal communications. Radio offers Aboriginal groups a number
of possibilities. Radio equipment and tape cost less than video, the technology
is less labor-intensive than video, and adequate programming can be simple (e.g.,
music and announcements), which means that initially lengthy training periods
are not needed until groups want to make more technologically sophisticated
programs later. Radio's portability also makes it an appropriate medium for
mobile remote communities and communities without electricity.
Public radio was founded in 1975 with the philosophy that it would provide
information and music not found in the mainstream. It would also be available
to disadvantaged groups, including Aborigines. In 1988, with 74 public radio
stations on the air, there were 30 Aboriginal programs ranging in length from
1-30 hours per week. In 1986, the Public Broadcasting Foundation (PBF) es-
timated that approximately 300 Aboriginal volunteers and some paid staff worked

154 77je Howard Journal of Communications (Spring 1990)

in public radio (Quigley, 1987, p. 23). Programs ranged from mainly music with
some community information to technologically sophisticated documentaries.
In 1985, the PBF set up an Aboriginal tape exchange, TAPE (The Aboriginal
Programme Exchange), to establish and maintain regular contact with Aboriginal
broadcast groups throughout Australia, and to provide regular material to those
groups. TAPE sends out an average of two one-hour tapes of programs each
week to 110 groups and individuals. These include schools, libraries, and Ab-
original associations using the tapes as a resource, as well as Aboriginal producers.
The service favors talk programsdocumentaries and interviewsbut does
include some music. The programs are in English, and are broadcast throughout
Australia.
TAPE is very valuable because it puts urban and rural Aboriginal broad-
casters in contact with each other, and with Aboriginal issues around Australia.
Cheryl Vickery, the TAPE coordinator, says that the "main concern among
Aboriginal people is that there is not enough information about what other
Aborigines in Australia are doing," and this b the role TAPE can play (C. Vickery,
personal communication, March 21, 1989).
As are most public radio ventures, TAPE is underfunded. Money is needed
to upgrade its fast copying machinery and for cataloging. PBF does administer
a separate Aboriginal Fund with an annual grant from the federal Department
of Transport and Communications (DOTAC). However, this amount is very
small$200,000. From 1984 to 1988, the grant was only $150,000, but pressure
from Aboriginal groups has resulted in an increase for 1989. Aboriginal broad-
casters are given in hourly subsidy from this money (e.g., $70 for the first hour,
$50 for the second hour), and can apply for grants for tapes and equipment.
This amount in no way compares to the federal government funding for ethnic
broadcastingjust over $8 million for the two SBS stations, 3EA in Melbourne,
and 2EA in Sydney. (The ethnic communities in Australia have much greater
resources than the Aboriginal groups, and have a stronger political base from
which to influence government policy. However, they are also underfunded
when compared with commercial media, the ABC).
Public radio is run mainly by volunteers, many of whom have paying jobs
elsewhere, and can afford to donate their time. Aborigines have the highest rate
of unemployment in urban and rural Australia. It is, therefore, unreasonable
to consider them in the same light as European volunteers. Under a special
Aboriginal Employment Program, Aborigines have been able to get government
funding while they train and work with the ABC. But, in the public broadcasting
sector, the most that they have managed to get is limited one-time grants. Since
1988, the number of Aboriginal groups in public radio has decreased from 32
to 21. If Aborigines are to build a solid public broadcasting presence, they need
to be assured of continued employment and training so that the number of
skilled Aboriginal producers can increase.
Distribution of public stations is not uniform across Australia. The south-
eastern states have a much higher proportion of the stations, whereas Queens-
land and Western Australia lag behind. Yet, these two states have a much larger
Aboriginal population than the southeastern states. If the federal government
wants Aborigines in the urban and rural parts of these states to concentrate on

77e Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990) 155

public radio, then the government should ako consider how to support Ab-
original groups financially and administratively so that they can make applica-
tions for licenses, either by themselves or as community consortia.
One station in the public broadcasting sector is unique8KIN-FM, a public
radio station in Alice Springs run and programmed by the Central Australian
Aboriginal Media Association ( C A A M A ) . C A A M A quite rightly claims to run
the "world's first Aboriginal radio station," and it now also has a commercial
television license. The history of CAAMA's development is instructive because
it shows what can be done in the area of Aboriginal broadcasting, and it illustrates
that the creation of a broadcasting sector devoted entirely to Aboriginal media
is feasible. CAAMA has grown from an idea that two people had in 1980 to a
multimedia organization employing 70 people in 1989. What m"akes CAAMA's
achievements even more remarkable is that it b based at Alice Springs in the
Northern Territoryan extremely conservative state that has done little to sup-
port the Aboriginal cause.

