CBX Magazine - April 2017

THE MAGAZINE OF THE CBAA

NNECT S THAT CO IE R O T S TION CRAFTING YOUR STA GUIDE TO G L IN A W IC O T N C K RA * A NPOWING YOUR AUDIENCE IS * K MRAP Q&A A

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APRIL

2017

EVERYTHING YOUR RADIO STATION NEEDS

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CONTENTS

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President's Column....................................................................................... 2 CBAA Update.................................................................................................. 3 Stats: Australian community radio............................................................4 From Adelaide to Bonn: Ineke Mules, 2017 Mike Thompson/Clare Atkinson Intern...........................................6 A practical guide to crafting stories that connect.................................8 Knowing your audience is knowing your station.................................. 10 Amrap Q&A....................................................................................................12 Yabun brings music with a beat to Sydney............................................ 14 Getting The Message Across: Wayne Stamm........................................ 15

By Invitation: John Maizels, Technorama.............................................. 16 CBF Update: Beating loneliness, one broadcast at a time..................17 Meet: Sheridan Voysey............................................................................... 18 Out Of The Box: Rob Stewart................................................................... 20 CRN Program Guide.....................................................................................21

PRESIDENT’S COLUMN PHILLIP RANDALL And another year is off to a flying start for community radio! I’m proud to say that we’ve seen another record national listenership survey published that shows that 5.3 million Australians listen to community radio each week.

There are hundreds of stations all over Australia serving these communities, and this growing audience shows that our sector is meeting an important need, and making a valued contribution to our country’s strong democracy, open society and vibrant culture.

For those who joined us in Melbourne for our conference in November, you may remember a key sentiment from Holly Ransom’s address about effecting positive change – start before you’re ready. The pace of change happening all around us isn’t going to slow down, and we must recognise that we cannot wait for a mirage of readiness. Instead, we must think about what we can change, and how we can start now as we work together to build stronger community radio stations and a stronger sector. What changes have you thought about implementing at your station, or in your programming, this year? Read about how Technorama has been putting this into action on page 16.

In 2017, the CBAA will continue to nurture a supportive sector environment.

Two of our key priorities are: Codes of Practice review: In February, the CBAA Board approved a draft version of the updated Community Radio Broadcasting Codes of Practice to go to the ACMA for comment. Following the ACMA’s feedback, we will begin consultation with the sector on the draft. The Codes of Practice are a fundamental document for our sector, and influence our operations and governance. I urge you to keep an eye out for the consultation, as the CBAA makes every effort to engage with as many broadcasters, station staff and other stakeholders as we can.

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Digital radio expansion: The CBAA is participating in planning for regional digital radio and it is expected that digital radio will commence in at least Canberra, Hobart and Darwin in 2017 - 2018. Consultation is now underway with stations in these areas and the CBAA will continue to advocate for funding to support regional development and the expansion of community digital radio services.

The CBAA can provide you with tailored advice and services. As always, we have an experienced team to assist our members in running their stations.

We encourage station managers and board members to pick up the phone with any and all questions. Just ask for our Senior Member Services Officer Emma Couch on 02 9310 2999.

All the best for a prosperous 2017 – and remember – start before you’re ready!

CBX IS THE MAGAZINE OF THE COMMUNITY BROADCASTING ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA. CBX is mailed to CBAA members and stakeholders.

CBX is also available online at: www.cbaa.org.au/cbx-magazine Follow us on Twitter: @CBAA_ Like us on Facebook: Community Broadcasting Association of Australia.

EDITOR: Helen Henry I hhenry@cbaa.org.au SUB-EDITOR: Holly Friedlander Liddicoat GRAPHIC DESIGN AND COVER ART: Judith Martinez I judith@letra.com.au ADVERTISING: For all advertising enquiries please contact the Editor.

PRINTED BY: Brightset Printing I tony@brightset.com.au CBX IS PRINTED ON: ecoStar CBX content is CBAA copyrighted.

All rights reserved. Articles may be used by CBAA members without permission, provided credit is given.

By Jon Bisset, CBAA Chief Executive Officer

AT ITS CORE, RADIO IS ABOUT CONNECTION AND SHARING STORIES. Community radio, in particular, is an important vehicle for storytelling that helps capture and strengthen identity and culture, and contribute to building a strong and inclusive Australian community. In the April 2017 CBX, we look at how stories can be used to create connections, and how broadcasters can do this most effectively. Check out tips from our partners including Audiocraft (p. 8) and the Christian Media and Arts Australia (p. 18), ahead of their events and conferences in the coming months.

As always, the magazine is a great opportunity to hear what people around our sector are up to. In this

edition, we hear from the CBAA’s newest board member Wayne Stamm (p.15 ), Deutsche Welle intern Ineke Mules (p.6) and 2016 winner of the CBAA’s Outstanding Volunteer Contribution award Rob Stewart (p. 20). It is people like this – 20,000 of them around Australia – that power our sector. Each has their own story to tell, and, ultimately, a shared love for community radio.

Here at the CBAA, we always love to hear these stories from our member stations – so please don’t hesitate to contact us and let us know what you’re up to! We’re also here to answer your questions and provide tailored advice,

information and services to help you build your station’s sustainability.

Reach out with any questions office@cbaa.org.au; 02 9310 2999 – and our experienced staff will be able to assist.

