50 not out: celebrating half a century of community broadcasting

After years of lobbying, music station 2MBS was finally licensed and ready to go in December 1974 after the Whitlam government’s decision to establish community broadcasting in Australia.

“There were a couple of technicians fiddling around under the desk who made a short circuit sound, and I pulled my headphones off and said ‘shit’” said Mr James, who was the Sydney music station’s first general manager.

“That was the first word that went to air. I’m not proud of it.

“One listener even went to the trouble of tracking down the number of the station, which wasn’t even listed yet, so he could call us and say, ‘I heard that.’”

Despite the rough start, Mr James, now 78, said it was an exciting era to be a part of.

“It was both empowering and a little scary,” he said.

“Getting the licence to broadcast was one thing, but we had to actually set up all the equipment to make it happen.”

The reason David and his fellow music enthusiasts were in a position to hit the airwaves at all was a historic Cabinet decision taken by the Whitlam government on September 23, 1974, to establish community broadcasting in Australia.

The move followed a report that investigated ways of allowing community groups and members of the public greater access to use radio and television broadcasting.

Reporting the Cabinet decision to Parliament, the then Minister for Media, Senator Doug McClelland, said it heralded a “new era in the advancement of radio development in Australia."

“In the past 50 years [1924–1974] we have developed in this country a dual system of broadcasting involving the national service on the one hand and the commercial system on the other,” said Mr McClelland.

“The Australian government has adopted the view that the major inadequacy of broadcasting in Australia is the absence of public stations for the broadcasting of information and entertainment for minority audiences who would not otherwise be catered for by either the Australian Broadcasting Commission or the commercial services.”

Five decades on, the community broadcasting sector now encompasses more than 500 radio services and two television channels that reach an estimated 5.19 million Australians every week.

They cater to a hugely diverse audience, from faith-based communities and Australians from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds to multicultural listeners, music lovers and people with disibility.

Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA) CEO Jon Bisset described the government decision to create the community broadcasting sector as a landmark moment for the Australian media.

“This historic policy paved the way for this third broadcasting sector to flourish in Australia, alongside the national broadcaster [ABC] and commercial broadcasters,” he said.

John Martin was the inaugural manager of community broadcasting pioneer 2MCE-FM and is a community radio historian and former CBAA chair.

He said the Whitlam government granted first three, then a further 12 broadcasting licences to community groups in 1974.

Subsequent reforms under the Fraser government's Minister for Post and Telecommunications, Tony Staley, in the mid-70s ensured that the fledgling sector continued to grow.

“Community radio has more than delivered on the vision of the Whitlam Government,” said Mr Martin.

He said just as it was half a century ago, community participation remained the backbone of the sector, which today has 941 employees and more than 18,000 volunteers.

“Community broadcasting continues to play a vital role in giving a voice to Australian communities that otherwise would not be heard,” said Mr Martin.

In the early days at 2MBS, David James was motivated by connecting with an audience that he and his fellow music enthusiasts at the Music Broadcasting Society of NSW knew were not being catered for.

What they lacked in technical skills, they made up for with energy and enthusiasm.

“I think I was the youngest radio station manager in Australia at the time,” said Mr James.

“We always knew that we'd be staffing the station with volunteers because we couldn't afford to pay people. They could barely afford to pay me at the time.”

Mr James said he knew people would be willing to pay an annual subscription fee to help keep the station on air.

“We knew that people would pay to get the broadcasts that they wanted rather than be served up with the dross that would be interrupted with commercials.”

While no longer general manager at 2MBS, Mr James remains actively involved with the station, these day’s producing its popular subscriber newsletter, which details all the music the station plans to play each month.

The station continues to be managed and operated by more than 200 volunteers with support from a handful of paid staff.

Mr James is looking forward to an upcoming dinner to celebrate 2MBS’s 50th birthday and marvel at how far community broadcasting has come.

“We always thought it would be successful, but we didn’t know to what extent,” said Mr James.

“We had no idea our little fine music station would one day be drawing in 630,000 listener’s a month.

“It’s just quite a shock to us, really.”