CAAMA
Ninety to ninety-five percent of the Aboriginal people in Alice Springs listen to
the station all day long. You can-go anywhere and you can hear it blaring out
of houses. It's extraordinaryit's what we in other forms of radio could only
dream about. It's so different working in a station, where not only do you know
who your audience are, you know them intimately. You visit them, you go and
talk to them; they go on the radio because you interview them; they sing for
you, they tell you stories. It's a much more intimate relationship with your
audience up there, because you know everyone in the community is listening
because it's their station. (M. Knott, personal communication, March 30, 1989)
In 1979, despite the large Aboriginal population in Central Australia, there
was no Aboriginal programming on commercial or ABC radio to serve that
group. In that same year, 8HA, a commercial station in Alice Springs, was
applying for its license to be renewed. During the license hearings, some per-
sonnel from Northern Territory Education Department lobbied the Austnilian
Broadcasting Tribunal and the station for Aboriginal programs. As a result, the
station set aside half an hour late at night for Aboriginal programming. The
two people involved with this program (John Macumba and Philip Batty) then
canvassed support for an Aboriginal Media Association in the Aboriginal com-
munities. In February 1980, a meeting with all interested parties was held in
Alice Springs, and CAAMA was started. Only Aborigines were appointed to the
CAAMA Board and this still holds today. CAAMA's founding aims vvere:
To promote Aboriginal culture and identity;
To encotirage the development of an informed and educated Aboriginal
community; and
To improve the understanding of Aboriginal people and their aspirations
by the Central Australian European community (Quigley, 1987, p. 43).
Macumba and Batty then approached the ABC. At this stage the ABC had
no set policies about Aboriginal broadcasting, but some staff realized that the

156 The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990)

ABC needed to become involved in helping Aboriginal people. The ABC offered
Macumba and Batty one and a half hours per week backed up with the support
of ABC resourcesoffices, studios, and equipment. The ABC involvement was
invaluable for it provided the group with much needed funding.

8CCC
By 1981, CAAMA was also producing 30 hours a week for a new community
public radio sution, 8CCC. This was funded with the money earned from the
ABC and various government grants. By late 1981, CAAMA had a staff of six
or seven people and studios in Alice Springs.
In 1982, CAAMA began work on its own public radio license because its
relationship with 8CCC had become tense. CAAMA had played a speech by a
well-known Aboriginal activist. Despite the fact that the same speech had been
broadcast previously on the ABC, the 8CCC board of management objected to
the broadcast and said that there would be no more programs until CAAMA
toned down the content. The 8CCC management also had a number of other
concerns, chiefiy:
There should be no broadcasting in Aboriginal languages, only English.
(A number of conservative groups in Australia also object to ethnic broad-
casting on the same grounds. This concern is a mixture of two elements:
first, they feel that all Australians should speak English; second, they don't
understand the Aboriginal languages.)
8CCC tried to criticize CAAMA on techniciil grounds, but as Batty points
out, their programming was no poorer than other 8CCC programs.
8CCC claimed that CAAMA was politically active, and such activity was
not the business of a public radio station. (P. Batty, personal communi-
cation, April 13, 1989)

8KtN-FM
The Australian Broadcasting Tribunal then intervened in the dispute, put-
ting pressure on the 8CCC management by telling them their license was under
review. This episode strengthened CAAMA's resolve to get its own license, and
in 1985 it began broadcasting on its own public station, 8KIN-FM in Alice
Springs. When CAAMA got the FM license, it also applied for three translator
stations, so it now has four transmitter sites. Station 8KIN-FM broadcasts for
16 hours a day, six days of the week (there is not enough funding to broadcast
on Saturdays). CAAMA's reach was further increased in 1986, when the ABC
gave it 11 hours a day on three of its new HF Shower services. This means that
CAAMA can reach another 47 thousand people in the remote areas with its
service called Bush Radio (CAAMA Report, 1987, p. 4). The ABC, for its part,
realized that most of the people in the service areas were Aborigines, speaking
Aboriginal languages, and that its staple programs of technologically sophisti-
cated documentaries and news in English would have very little relevance to
these groups.
Station 8KIN-FM has always featured oral history programs and historical