Speaking of members, I would also like to take this opportunity to welcome three new stations to the fold - University of Sydney’s SURG FM, Thursday Island's 4MW and Holbrook (NSW)’s 2GHR. Thank you also to our inaugural annual sponsors – AFTRS, Wireless Components and N-com – for your ongoing support for community radio and the CBAA.

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CBX APRIL 2017

渀椀砀 䄀

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AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY RADIO

5.3 million

OUR AUDIENCE

28%

Weekly listeners nationally 1 in 4 Australians

30%

25 - 39 years

19%

15 - 24 years

+1 million 2006

55+ years

23%

40 - 54 years

2016

15.4h

Weekly average listening to community radio

80%

55%

45%

Men

Of the remote Indigenous community members listen to RIMOs each week

Women

100%

Identify RIMOs as the main radio station they listen to

26%

Of listeners speak a language other than English in their household

WHY ARE THEY LISTENING?

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29%

For Australian music and artists

31%

For specialist music

48%

For local info and news

31%

29%

For independent For local voices and voices not owned personalities by big business or government

600+

OUR COMMUNITY

EFT employees

20,000 Volunteers

5,600

Trained every year

450+

Community radio services across Australia

72% Of content broadcast on community radio stations is locally produced

Local communities Indigenous Australians Ethnic communities Educational services Religious communities People with a print disability Music, arts and culture Youth and seniors LGBTIQ communities

$120M+

$605M Community radio value

of listeners find community radio 'quite' or 'very' valuable

The community broadcasting sector makes a significant contribution to the Australian economy

$485M

Economic value of its volunteer effort CBX APRIL 2017

Of the stations are in regional and rural areas

THAT GIVE A VOICE TO A RANGE OF GROUPS

Turnover

Find out more at www.cbaa.org.au

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66%

94%

From Adelaide to Bonn: Ineke Mules, 2017 Mike Thompson/Clare Atkinson Intern

By Holly Friedlander Liddicoat

ALMOST 30 AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY BROADCASTERS HAVE BENEFITED FROM A PAID INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY TO TRAVEL TO GERMANY AND JOIN THE TEAM IN THE DEUTSCHE WELLE NEWSROOM. THIS INCLUDED CLARE ATKINSON, WHO SADLY PASSED AWAY LAST YEAR, AND FOR WHOM THE MIKE THOMPSON/CLARE ATKINSON INTERNSHIP IS NOW NAMED. This year’s intern is Ineke Mules, who is currently in Germany and caught up with us to share her experience so far.

pretty major elections, which could decide the future of the EU as populist candidates continue to gain momentum.

It's an uncertain time for many here at the moment, but an invaluable training ground for a journalism intern.

What are your first impressions working in Deutsche Welle's newsroom in Bonn?

What are you most looking forward to learning during your internship?

My first impression of the Deutsche Welle newsroom is how fast-paced it can be - speed and accuracy are the most important aspects of news writing and it can take a bit of practice to match Deutsche Welle's standards.

I've also needed to quickly come to grips with the different news-based software they use. At Deutsche Welle, OpenMedia is their main point of access to global news wires and audio, video and online content for all departments.

There are also different programs for audio and video editing which are quite different from what I've used in the past at Radio Adelaide.

What is your journalistic experience to date?

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Most of my journalistic experience is radio-based. I've conducted interviews, presented live and produced for Breakfast on Radio Adelaide and The Wire. I also used to write and present the Breakfast news, so that definitely prepared me somewhat for the fast-paced newsroom environment - although certainly not on the same scale!

Why do you think it's important to intern in Germany, or overseas more broadly?

One of the first things I noticed when I arrived here was the difference in news content compared to outlets

In June I'm heading to Berlin to do a month-long stint at the globalisation program, Global 3000. I've never done any TV work before so I'm really looking forward to learning a lot while I'm there.

How has community radio equipped you for this experience?

in Australia. There's a much more in-depth focus on European politics for example - including many eastern European states which often don't warrant much of a mention back home.

I was lucky enough to begin my internship just as we entered a very interesting time both for Germany and the rest of Europe. The international ramifications of Donald Trump's election mean Germany has a newfound relevance on the global stage.

International observers are already predicting the country will begin to set some important foreign policy norms, leading to a lot of high expectations in the wake of the refugee crisis, which most Germans are still coming to terms with.

Meanwhile, the Netherlands, France and Germany are gearing up for some

Based on my own experience, community radio has provided unparalleled practical experience in the media industry which can be used across borders. I arrived at Deutsche Welle already knowing how to conduct interviews, put together stories and pitch ideas in the newsroom.

Community radio has equipped me with a great base which I hope I can build upon.

What do you love most about community radio?

One of the things I love most about community radio is the opportunity to produce content which you feel is important and relevant, while also having the freedom to learn and grow as a journalist along the way. The content is always very reflective of the diverse Australian community - no two programs are the same and the passion of the presenters and producers always shines through.

An eye-opening experience

dw.com

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Esther Blank | +61 2 9665 9202 | estherblank@optusnet.com.au

CBX APRIL 2017

DW is now available across Australia and New Zealand, giving audiences a brilliant way to experience DW’s international news. Contact DW for information about adding DW in HD to your lineup.

