RTV Theory and Practice - Special Issue

4. Amalgamation with the ABC . This has been ruied out by the present government mainly under pressure from various ethnic groups who want to be seen to maintain their broadcasting identity . 1 6 ) Two problems have been with SBS since its inception : iacK of training for broadcasters and programming . The former will only be solved if a final concept for SBS is established with a financlal basis to train peopte . There exist two main programming problems : how much time to give to each ethnic group l7 ) and what content to provide . Accorđing to the "Committee of Review of the SBS” , 18 ) a recent survey showeđ that 48/. of listeners liked "homeland music" , 46/ "homeland news", 39/ general news . Community announcements were only noticed by 14/, programs for children came in at 5/, religion at 6/ For many critics the only interesting aspect of such figures is the one for "hometand news" since it is difficult for many migrants to receive such news either because no newspaper is available in their language or because they often can hardly read, let alone read English . Music, however , can be bought on records and cassettes . SBS' radio news employs altogether 15 journalists and subscribes to all major world news agencies , including all national agencies from which large migrant groups come 19 ) Whether is is really worthwhile maintaining a radio network for "homeland music" and some general news is guestionable . One guestion hardly ever addressed because of its dangerous political implications is : who controls what is being broadcast in ethnic programs? At present , guidelines for the broadcasters exist but the listeners , i.e,, the particular ethnic community addressed by the broadcast, form the only body capable to judge whether programs suffer from a political or religious or апу other bias . Complaints have been hearđ but have been settled within the communities concerned. However , ethnic radio has enormous potential for creating unrest within an ethnic community and the nation and appropriate controlling bodies will have to be established one day . BROADCASTING FOR ABORIGINES According to the government, Aboriginal broadcasting was not to be incluđed specifically under the heading of ethnic broadcasting. Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders , the originat mhabitants of Australia, have until recently been very badly served with broadcasting. In 1979, the first Aboriginal commenced work on radio with ethnic station 2EA аз a tramee . (The ABC has only recently begun to train Aborigines , commercial radio would not even thmk of it . ) The following уеаг , Aboriginal broadcasts began in Sydney anđ Helbourne but

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