The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990) 157

 and family related topics, as well as a great deal of community information,
community news, and traditional stories and music. Programs focus on interviews
with locaJ Aboriginal people and discussion of local issues. All 8KIN's programs
are presented by Aboriginal people. The announcers and announcing styles
range from a young boy interested in reggae to an older woman who plays
Christian music.
CAAMA has produced educational programs, such as the highly regarded
award-winning "Bushfire Radio" series broadcast to Aboriginal schools in remote
communities, and has run a number of special community campaigns including
"Beat the Grog" in 1986. This six-week campaign featured radio programs,
posters, stickers, and concerts with Aboriginal bands. The response to the cam-
paigTi was very positive. The "police, ambulance. Congress [Aboriginal medical
service] and a local Magistrate all reported a downturn in grog cases over the
six week campaign" (CAAMA Report, 1987, p. 10). CAAMA has mounted sim-
ilar campaigns dealing with health issues and road safety. In thb way, CAAMA
not only gives Aborigines a voice, it also gives them the opportunity to take an
active role in issues of concern to them. This breaks the paternalistic and assim-
ilationist notions of the past, which saw Aborigines merely as objects of govern-
ment departments and institutions.
CAAMA is Unique in Aboriginal broadcasting, because it is the only service
in Australia to broadcast in Aboriginal languages. CAAMA feels that radio is
vital to the maintenance of Aboriginal languages, and has been broadcasting in
them since it started on 8 HA. "There are seven living Aboriginal languages on
CAAMA radioEastern Arrente, Western Arrente, Warlpiri, Pitjantjatjara, An-
matyerre, Kaytej and Luritja" (CAAMA Report, 1987, p. 4). CAAMA's director,
Freda Glyn explains why this is so important:
This is very important for the Aboriginal child that listens all day and night to
only English. The child is bound to feel that their parents and their language
are not important. It's our duty to make sure this does not happen. It's our duty
to f)oint out that we will always be Aboriginal and what makes us Aborig;inal is
our language, our customs and our community, (p. 3)
In 1981, CAAMA realized that there was little recorded contemporary Ab-
original music, which had been a problem for Aboriginal broadcasters all arourid
Australia. CAAMA rectified this by recording both contemporary music and
traditional music. The traditional music, with its ties to a particular locality, is
used only for broadcast, but the recording of contemporary music has become
a commercial venture. Some of the bands first recorded by CAAMA have now
been picked up by major record labels.

Imparja
CAAMA won a commercial television license, Imparja, on January 22, 1987,
despite heated opposition from the Northern Territory government, which backed
the rival commercial bidder. Imparja is a private company owned by a group of
Aborigines and Aboriginal organizations, and CAAMA is the biggest share-
holder. Imparja is the anglicized spelling for impatye, which means "tracks" or
"footprint" in the Arrente language of Central Australia (Goddard, 1987, p. 12).

The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990)

CAAMA's bid for the commercial license received considerable financial assis-
tance from the Australian Bicentennial Authority ($2.5 million), the Aboriginal
Development Commission ($1.8 million), the National Aboriginal Education
Commission ($1.5 million), and the South Australian government ($1 million)
(BeUamy, 1987, p. 1).
CAAMA applied for the RCTS license (Regional Commercial Television
Services) because it was concerned about the content of commerciM television
and its effect on traditional Aboriginal culture. Aussat's central footprint covers
all the Aboriginal freehold land in Australia, and over half of all Aboriginal
communities in Australia (Walsh, 1985, p. 75). CAAMA argued that if it had
the license, it could provide Aboriginal programming as well as European pro-
gramming, thus providing a better service to its Aboriginal audience, which was
estimated to be 40% of the service area. The Northern Territory government's
opposition to CAAMA's license resulted in the N.T. government withdrawing
the $2.8 million it had promised the successful licensee to pay for satellite trans-
mission costs. For a time, it looked as if Imparja would only be received in Alice
Springs, but the federal government stepped in with an emergency grant of $2
million to cover satellite costs.
The commercial television license has been a mixed blessing. CAAMA radio
has a distinctly Aboriginal feel to it. At least 85% of the staff at 8KIN are
Aborigines. However, at Imparja the reverse is true. Very few Aborigines have
had formal trEiining in television, and at present Aborigines only account for
about 10% of the television staff. Philip Batty says that there is not one Aboriginal
person in the whole of Australia with TV engineering qualifications or sales
management experience. He says that this, plus the need to increase the number
of Aboriginal television producers, causes the staffing imbalance (P. Batty, per-
sonal communication, April 13, 1989). CAAMA started a training program in
this area in 1989, but it will be some time before the results are seen.
Initially CAAMA had hoped that revenue from Imparja would help the
station become independent of government funding. But at this stage, Imparja
is just covering costs. Its audience is estimated to be around 100,00070,000
Europeans and 30,000 Aborigines (Bellamy, 1987, p. 1). CAAMA has to serve
a European audience as well as the Aboriginal communities, and depends on
advertising for revenue. The advertisers are local business people, and they
prefer to place their commercials in the popular European programs. Surveys
have shown a dramatic drop-off of European viewers during the Aboriginal
programs. The audience can drop from as much as 70% of potential viewers to
only 15% during Aboriginal programs (Batty, personal communication, April
13, 1989). European advertisers are, therefore, reluctant to put their ads on
during these periods, and also they do not see Aborigines as a profitable au-
dience. This is difficult for the station, because it needs the revenue to sustain
the costly commercial service.
Imparja's commitment to Aboriginal programming has not really transpired,
creating a further problem. This may be unfair criticism because the station has
only been on air for a short period, but a major drawback to Aboriginal television
programs is the cost. Batty estimates that a half-hour program could cost Imparja
between $10,000 and $20,000 (P. Batty, personal communication, April 13, 1989).