A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO CRAFTING STORIES THAT CONNECT

THE AUDIOCRAFT CONFERENCE, NOW IN ITS SECOND YEAR, IS A DAY OF AUDIO DISCUSSIONS AND WORKSHOPS TO ASK, “WHERE ARE WE AT RIGHT NOW, WHERE DO WE WANT TO BE, AND HOW WILL WE GET THERE?” GUIDING PROCEEDINGS IS A STELLAR LINE-UP OF SOME OF THE SHARPEST, SAVVIEST RADIO MINDS INCLUDING JESS O’CALLAGHAN, LEE TRAN LAM AND MEGAN TAN. GET A TASTE OF WHAT’S TO COME HERE AS THESE PRODUCERS TAKE US THROUGH THEIR PROCESSES AND OFFER PRACTICAL TIPS AND TECHNIQUES ON HOW THEY DRAW OUT STORIES AND INTERVIEW SUBJECTS.

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READ, RESEARCH AND RETHINK YOUR APPROACH Megan: Finding great stories is an ongoing process – it’s like wanting your body to be toned and in shape all the time. Every day I try to carve out time to sit in front of my computer and research stories that I’ve never heard.

If I come across a story and I find myself thinking about it while I’m brushing my teeth or taking a shower, then I know that it’s “sticky”, and I go after it. A lot of times I think we can get stuck on an idea, but if we don’t pursue it then we don’t know what the story could become. Finding great stories for me means:

• Carving out a daily rhythm where you’re constantly reading articles and you’re keeping your eyes peeled for stories that challenge how you see the world.

• Being hyper aware of your surroundings – you’re always on a story hunt.

• Asking friends of friends of friends.

• Getting feedback from others so you know you’re not going after a story with no legs.

• Casting a story. Sometimes I’ll think, wouldn’t it be great to find such and such, doing this. And then when you’re researching, you have a vision of what kind of story you’re trying to find.

Lee Tran: Interview subjects will connect with you more if you show you’ve done your homework. Kara Swisher was on Ezra Klein’s podcast and talked about some of her techniques. She was about to interview President Barack Obama and noticed he had a long, wordy way of talking paragraphs – and she had an extremely short interview time – so she upfront mentioned this to him and it broke his habit of giving long wieldy answers. She also noticed that he gave better answers when he was challenged or a bit angry (because he’s surrounded by people who say “yes” to him all the time), so she added a little conflict to her questions and got the response she was after.

ALWAYS ASK QUESTIONS AND GET FEEDBACK FROM OTHERS Jess: Technology has opened up hundreds of ways to engage with audiences, but so many of them are inauthentic. What interests me right now is: how can you use deep engagement with an audience to inform the stories you tell and how you tell them? In radio, that could mean teaching people online how to record their voices to be incorporated into your story. It could mean meeting with

stakeholders in your story for more than just interviews, talking to them early in the process about shaping narrative and possible angles that you haven’t thought of. Episode #1515 A Walk in the Park of All The Best was workshopped with about ten women in my living room before we knew what direction it would take. We then asked women to record their own walks home on their phones, and recruited musician Alyx Dennison to turn the walking home tape into music.

Lee Tran: A lecturer once said to me: “Don’t be afraid to come across as dumb”. If you don’t know an answer, it’s better to ask for clarification than worry that your question is “too stupid”. I asked Dan Barber – one of the world’s best chefs – about why he grew his own special strain of wheat and he gave this incredibly technical answer.

And I said, “but if you’re not a wheat nerd, what’s the difference?” And he laughed and gave this wonderfully articulate and memorable answer – about how it doesn’t slap you in the face like a glass of wine, but when you grow your own wheat, you’re reminded that it’s a grass and it actually tastes of something.

Jess O’Callaghan is a former Executive Producer of All The Best. These days, she produces The Party Room and RN Drive.

Lee Tran Lam runs The Unbearable Lightness of Being Hungry blog and podcast. She also presents Local Fidelity on FBi Radio.

Megan Tan is the creator and producer of Millenial - a Radiotopia podcast about manoeuvring your twenties.

Audiocraft is a valued partner of the CBAA.

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Photos by Ash Berbedes

CBX APRIL 2017

Audiocraft Conference takes place on June 10 at Aerial UTS Function Centre. Tickets available at audiocraft.com.au.

Knowing your audience is knowing your station

By Joel Pringle, CBAA Policy and Research Adviser

RUNNING COMMUNITY RADIO STATIONS MEANS MAKING LOTS OF DECISIONS EVERY DAY. MANY ARE SMALL AND OTHERS HAVE A LASTING IMPACT ON THE WAY STATIONS ARE RUN FOR YEARS TO COME. INFORMING THESE DECISIONS WITH THE BEST AVAILABLE INFORMATION IS A KEY TO OUR SECTOR’S STRENGTH.

Research offers access to critical information in both station operations and governance. Knowing the listening interests of your audience leads to well informed programming, for example.

As well as being able to use this to create a programming grid specifically tailored to a community’s needs, it also means being able to demonstrate this knowledge to our sector’s regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), as a means to show you are meeting regulatory requirements.

On a governance level, being able to measure how you're meeting your organisational goals helps you make decisions in the best interests of your station.

When looking at operations, station managers and directors are relied upon to make well-informed decisions about how to allocate (often limited) resources; will it be new equipment or additional recruitment and training this year?

There’s not one type of research that can achieve all of these things.

There are many options, and research providers keen to share them as well.

Here, we look at two types of research of most use to community radio stations.

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1. Audience research Audience research tells us who is listening and how they are listening.

It’s important for us not only to know how many people are tuning in, but

their reasons for choosing your station and the demographic profile of your audience.

