This is very curious… Was poking around the ACMA site this morning looking at licences for DAB and it appears 94.1FM Gold Coast didnt get their TCBL renewed. Licence not Granted… wonder if that means they will be off air on Friday?
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If you look further there is a separate one granted authorising them for another year. It’s just under a different licence number.
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Going back for at least 10 years they have been getting a new temporary licence each year with a different number on 1 April.
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Why so many temporary licenses…. I think they need to make a decision on what happens with 94.1 permanently now….
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I don’t recall as much of this back during the Iraq wars, I wasn’t around for the Vietnam wars. I guess back then media was much more tighter. You didn’t get an overseas company stations under pay TV or on radio. It was just the ABC, 2GB, 2UE, 3AW etc. There is a new challenge for freedom of speech with the online world. Who decides this?
One of the points of the internet was free speech and no censorship. Flies out the window when someone doesn’t agree with something these days then starts a campaign, which makes a mockery since there are no across the board public standards on the internet.
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Yeah it is a complex issue as you lose the boundaries of the country in terms of “free speech”. Should countries head down “the intranet” concept? We do have with geoblocking to some extent now. Yes in the ideal world “free” and no censorship is the ideal.
Going back 30 years, talkback and letter to editor there are still rules around “free speech” back in the good old days. Radio talk back calls were vetted, letters were checked. Before the internet was so big, was there really “free speech” other than when you go vote in the good old days? Or stand on the corner of your street and yell out.
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The ACMA have recently written to all community broadcasters via CBAA to remind them of their olbigations when beoadcasting information relating to the Russian Ukraine conflict. Interestingly I never remember receiving anything like this during previous conflicts/wars etc.
When I received the letter forwarded from CBAA, I was a little confused as to what they expected me to do? Should i be pro a particular country, neutral in my reporting, give equal airtime to both Russia and Ukraine point of view?
Then for a laugh, I tune into Sky News Australia and they are Biden bashing, has Sky News received a letter from the ACMA? Is it in our national interest to beat up on the leader of Australia’s allies?
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Because their station doesn’t meet the requirements to be successfully granted a permanent license.
They fail to identify a suitable community of interest.
As a TCBL, they are able to be on air without needing to meet this criteria.
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Millionaire baby boomers who enjoy a round of golf at Hope Island (where the former station Radio Hope Island was based).
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I’m guessing then there are no other aspirant groups wanting the licence?
It’s a little odd that in market of 600,000+ there are only 3 permanent market wide community stations. The NSW Central Coast, at half the size, has 4…
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Yes the Central Coast has an oversupply of community radio stations when Newcastle only has two, Rhema and 2NUR. Newcastle could do with another community radio station with a youth format like FBI. It could do quite well in Newcastle considering the state of the market there.
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I’m guessing - as use to be the case in the past with footy leagues and community stations - the GVFL doesn’t want to pay the so many thousands of dollars for air-time each year.
So, in theory, One FM could still cover the GVFL, but would have to go out and source its own sponsors.
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Just one thing ABC and One FM peoplee did not mention. One FM did not put a tender for the Commentary until a month after the Tender closing date. They had a week extentstion to the date and they missed that for couple of weeks.
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@oz1235 so it can be implied/confirmed that ONE is in turmoil/disorganised? Lacking in staff/volunteers?
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The proposed merger between Hawkesbury Radio and Hawkesbury Gold is no more with the Hawkesbury Radio name and website domain back on and the original logo reinstated.
As a former director and long term member of Hawkesbury Radio, I’m saddened that this is the state of local radio in the Hawkesbury, split 7 ways.
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Disappointing news. Thanks for letting us all know.
I note Hawkesbury Radio website is pointing to their old Facebook site address.
Should be pointing to: Redirecting...
UPDATE: A reminder HAWKESBURY GOLD is licensed to broadcast continuously from midday Saturday to midday Sunday each week & currently back on 89.9 FM with rebroadcast of 45 rpm program.
Sorry to hear that, the situation in the Hawkesbury is just madness, how longer is ACMA going to allow this to go on for???
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For as long as we have a government authority who employ people without any work ethic, or culture in charge of the spectrum, but then this could be said about many government departments, tardy and lazy as all hell.
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