The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990) 159

On the other hand, Imparja can buy American imports such as "Miami Vice"
and popular Australian soaps and game shows much more cheaply. Given the
small size of its audience, the station could purchase a half-hour of network TV
for about $100 (Bellamy, 1987, p. 1).
In 1988, Imparja carried half-hour current affairs programs in English and
Aboriginal languages twice weekly in prime-time, and in 1989, it has screened
a 13-part language series and an Aboriginal music program. Imparja also features
approximately four 60-second segments per hour dealing with Aboriginal issues
(e.g. bush foods, the work of the Central Land Council, and Aboriginal health).
Before the station closes each night (11:30 p.m.-12:00 a.m.), Imparja screens a
program that features Aborigines talking about their history and felling dream-
ing stories in their own languages. In addition, Imparja has taken a strong line
on alcohol advertising. In 1988, it showed only national alcohol commercials so
as not to promote local liquor outlets. In 1989, it decided to scrap advertisement
for alcohol altogether. The growth of video production in Aboriginal commu-
nities is another potential source of material for Imparja, and could help to
increase the station's Aboriginal content, at the same time giving wider exposure
to Aboriginal video productions.
CAAMA is now (1989) a very large organization. It has the radio station,
the television station, a recording studio, the CAAMA shop where its products
are sold, an administrative sector, and a Language Unit. The Language Unit,
set up in 1987, now employs eight people. It provides English subtitling for
Imparja, and translates and interprets radio and television news into Aboriginal
languages. Of the 1989 CAAMA staff, 28 are trainees. In late 1987, CAAMA
and Imparja entered into a three-year $3.2 million training agreement with the
federal Department for Employment, Education, and Training (DEET) to train
33 persons over a three-year period. The trainees are spread throughout the
organization (e.g., accountants, librarians, video operators, television presenters,
retailing assistants, a researcher, radio journalists, translators and interpreters,
and secretaries). They are taught by CAAMA employees and by visiting spe-
cialists.
CAAMA's funding possibilities are significantly enhanced by its size, the fact
that it has its own licenses, and because it is viewed as the major Aboriginal
production house in Australia. CAAMA is now one of the largest employers of
Aboriginal people in Alice Springs. Eight df the trainees who speak in Aboriginal
languages would not be able to get jobs anywhere else.
In Alice Springs there is very little employment for Aborigines. . . . and CAAMA
sees itself as building up whole new areas of employmenta new industry for
Aboriginal peopleart, drama, music, script writing, and all the television tech-
niad and lighting, and all that sort of thing. . . . We want the kids to see that at
the end of finishing school, there's going to be something for them to go forward
to. (Rose, 1986)
CAAMA has been funded by eleven different sources, mainly government
departments and institutions like ABC. This has taken an enormous amount of
yeariy lobbying. It shows what can be done, but also how difHcuIt, time-consum-
ing, and complex the funding process is. The ABC and SBS know that they can
depend on a certain amount of government funding every three years, and a

160 The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990)

strong argument exists for funding Aboriginal broadcasting as a separate sector
for the same reason.
Other regional Aboriginal broadcasting organizations, TAIMA (Towns-
ville), TSIAMA (Torres Strait Islands), and WAAMA (Western Australia),
have purchasing agreements with the ABC and also broadcast on public radio.
But these groups are much smaller than CAAMA, and do not have their own
radio and television licenses. Some feel that CAAMA has been allowed to
develop because it is out in the middle of Australia, and that no other Ab-
original organization would get similar support. It remains to be seen whether
this is the case.