Knowing what times of day your audience is strongest is great information to have when programming decisions are being made. Of course, this is also the data that potential sponsors want to get their hands on; spending on advertising is a commercial investment for them, and they want to have confidence that your community radio station is going to give them the best bang for their buck. They want to know exactly who they are going to reach.

One variant of audience research is knowing your potential audience better.

That is, knowing your whole community of interest and understanding what they want from radio broadcast services.

Some of this data is available through the Australian Government Census figures, but more in depth information will rely on your own surveys.

2. Sector capacity research Understanding the operational capacity and broadcasting output of community radio stations is critical to knowing the best ways to invest government funding to support our sector, and knowing what sector-wide projects will best help stations thrive today and into the future.

You might be most familiar with this type of research through the Community Broadcasting Census surveys run by the CBAA. It’s a big ask of community radio stations – often

run by volunteers and always underresourced – to complete these surveys but the information returned is used by funding bodies, regulators and the government to understand our diverse and dispersed sector. The station census research covers programming, technology and facilities, and the financial health of community radio stations.

An underutilised potential for this research is the ability to benchmark your own station against others in our sector, based on similar geography, communities of interest, financial resources and other factors. While there’s no “single fit” anywhere across community radio stations, information on where like-radio stations are at and how they approach the challenges of community broadcasting can provide great insights to community radio station directors.

There are a number of ways that community radio stations can get the data they need, from running their own research projects to engaging experts to do it for them. The right option for your station will depend on what you are trying to find out and what resources you have available.

The best advice is to be clear on what you want to use the data for, understand (or get advice) on the best research methods to provide the answers you need, skill up to make sure you make the best use of the research once you have it, and be realistic about what can be afforded within your station’s budget.

2MCR’S RESEARCH STORY 2MCR, the sub-metropolitan community radio station broadcasting in South-West Sydney, purchased a station report from the CBAA's National Listener Survey for the first time in 2016.

Station President Rodney Simpson said that this was the first time the station had undertaken audience research like this.

“The decision to purchase the NLS research was in part prompted by the ACMA asking us when we last surveyed our community. They wanted us to show them that we understood our community.

“We also needed to go to businesses that are potential sponsors with credible information. Before, they would ask us how many listeners we’ve got, and we couldn’t give them anything that was credible.

“It was quite surprising when we got the results, to be honest we didn’t think we had as many listeners!”

The research proved to be more useful than just for sponsorship opportunities.

“The listener numbers are good to mention when we’re talking to other community groups, and to use when we’re promoting the station. We gave the report to a group of Uni students who did a project on the station.

They were looking at marketing and the project was a big part of their final mark. We’ll use that work to help with our marketing, including website design and other things. You can check it out on our website.”

2MCR have made sure the research is well known around the station.

“When we got the report, it was circulated amongst the Board and discussed at committee meetings.

It was printed and made available

to staff and around the station. It’s important that broadcasters can have a look at who’s listening!”

Rodney said that the report has proven valuable to the station.

“When businesses want to spend their dollars on advertising, they want to know where they’ll get the best value. One of our existing sponsors told me that they pay many times our rate when they go to the commercial stations, but we have to show them how many listeners we have.

“We can’t show them the whole report, but we show the numbers that are useful to that sponsor.”

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CBX APRIL 2017

12-Channel & 8-Channel Broadcast On Air Console

Amrap Q&A By the Amrap Team, CBAA

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SUPPORT COMMUNITY RADIO GIVES TO AUSTRALIAN MUSICIANS IN THIS Q&A BY AMRAP - THE AUSTRALIAN MUSIC RADIO AIRPLAY PROJECT.

CAITLIN NIENABER Breakfast presenter at RTRFM in Perth, Western Australia Caitlin has worn many hats at community station RTRFM, transitioning from newbie volunteer to Interviews Coordinator before securing a permanent on-air slot as breakfast host.

Breakfast with Caitlin airs weekdays, bringing listeners the best of WA music and culture. For Caitlin, it's also an opportunity for her to share her Australian music obsession with eager ears.

Why is local music such an important part of the program?

I wouldn’t have a show without it!

There’s no other radio program in Perth (or the world) between 6 and 9am that’s playing as much WA-made music as we are. So it’s pretty crucial for us to fill that gap. I like to think our listeners get a snapshot of what’s exciting and new in Perth and beyond each morning.

Our music scene is a huge part of that.

CAITLIN NIENABER

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- BREAKFAST PRESENTER AT RTRFM IN PERTH, WESTERN An impressive 2,000 hours of Australian music is aired on community radio each week by thousands of enthusiastic program makers with a passion for homegrown artists. With so many opportunities for local acts to get heard on community radio, linking broadcasters with musicians remains a crucial yet challenging task. Amrap helps by building a bridge between Australia's music industry and the

AUSTRALIA

community radio sector. Over 3,000 program makers from 300 stations use Amrap's music distribution service AirIt to find new releases for airplay, and more than 1,000 use Amrap Pages to log their airplay lists and promote artists through station websites and social media.

In this series, we chat to a broadcaster and musician about the incredible support community radio gives to Australian artists.

Perth is quite isolated from other parts of Australia. What impact does distance have on Perth's music scene and how does local community radio help?

I think isolation works in our favour.

We’re left to our own devices a bit here and it gives artists the freedom to experiment without too much interference from the outside world. For a lot of artists just starting out, getting airplay or an interview on RTRFM is recognition they may not have had yet. I’m always chuffed to hear local musicians and bands talk about what a rite of passage it is to hear their music on RTRFM for the first time.

