Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The ABC or Australian Broadcasting Corporation is the national, public broadcaster in Australia. It is government-funded and provides radio, television and online services throughout metropolitan and regional Australia and overseas via Radio Australia. There is also a chain of ABC Shops selling books, audio and video recordings related to ABC programming.
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2 Programming 3 Radio 4 Television 5 Postal Address 6 References 7 External links |
Governance and history
The ABC commenced operation in 1932 as a collection of 12 radio stations operating as the Australian Broadcasting Commission but changed its name to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1983 with the passage of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 (ABC Act).
The ABC is run by a government-appointed board, but programming and editorial decisions are made at arm's length from the government of the day. The political bias of the ABC's news and current affairs coverage is endlessly debated. Conservatives claim that the ABC tends towards the political left wing, but the opposite view is seldom raised from those towards the left of the political spectrum.
Unlike the BBC in Britain, the ABC has been funded through a government grant-in-aid, since licence feess were abolished in 1974. In recent years there has been turmoil on the administrative front, with conflict between Boards of Directors and successive Federal governments, most recently the Howard Government. Despite government funding, the ABC is largely independent.
The ABC broadcasts a wide range of content, to match the broad social makeup of Australia. On ABC Television, this ranges from British comedies such as The League of Gentlemen and Absolutely Fabulous to children's programs such as Sesame Street and its own Play School. Bananas in Pyjamas is an ABC production, now seen and enjoyed by children worldwide dubbedbed into their own language.
It produces specialist programs for rural viewers (such as 'Landline'), a large range of high quality current affairs programmes (notably and Four Corners''), whose number of foreign reporters is unmatched by other Australian networks.
It also produces Australian drama and comedy. Recent notables have included the ratings hit Kath and Kim and Grassroots, joining the crypt of Australian TV treasures: Frontline, The Games and Mother and Son.
It has influenced many aspects of the national culture:
The ABC's radio networks include:
ABC Local Radio, a succession of stations broadcasting light entertainment, talkback, and some current affairs and most popular with older audiences;
Triple J, a national youth radio network;
Radio National, a nationwide network devoted to intellectual discussion of politics, science, philosophy, the arts, literature, and the like.
ABC Classic FM, another nationwide classical-music station;
and ABC NewsRadio, a 24-hour news station that also broadcasts the proceedings of federal Parliament when in session.
The ABC's latest radio station, is internet and digital television only. Called DiG, the station has no announcers and is all music.
The ABC briefly operated digital television channels aimed at a younger audience, called ABC Kids and Fly TV, but these closed in 2003. It currently broadcasts DiG radio over its digital service.
A new satellite television service for East Asia and the Pacific Islands, ABC Asia Pacific, was launched by the ABC in 2002. Commercially funded and carrying advertising, ABC Asia Pacific broadcasts a mixture of news, current affairs, entetainment, lifestyle and sport. This includes tailor-made news bulletins for the region, general entertainment, including the soap opera Home and Away, and also Australian Rules and Rugby League matches. The channel is received either directly via satellite, or on local cable networks.
Earlier in 1993, the ABC had launched a service for the region called Australia Television International (known as AusTV or ATVI). This was sold to the Seven Network in 1997, and later folded.
It is a persistent urban myth that '9994' is in memory of the life-time test average cricket score (99.94, being 6996 in 80 innings) of Sir Donald Bradman, the great Australian cricketer. Supposedly, a one-time Chairman of the ABC, Sir Charles Moses arranged for this number to be used, however this has been denied by the ABC.Programming
Radio
Classic FM
The ABC, through ABC Classic FM, a nationwide classical-music station, has helped sponsor and support state symphony orchestras, chamber music, instrumental recitals, opera, choral and solo singers.Radio Australia
The ABC also operates Radio Australia, the international shortwave service with transmissions aimed at East Asia and the Pacific Islands featuring programmes in various languages in these regions, including Mandarin, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Khmer language, and Tok Pisin. Radio Australia concentrates on news and current affairs, but it also features historical documentaries, information about Australian lifestyle and culture, and light entertainment.
Radio Australia bulletins are also carried on the World Radio Network, which is available on satellite in Europe and North America. Television
The ABC operates a single nationwide TV channel, sometimes known as Channel 2, on account of the frequency on which it operates in the state capitals. Digital television
ABC Asia Pacific
Postal Address
The ABC's postal address is "[PO] Box 9994 in your Capital city" followed by the postcode.