Aboriginal Video and Television

Aborigines have been the object of non-Aboriginal film makers for years.
This is changing now. Estimates on the number of Aboriginal communities
producing their own videos are difficult. But some sources indicate that more
than a dozen remote Aboriginal communities now produce and transmit their
own video productions. Video was introduced into Aboriginal communities be-
fore Aussat (1985) by adult educators working with the Education Department,
church groups, and Europeans living in these communities who rented videos
for entertainment.
Aborigines started to make community video productions in the .1980s, re-
sulting in various forms of community television. First are community video
exchanges, where tapes are played on community VCRs; second is low-powered
television, where Aborigines produce and transmit their programs locally; and
third are Aborigincd programmers who interrupt the main satellite signal trans-
mitting European programs and "embed" their own locally produced programs,
which they consider more appropriate. The growth of Aboriginal video pro-
duction in remote areas has been encouraged by a combination of portable video
technology, VCRs, and satellite technology. The role of European adult edu-
cators in some of the communities has been crucialthey brought the equipment
and provided the training.
VCR ownership has spread quickly among Aborigines in remote Australia
in the 1980s. But a receiverA^CR system is not cheap. Goods in remote areas
are "marked up," and a complete system may cost more than $2,000, which does
not include tape supply (Michaels & Granites, 1984, p. 20). In order to make
the systems more affordable. Aborigines have often shared the costs within the
community. Aboriginal ownership of VCRs is very different from European
ownership, and is best described as "fluid." Michaels's study foctised on the
development of community television at Yeundumu. Yeundumu is 300 kilo-
meters northwest of Alice Springs, and at the time of his study (1984) it was
home to 1,000 Warlpiri Aborigines. Michaels found that there were 18 VCRs
in the community. Nine were used by the 75 Europeans, and the other nine by
the Aboriginal community (Michaels &: Granites, 1984, p. 18). Communal view-
ing is not unusual and can involve groups of up to 100 f>eople. The more typical
Aboriginal viewing audience is 25-35 (Michaels & Granites, 1984, p. 19). During

The Howard Journal of Communications (Spring 1990) 161

 his research on remote video production, Michaels observed that existing video
equipment was really not suitable for remote use. The machines need to be more
robust to withstand the travel to delivery points and the extreme heat, dust, and
sand. Equipment now has a lifespan of only about one and a half years (Michaels
1986, p. 42).

Ernabella and Yeundumu

Emabella (South Australia) and Yeundumu (Northern Territory) are two

of the major video-producing communities. Both have been broadcasting Ab-
original television illegally since 1985 with a minimum of government assistance.
As soon as the Aussat proposal became clear, Emabella and Yeundumu wanted
to mount their own productions so that Aboriginal programming was well in
place before the communities were "bombarded" with European programs. To
this end, Emabella and Yeundumu spent years trying to get the federal gov-
emment to clarify its policy on licensing for low-power TV stations. When no
answer was forthcoming from the govemment, they decided to go ahead without
licenses. This issue still has to be clarified by the Department of Transport and
Communications.
Emabella received its first VCR in 1982, and the number quickly multiplied.
A visiting Adelaide academic realized the possibilities of Aboriginal video, and
a training scheme run by the South Australian Education Department was soon
in place. The Aboriginal community at Emabella sees video as a "tool," and
distributes its tapes to other communities.
We like you to see and understand things about our culture, songs and dances
and bush medicine. We are using the video to teach the little children about our
stories and bush medicine and dancing, to do it themselves. They will learn our
lore, and keep it strong. They will not be influenced so much by other things
they see. We want to show our culture to people outside, as well but want to
keep things strong in our community. (Quigley, 1987, p. 63)
In 1984, Ernabella's Aboriginal community decided to set up community
television. Their aim was to install a system that was cheap and would cover a
range of one kilometer in color and two kilometers in black and white (Quigley,
1987, p. 61). Since then, Emabella has been broadcasting nightly to its residents
(approximately 450) and to outstations around the community. To date, the
community has restricted broadcasts on weekends, because it feels this is the
time for family activities, and because it doesn't want to get people into "the TV
habit."
Michaels started working in Yuendumu in 1982. He found that Aborigines
in this community had access to very few communication facilities, and didn't
even have a reliable telephone service. A European family installed the first VCR
in 1982, and although VCRs spread among the Aboriginal community, the
programming available for rental to Aborigines was very limited (e.g., white
"action" movies).
In 1983, a local Aborigine, supported by the South Australian Technical
and Further Education Department, began to produce videos of sporting events.