Do you have any stories about RTRFM boosting an artist's career?

You promote the music you play on the radio through your Amrap Page on RTRFM's website. How does it complement your on-air program?

Listeners can head to my Amrap Page to listen back to shows or check out playlists. I also often direct people there when I play an artist or song I can’t pronounce so they can get the right spelling and find it themselves (it sounds silly but it’s really useful!) And I love that it allows artists to see that I’m playing their music - I’ve had quite a few get in contact to say thanks or to update me on what they’re up to.

Occasionally I’ll forget to add a playlist and inevitably I’ll get an anxious call or email from a listener who heard something they loved that morning and are desperate to hear it again!

It’s a great reminder that people are listening and actively engaging with what they hear.

Why does RTRFM use AirIt and what do you like about the service?

Our presenters are great at sourcing music for their shows. I’m always getting introduced to new artists when listening to RTRFM’s many programs.

That’s how I was introduced to Perth hip-hop artist Ziggy: another presenter had found him on Airit, played his song Black Thoughts and I was hooked.

While I was Interviews Coordinator at RTRFM it was also really handy to be able to search playlists to find out which presenters were playing particular artists and to get them talking to each other.

I love browsing the categories and being able to instantly download and listen to such a huge range of music - it makes my job easier and my show better!

JANE AZZOPARDI

MEMBER OF INDEPENDENT PERTH BAND CHILDSAINT

JANE AZZOPARDI member of independent Perth band Childsaint Forming in 2013, garage rock band Childsaint quickly became known as one of Perth's most exciting up-and-coming acts. After selling out their 2014 Sick EP launch, the 4-piece went on to share stages with Little May, Holy Holy and Husky. Then, UK's NME and DIY magazines gave their single Dessert glowing reviews, swiftly followed in Australia with rotation spots on RTRFM (Perth) and FBi Radio (Sydney), and three consecutive weeks in the Amrap Metro Charts.

How important is RTRFM to Perth musicians?

We got our first ever radio spin on RTRFM! We are so lucky to have a community radio station that supports local music as much as RTRFM. It really brings the Perth music scene together as a community in a way that just wouldn’t happen without it.

How has community radio helped you to reach new fans?

Without support from community stations it would be hard to cut through the noise of all the music that is out there and available for consumption, particularly when it’s hard to play outside Perth very often.

AirIt is a great resource for bands and radio presenters. We couldn’t really afford publicity or radio servicing so we hit up some of the big community radio stations ourselves, but we don’t have the resources that a publicist does to ensure that our music can get to every station that wants to play it. AirIt really helps to bridge that gap, especially for small bands, or genre-specific bands, to make sure that your music gets into the right hands.

With the support of FBi Radio’s (ex) Music Director Stephen Goodhew, our EP got the ‘FBi recommends’ sticker when we distributed our EP through Amrap's CD mailout. That meant it had been endorsed by someone who was well-respected in Australian music which was a huge leg up for us as a small band.

Amrap's Airplay Search collates results from over 1,000 Amrap Pages playlists in real time. Do you use it often?

Hahaha yes. Nearly every day when we have just released something new, but a few weeks after release I tend to chill out a bit and only check it every now and then. It’s reassuring to see that people are still digging the tracks and spinning them a few months on!

You have used Amrap's distribution services to get your music out to community radio. How have they helped you?

Find Childsaint and heaps of other Australian musicians for airplay at airit.org.au and check out Breakfast With Caitlin at rtrfm.com.au

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I’ve loved seeing Methyl Ethel reach great success in the past couple of years. I did the radio premiere of their song Twilight Driving back in 2015 and it felt great to stand in a huge crowd at Splendour in the Grass a year later surrounded by teenagers singing along to the same song.

Yabun brings music with a beat to Sydney

By Jeff Kessel, Gadigal Information Service • Photos: Mike Andrews

THE 15TH ANNUAL YABUN FESTIVAL SAW A HUGE TURNOUT OF AROUND 35,000 PEOPLE THIS YEAR, HIGHLIGHTING THE GROWTH OF THE LARGEST ONE-DAY GATHERING OF ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER PEOPLE IN AUSTRALIA. Yabun is produced by Gadigal Information Services Aboriginal Corporation, home of Sydney’s only permanent Indigenous radio station, Koori Radio 93.7FM.

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Yabun, which means ‘music with a beat’ - places an emphasis on being an inclusive event for everyone and is also drug and alcohol free.

This year’s program featured singersongwriter Kev Carmody, the Honourable Linda Burney MP, Oka, X Factor finalist Rochelle Pitt, and many others.

The festival hosted over 100 stalls, including stalls from activist groups, info tents, advocacy organisations, and Aboriginal crafts, alongside a diverse selection of food and beverages.

Yabun is an event honouring Survival Day, recognising, enjoying, and acknowledging all that has been achieved by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the face of the great adversity and injustice of colonisation.

Koori Radio broadcasted live from the festival for the whole day.

GETTING THE

MESSAGE ACROSS

WAYNE STAMM

CBAA BOARD MEMBER AND GE NERAL MANAGER OF 2NUR FM

WHAT DO YOU THINK COMMUNITY RADIO SERVICES CONTRIBUTE TO AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITIES? Community radio, especially in regional and rural areas, offers a service that few others can match, and that’s a local voice covering local issues. Commercial radio and the ABC are deserting these communities leaving community stations to fill the void. For those stations that take on the challenge of becoming the main

WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE MAIN CHALLENGE FOR THE SECTOR AT THE MOMENT? Community radio is really changing.

Presentation styles and programming is much more important than ever before. Presenters want to be taken as serious and/or entertaining broadcasters. For some stations, trying to balance that with their presenters’ individual passions for music, humour, current affairs or anything else they broadcast is a real challenge.

Metro stations can be a little more specialised in their programming while regional and rural stations are trying to cover a whole range of issues as well as keeping local. A lot of stations are finding that it is nowhere near as easy as anticipated and that broadcasting is a whole lot more than two turntables and a microphone.

AND THE BIGGEST OPPORTUNITY? Certainly outside of the metro area the biggest opportunity is for stations to become the local voice in their broadcast area.

WHAT'S BEEN YOUR PROUDEST COMMUNITY RADIO MOMENT? 2NUR runs a newsroom staffed by Journalism majors from the University of Newcastle. Since 2009, over 200 students have produced in excess of 2000 news bulletins a year. In our pilot year we had just six students but all of them got jobs in mainstream media. The day that the first one of them walked in and said “I got the job in Cairns” was unbelievably exciting for all of us. Most of my team are from commercial or ABC radio - it’s like old folks radio home - and for most of them this was the first time we felt like we were able to put something tangible back into the industry that we all love.

Find out more about 2NUR at www.2nurfm.com

CBX APRIL 2017

My first community broadcaster was 2GLA in Forster Tuncurry in 1989. It was a wonderful experience and I was sad to leave my office overlooking the lake and dolphins after only two years.

The team there was fantastic and we achieved a lot in a very short time. I loved the passion they had for radio so when I got the chance to join 2NUR 15 years ago I jumped and haven’t looked back.

voice in their town/city/area it can be a daunting task, but incredibly rewarding.

15

HOW DID YOU BECOME INVOLVED IN COMMUNITY BROADCASTING?

N O I T A T I V N I BY

NORAMA JOHN MAIZELS, TECH

Conferences are the great unknown: nobody gets sent for a second time after telling the boss the conference was crap or pointless. So you hope for good, but pray that you’ll be able to return and say “yep, worth it” and not be fibbing. Especially if you’re a volunteer, and someone else was paying. It’s important to know that whatever money was spent to send you to a conference was a good investment.

The thing about any conference is to find a decent takeaway or two that justifies the cost. At many conferences meetings, meals, drinks, networking, serendipitous opportunism and one memorable workshop would put you in a good place.

16 CBX APRIL 2016

And then you get a gig that’s unexpectedly out-of-the-box. Of the countless conferences I’ve attended over the years, I can’t remember one that’s had the impact of the CBAA's in 2016.

For me, there were two highlights that just made the trip. I won’t lie: one of those was the panel Futureproofing your broadcast technologists, facilitated by Emma Couch (CBAA) and where Bernadette Young (ABC), Sharon Eccles (3MBS) and I (Technorama) led the management-oriented audience through what it takes to plant and grow technologists in a station. The presentation from the session is online as a CBAA resource.

We all know that it’s hard to get and keep techs; the trick is to understand

what you can do that’s proactive and helpful. The panellists discussed what motivates a technologist to be at your station, our experiences of building technology teams, and what you could do to encourage training and education at a station. We also talked about how to get women and youth involved in the ranks of technologists.

But even before I got to that panel, my thinking was turned on its head by the conference address from Holly Ransom, who presented an accessible and motivational speech like nothing I’ve seen before. It’s absolutely a mustwatch. In all the wonderful things Holly said, two messages stood out: “Start before you’re ready” and “embed your why in their why”.

Starting before you’re ready is not something that technologists do easily; we’re driven to manage risk. The studio must work perfectly. Getting to 100% must-work is in our DNA. And yet there’s so much truth in the adage: “the perfect is the enemy of the good”.

Holly Ransom showed very clearly why it’s important to start now. Like, RIGHT NOW. Her message was a bolt from the blue.

The other thing Holly told us is “Embed your why in their why”. Your volunteers have all kinds of reasons for joining you in your journey, but it’s their journey too. What you want to achieve will be achieved through them. And simple as it sounds, you can do that by finding out what they want, and embedding your drivers in theirs.

What is the “why” of technologists?

We’re motivated to build things, fix things, manage risk and uphold the truth. In return for which, technologists need hugs – the reward is as simple as appropriate recognition. So find those projects at your station to which the technologists can contribute. Don’t just find: invent activities which create involvement, and which appeal to their “why”.

Does it work? Yes. At Technorama, we’ve already applied Holly’s “Start before you’re ready” mantra, and it’s paying huge dividends. We’ve started to announce program and organisational elements as soon as we’re comfortable that we might be able to deliver, rather than wait until we’re 100% certain. For instance, we’ve announced a Women In Broadcast Technology initiative, and we don’t know where it’s headed but we’re starting. We’re determined to get a better gender and age balance in an industry segment where that’s tough to achieve.

Things are HAPPENING. You can do the same at your station.

And if you like this message, then you can reward both your technologists and Technorama: do whatever it takes to get your techs to become members of Technorama, and to attend TR17 in June. All the details are at www.technorama.org.au (the website that was launched before it was ready.

But... seems to be OK).

CBF UPDATE

Beating loneliness, one broadcast at a time

By Jo Curtin, Community Broadcasting Foundation

THE COMMUNITY BROADCASTING FOUNDATION HAS JUST LAUNCHED ITS BEATING LONELINESS THROUGH COMMUNITY BROADCASTING FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN TO HELP STATIONS CONNECT PEOPLE AND CHANGE THEIR LIVES.