The Howard Journal of Communications (Spring 1990)

Gradually these skills spread to other members of the community, and the
Warlpiri Media Association was set up. Over a three-year period to 1987, Ab-
origines at Yeundumu had produced 300 hours of video (Michaels, 1987b, p. 11).
Subjects included sporting events, traditional ceremonies, traditional manufac-
ture (seed dampers, boomerangs, paintings), education and school (old people
telling stories, children dancing), adult education (driver education, gardening),
community meetings, travel tapes, oral histories and stories, and public relations
tapes for Europeans (Michaels, 1986, p. 66).
On April 1, 1985, the Warlpiri Media Association started test transmissions
for community television at Yeundumu. DOTAC did not object, and the illegal
broadcasts have continued to this day. Both Emabella and Yeundumu got "one-
o f f federal grants for equipment to bring the stations up to licensing standard,
but there was "no funding for salaries, recurrent or operational expenses, train-
ing or production, and no policy identifying these in the future" (Michaels,
1987a, p. 16).
Michaels's work, and other reports, have found that the local productions,
some of which might seem quite homespun by Western standards, are much
more popular than imported programs and films. This is another strong ar-
gument for establishing Aboriginal community video and putting it on a stable,
well-funded footing before the ABC and commercial media are introduced into
communities. The federal government has recognized this, and is presently
implementing a scheme that will enable Aborigines in remote areas to produce
their own radio and video programs and transmit them by switching off the
main satellite transmission. The scheme is BRACSBroadcasting to Remote
Area Communities Scheme.
In both metropolitan and rural areas. Aborigines have little access to video
production outlets. No public access television exists, and the strict notions
of professionalism held by the commercial networks and the ABC prevent
the types of programs being produced by remote area Aborigines from being
shown on mainstream television. The ABC-and SBS have taken some positive
steps in this direction over the past few years, but their commitment is still
minimal.

BRACS

The basic philosophy behind BRACS is to give Aborigines in remote areas

the means of making radio and television programs as a mechanism for the
promotion and preservation of local languages, culture, and lifestyles (S. Paton
& H. Grant, personal communication, April 6, 1989). The federal Department
for Aboriginal Affairs (DAA) administers BRACS. Planning started late in 1987,
and then the total cost was estimated to be $2.2 million. BRACS initially aimed
to equip 74 Aboriginal communities in remote areas to receive and rebroadcast
ABC radio and television programs. This number has now increased to 82
communities. The equipment could also be used to produce community radio
and television, which could be "embedded" in the mainstream programming by
switching off the main signal and transmitting the local program.

The Howard Journal of Communications (Spring 1990) 163

 The BRACS equipment is minimal, and consists of reception dish, decoder,
transmitter, mast and aerial, radio studio, including microphones and tape re-
corders, and video equipment. The individual BRACS units were designed by
Telecom, and the design was constrained by the monies available, $35,000 per
unit. Telecom was asked to build a unit that was portable, easy to operate, and
capable of a broadcasting range of between three and five kilometers (Terry,
1989, p. 5). The equipment has been modified so that communities can now
receive commercial and ABC television and Imparja (originally they were to
receive the ABC only).
DAA had hoped to get BRACS up and working in 1988, Australia's bicen-
tennial year, but the first major installation just began in late 1988. There are
now 14 BRACS communities in Western Australia, and 12 comniunities in the
Northern Territory received their Equipment between February and June, 1989.
The timetable for communities in Queensland and South Australia is not clear
at this stage. However, the plan, design, and implementation of BRACS has a
number of shortcomings:

The government has not committed the level of financing needed to op-
erate a community television and radio station at a reasonable standard.
In 1988, a DAA official made it clear that he did not see the BRACS
facility producing "sophisticated" programming. The minimal level of
equipment supplied means that only the most basic of programs can be
made. This will be frustrating for Aboriginal producers, especially those
who have been working in video and radio for some time. DAA has said
that it may be possible to add a range of editing suites for radio, TV, and
other equipment, and that the government will consider this in future
policies (S. Paton & H. Grant, personal communication, April 6, 1989).
DAA is basically supplying the unit only. The community, therefore, has
to find funding for extra equipment, tape costs, and salaries. The com-
munity also has to find a suitable air-conditioned building for the equip-
ment, and, where this is not available, find the resources to construct a
suitable building.
CAAMA has also pointed out that the issue of equipment maintenance
and repair has been overlooked. Telecom is responsible for the upkeep
of the transmission equipment, but not the production facilities. Equip-
ment located in these harsh climatic conditions needs constant mainte-
nance. In some instances, BRACS equipment has come to a complete
standstill because when a tape gets stuck, there is no one available to repair
the equipment.
BRACS is being broadcast on UHF, and communities that only have VHF
feel disadvantaged. UHF covers shorter distances, which means that peo-
ple living in outstations miss the reception. It is estimated that as many as
17,000 Aborigines live on outstations, sometimes in small family groups
of about 30 people. Such a small community could not support a BRACS
facility, but a number of these outstations would like to receive the pro-
gramming available via satellite and from the communities. This problem
has yet to be resolved (Paton, June 4, 1989).