Like many people, Catherine Chadwick moved from desperation to delight after joining her local station. “If other people knew how much my life has changed since becoming involved in community radio they would jump at the chance of joining,” she said. “I feel so blessed that 3WBC came into my life.”

KEY GRANT DATES

With its five million plus weekly listeners, community radio is described as “the perfect antidote to loneliness” by researcher Dr Simon Order from Murdoch University. Dr Order’s report The Joy of Social Connection shows DEVELOPMENT & OPERATIONS GRANTS –ROUND 2 opens 3 July, closes 21 August 2017.

that community broadcasting supports the reduction of loneliness by reducing the stigma of being lonely, connecting people across communities, and increasing volunteering.

Loneliness is as much of a threat to life as obesity and smoking. Lonely people suffer from more depression, drug abuse, alcoholism and, sadly, even suicide.

The campaign aims to help local stations with connect people more deeply to profoundly change their lives away from loneliness, through funding for Community Connection Officer roles at stations, events, equipment, and technology and skills development.

Find out how you can support the this campaign at your station at www.cbf.com.au/support-us or www.cbf.com.au/beating-loneliness CONTENT GRANTS – ROUND 2 opens 3 July, closes 28 August 2017.

STUCK FOR IDEAS We LOVE hearing your stories of what you have been up to. Station celebrations and landmarks, the events you organise or attend, who you’ve interviewed and what they had to say. The good, the great and the weird. Your stories help inspire other stations, so rather than us all re-inventing the wheel, let’s share, collaborate and work together.

After all imitation is the highest form of flattery, is it not?

Share you successes via info@cbf.com.au and check out your Success Stories on the CBF website at www.cbf.com.au/ success-stories for great ideas you can do too.

17 CBX APRIL 2016

Did you know that around 30% of us have experienced loneliness?

Loneliness has serious social costs and yet the simple act of creating and growing community connection noticeably reduces loneliness and feelings of social isolation.

MEET: SHERIDAN VOYSEY SPEAKER AT RADIO JEDI MASTERCLASSES

Sheridan Voysey got his start in community radio over 20 years ago at 96five in Brisbane, before it had a licence and was buying a few hours of air time each day from 4EB. Receiving training from a commercial radio friend, Fiona, soon led to filling in on an afternoon shift that Voysey describes as "all stumbled words".

Voysey returned to hone his craft, hosting morning on 98five Sonshine FM in Perth for five years and then starting the Open House program on Sydney's Hope 103.2 in 2006 and directing a Compassion Day event which brought together 40+ stations to help raise children out of poverty.

Now based on the UK, Sheridan

continues to contribute to the sector as a guest and commentator, which includes presenting at a series of Content Yoda masterclasses coming up in May. We caught up with Sheridan to talk more about his radio career and how he crafts compelling stories.

You’ve done 2000+ radio interviews – tell us about one that stands out in your mind.

It’s the question I find hardest to answer as the list includes people like Steve Waugh, Thomas Keneally, Anne Rice, Ray Martin and Lois Maxwell (the original Miss Moneypenny), right through to Michael Leunig and Korn singer Brian ‘Head’ Welch. I really don’t have a favourite, although Michael Franzese was fascinating: he climbed the ranks of New York’s Mafia to become one of its most powerful players since Al Capone, then risked it all to leave. He still looks over his shoulder when he walks down the street.

18 CBX APRIL 2017

Why is storytelling important for radio?

Story is the language of humanity – the definitive way we’ve connected, informed and entertained across all times and cultures. And radio is the medium of emotion and imagination.

Put the two together and storytelling on the radio can make a powerful, personal and emotive connection with the listener that builds engagement, loyalty, and moves people to action.

I work on four Ds: Details (painting the picture in your listener’s mind), Dialogue (far more interesting than merely explaining what happened), Drama (the grit and challenge that makes the story compelling), and Delayed resolution (holding the outcome or punch line until the end, something we often mess up when hooking the story in the first place).

How do you work this into your interviews, both as you prepare and execute them?

It really does come down to preparation. A story is really just a character who wants something and faces obstacles to get it, or is changed in the process. The four Ds work particularly well for interviews as each of our guests is a character that is,

or has been, after something. The skill of the broadcaster is then leveraging these details out and not letting the major dramatic points out until it is time.

Take Michael Franzese for example.

I don’t want him to just tell me Mafia life was full of money, violence and fear – I want him to describe a moment that naturally depicts this. In my interview he described the night he took the omerta – the Mafia’s oath of secrecy – which involved both a knife wound to his hand and having a picture of a Catholic saint set alight in his palm.

“Tonight, Michael Franzese, you are being born again into the Cosa Nostra,” he recounted the Boss saying. “And if you violate what you know about this life or betray your brothers, you’re going to die and burn in hell like this saint is burning in your hands. Do you accept?” Now there’s detail, dialogue

and drama right there in one minute of radio.

What is your top piece of advice for community broadcasters who want to work on their storytelling skills?

Come to the Content Yoda masterclass!

Other than that, listen to or watch great interviewers at their job, and watch good documentaries. Storyville documentaries are brilliant at the four Ds. What can people expect from your session at the Content Yoda masterclasses?