The Howard Journal of Communications (Spring 1990)

 BRACS is too inflexible. Initially, some communities did not want BRACS
and wanted time to consider what its impact would be. Other communities
were already so advanced in video and radio production that the BRACS
system was superfluous. What they wanted was the option to upgrade
their existing equipment. Others had equipment in place that was not
compatible with the BRACS unit.
When the BRACS project was first being considered, the communities
and existing Aboriginal media organizations all stressed the need for in-
tensive community training in broadcast production techniques. But DEET
has provided only limited fuhding for circuit trainers to travel around
each state giving basic training only. Many of the communities that have
BRACS units have had no training and, therefore, can't make full use of
the production facilities. CAAMA has also been funded to come up with
a training package for radio and video that can be used for BRACS train-
ing. However, no funds have been provided to pay trainees during their
course.
At present, communities like Yuendumu, would be well-placed to make
use of their BRACS unit. Others have yet to start production, while some
have started regular programs. In Djarindjin, there is a 45-minute prere-
corded local news program broadcast on radio at 6:30 a.m. each Friday, in-
terrupting the ABC breakfast program. The news is in the local Bardi language,
and features "interviews with community and visiting government officials,
interviews with community sports personalities, explanations about new gov-
emment drinking laws, details of efforts to keep the community tidy" (Terry,
1989, p. 5). The program is repeated on Friday evening along with a com-
munity request show. Djarindjin has received no training yet, but one member
of the community is an experienced producer who worked at the ABC in Port
Moresby, and she produces the programs. They have no local television pro-
grams, but are trying to find funds to buy camera equipment, so that the
same producer can make these programs.
BRACS does provide the means for community production, and in so
doing helps redress the impact of the one-way flow of the mass media. Also,
its central switching system does allow for a community elder, or a person
deemed responsible, to control the flow of programming, especially program-
ming that may be considered offensive. However, if BRACS is really going
to achieve its goals, all concerns need to be addressed in detail as quickly as
possible.

Further Considerations
We don't have the opportunity to stop being Aborigines. We are Aboriginal 24
hours a day; it's not a sodal issue we cap take up and drop. Non-Aboriginal
people can take an interest for a while and drop out. The same with governments
when it's politically expedient. (Stevens, 1987, p. 11)
If Aboriginal broadcasting is to succeed, it must be encouraged in all sectors,
from low-power community stations in remote areas through rural and urban

The Howard Journal of Communications (Spring 1990) 165

public radio stations, to metropolitan and regional commercial and the ABC
television and radio. Funding, as already stated, is one of the major problems.
Another is training.

The ABC

In the past, the only training available for Aborigines has been a series
of government-funded short courses. The difficulty with these is that they
don't guarantee employment, and they lack the recognition of more formal
qualifications. The ABC is the only mainstream broadcast sector in metro-
politan and regional areas to address the issue of Aboriginal training and
employment on a long-term basis. The ABC has trained Aborigines since
1980 at its stations around Australia. From 1980 to 1989, it is estimated that
the ABC trained about 150 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for
work in independent and community radio in remote areas of Australia
(G. Steele, personal communication, April 5, 1989). But in June, 1987, it was
found that there were only seven Aborigines employed at ABC stations (ABC,
1988, p. 1). This was because there was no commitment to employ Aborigines
after their training had been completed. As a result, the ABC put in place a
new Aboriginal training and employment program in 1988 that covers ABC
radio and TV stations throughout Australia. The federal government's
Aboriginal Employment and Development Policy (AEDP), launched in No-
vember 1987, also encouraged the ABC to design this program. AEDP aims
to increase the number of Aborigines in government and private sector em-
ployment to 2% by 1991. The ABC training program is administered by
an Aboriginal woman, Cheryle Schramm, who was appointed in July 1987.
The major advantage of this program is that the trainees are employed as
ABC staff at the start of their training, and assured of a job when they have
finished.
The ABC target for 1991 is 40 Aborigines in radio, 65 in television, and 15
in the corporate (administrative) sector. The training program will then be reas-
sessed. The ABC is a huge bureaucracy, and Schramm's job is not an easy one.
Some departments have been slower than others to respond to the need to fill
positions with Aboriginal people. Meanwhile, Schramm has also given sensitivity
lectures to the ABC executives and journalists. These lectures talk about media
stereotyping of Aborigines, reporting black issues in the media, and Aboriginal
culture.
In late 1987, the ABC also set up an Aboriginal Program Unit to produce
and buy Aboriginal television programs. However, the unit has not had a major
impaa on the organization because of limited funding. Moreover, the producer
in charge of the unit is a European. The first major program initiative from the
unit was a weekly current affairs program presented and produced by Aborigines
called "Blackout." The series went to air in May 1989 in the unfortunate timeslot
of 10:40 p.m. (Friday). This, combined with problems in the unit, prompted
some to criticize the ABC for "black tokenism."