We’re going to be applying the four Ds to everything from 30-second spots to 60-second links, interviews, and more. I’ll have lots of clips to play you, we’ll do an aircheck on a breakfast team’s storytelling, and you’ll have a chance to write too.

Sheridan will present at Content Yoda – The Radio Jedi Masterclass, happening in Melbourne and Sydney in May. Find out more at www.radiojedi.org/. CBAA members get discounted registrations – contact us at office@cbaa.org.au to find out how.

19 CBX APRIL 2017

What are the fundamental elements of a compelling story?

BY ROB STEWART GOVE FM WHEN I WALKED THROUGH THE DOORS OF GOVE FM 10 YEARS AGO TO VOLUNTEER AS AN ANNOUNCER, I WOULD NEVER HAVE IMAGINED THAT I WOULD STILL BE INVOLVED, LET ALONE ACQUIRED THE WEALTH OF NEW AND WONDERFUL SKILLS I HAVE SINCE THEN DEVELOPED. Gove FM wasn’t my first gig in radio; I’d volunteered at RPH in Perth and worked full time for commercial regional radio in WA for three years prior to Gove, but what Gove FM did do was offer me a whole world of firsts.

Since my start here, I quickly moved into the Production Manager role, where I found I could be outrageous with my scripts without the confines of commercial radio rules, and when it came to producing these spots, Gove FM supported me (and continue to do so) with all my audio editing software requirements in order to create unique, professional, and great sounding spots. Having that backing and the freedom to express myself has been instrumental in striving to continually better myself with each new production.

20 CBX APRIL 2016

And that was just the beginning of being free to pursue my every whim.

With Gove FM’s willingness to embrace creativity and foster the concept that any ideas are better than no ideas, I started to canvas some of my musings. So I wistfully suggested festivals; they suggested I better get to work then! We purchased a huge PA, with Front of House and backline that we continue to use as a source of income when renting out to local venues and visiting artists.

It was a dramatic learning curve, but there I was, liaising with big name artists and their reps, working on equipment, accommodation and travel logistics. Then there was

licensing, security and partnering with other organisations and service providers to nut out. I became a deft exponent of politely pointing out to agents the absurdity of their artist riders’ demands, especially when considering we live in a town that gets its supplies once a week from a barge!

Chilled cucumber sandwiches cut into triangles for Tex Perkins were doable... but the cucumbers’ freshness was not a given.

Some of the stand-out artists I worked with were Children Collide, Horrorshow, Emerald Sun, and the Tjupi Band. There was also Kevin Borich’s Borich X Borich which included his son Lucius (Cog) on drums, Mental As Anything, Bush Reggae and all the local artists,

like East Journey, Barra Band, Sleeveheads (Now Mary Handsome), Papa Said and Harry & The Walkers My time at Gove FM has also seen me become an accomplished audio sound engineer, a music journalist for the local paper, MC to community events, music library coordinator, cabinet maker (fitting out our mobile studio bus) resident poster designer, studio designer, and for the last five or so years, I’ve also had to act like a President… which may explain my incessant internal urge to build a wall!

Life as a volunteer at community radio, and the people behind it, has given me some of the best opportunities I could have never dreamt of having! And for that, I am truly thankful.

CRN OVERNIGHT RADIO OPTIONS

CRN-1 SPECIALIST MUSIC PROGRAMMING

CRN-2 NIGHT TALKS - NEW

Keep your listeners switched on with engaging national community radio programming through the Community Radio Network service.

As part of the regular national community radio programming line-up running 24 hours a day, CRN-1 features specialist music content from 21:00 through to 09:00 AEST. Find it on channel 630 on VAST receivers. See the program guide at http://cbaa.org.au/crn for full listings.

An alternative for your listeners, with current affairs, news and lifestyle discussions each weeknight from 22:00 to 02:00 AEST. Find it on CRN-2, channel 631 on VAST receivers. Current line-up (All times AEST/AEDT):

Now there are two audio streams overnight, allowing you more flexibility to choose the content that suits your station best.

MONDAY NIGHT

TUESDAY NIGHT

WEDNESDAY NIGHT

THURSDAY NIGHT

FRIDAY NIGHT

22:00:00

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

22:01:00

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

22:04:00

The Fourth Estate

Real World Gardener

Women on the Line

All the Best

Wellbeing

22:32:00

Never Talk Politics

Dads on the Air

Fair Comment

Zed Games

Listen to Older Voices

23:00:00

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

23:01:00

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

23:04:00

Word for Word

Vision Australia Hour

Alternative Radio

Arts Alive

The History Show

0:00:00

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

0:01:00

BBC World News (5 mins)

BBC World News (5 mins)

BBC World News (5 mins)

BBC World News (5 mins)

BBC World News (5 mins)

0:06:00

The Wire

The Wire

The Wire

The Wire

The Wire

0:32:00

On the Money

Lost in Science

Earth Matters

Cinemascape

Overdrive

1:00:00

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

Local content window/ filler music

1:01:00

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

BBC World News (3 mins)

1:04:00

SoundMinds / Panorama

Diffusion

Accent of Women

The Bohemian Beat

Heard it Through the Grapevine

1:32:00

Stick Together

Beyond Zero

RadioActive

A Question of Balance

2:00:00

From 02:00 CRN-2 returns to a simulcast of CRN-1 specialist music shows, including Good Morning Country.

The 2017 CBAA Community Radio Awards celebrate excellence in community broadcasting across 20 award categories.

Entries are open until 8 May. Find out more, enter and get updates at

www.cbaa.org.au/awards