166 The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990)

SBS
SBS is a much smaller organization than the ABC. It has had a commitment
to Aboriginal radio training since 1980, and it has broadcast some excellent
Aboriginal television series and documentaries. Its role in Aboriginal broad-
casting is less clear than the ABC's, because SBS saw itself initially as an ethnic
broadcasting service only. Accordingly, SBS decided that Aborigines, being the
indigenous race, did not fit into its programming. SBS has now reconsidered
its policy and included Aboriginal programs, but Aboriginal broadcasters work-
ing at SBS are still very much in the minority.
In April 1989, SBS started a weekly national current affairs program on
Aboriginal issues. This program was produced and presentediy Aborigines. It
aired in a much better timeslot than the ABC's, 7:30 p.m. every Tuesday. The
13-part series was the first TV program to be devoted to Aboriginal issues. It
made a point of including items that stressed the positive achievements of
Aborigines so rarely seen in other media. The series was also used as an ongoing
project to train Aborigines in television journalism and technical skills. To date,
SBS does not have a training project based on the AEDP, but Cheryle Schramm
is giving them some advice in this area.

Other Outlets
Commercial TV and Radio. The commercial television and radio networks
appear to have no policies for Aboriginal content and employment. The com-
mercial industry does recruit heavily from the ABC, and it is possible that some
of the ABC's Aboriginal broadcasters will move across to the commercial net-
works.
Public Radio. Public radio has provided minimal training because of a
shortage of funds, facilities, and trainers. It did attempt a national training
project involving 12 Aboriginal broadcasters from different states in 1987.

Batchelor College Course

In 1987, a group of media academics and practitioners drafted the course

details for the first Associate Diploma in Applied Science (Broadcasting and
Journalism). The course is based at Batchelor College in the Northern Territory,
a college that teaches Aboriginal people from the surrounding communities.
This is the only tertiary broadcasting course in Australia designed specifically
for the needs of Aborigines. The course is extremely important as it comes at
a time when Aboriginal people are demanding formal qualifications. The di-
ploma prepares Aborigines for work in remote communities on BRACS, for
work on Imparja and 8KIN, and for work in the mainstream media. It has clearly
defined levels and students can take as much of the course as they need to work
in each area. The most important part of this course is that it recognizes the
fact that Aborigines do not like to be away from their communities for any length
of time. The major segments of the course are taught in three- to four-week
residentials, three times during the year. The students then return to their

The Howard Joumal of Communications (Spring 1990) 157

communities and Aboriginal tutors travel to the communities to continue the
training there.
One of the most encouraging features of the course is that "a number of
mainstream media organizations have indicated that employment opportun-
ities exist for suitably qualified Aborigines" (Geddes, 1988, p. 3). It is hoped
that recognized qualifications will break down some of the deeply held prej-
udices about employing Aboriginal people. The first real opportunity to assess
the full impact of the Batchelor course will be in 1991, when the first students
graduate.

Conclusion

Aboriginal broadcasting is certainly developing on a number of fronts in

the 1980s, but overall there is a lack of cohesion. The varying interests of
Aboriginal communities will always make this a very diverse sector. However,
if Aboriginal broadcasting is really to develop and become institutionalized,
government policy and planning need to be clarified. DAA started a review
of Aboriginal broadcasting early in 1989, but the aim of this review is not
known. Aboriginal radio and television will continually be handicapped if
they must struggle with government departments for finance. Moreover, this
funding is very much tied to particular governments, and a change of gov-
ernment could mean that the funding would be curtailed. Ideally, Aboriginal
broadcasting should be funded in the same way as the ABC and SBS. In this
way. Aboriginal broadcasting would be institutionalized, and less susceptible
to changes of government. It would also mean that Aborigines could admin-
ister their own funds. Unfortunately, given the present economic climate in
Australia this is most unlikely.

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