Our family represents the very change in demographics the ABC is grappling with.ĪBC communications noted there would be substantial savings from moving away from a focus on “one 15-minute long, single-use, broadcast-only bulletin at 0745”. My husband was listening to another ABC platform, and my teenagers were in their rooms, listening to something on Spotify. And I also wanted to hear the last one from Queensland, my home state, rather than Victoria, my adopted home. While 2020 radio audiences have been up overall this year as people have tuned in for bushfire and COVID-19 coverage, statistics provided by the ABC clearly show listeners have been moving away from the 7:45am bulletin for several years.Įven I, an audiophile, listened to the very last 7:45am bulletin in isolation in my home office, on my computer, some time after it went to air.
It has been ironic to read the outpouring of concern about the axing of the bulletin on social media, because it is the boom in digital on-demand technology (such as the ABC Listen app), and the resulting ways audiences access news, that has allowed ABC managers to kill off a much-loved bulletin.
Latest $84 million cuts rip the heart out of the ABC, and our democracy It could also force action from governments when action was needed. The raw emotion of audio captured by reporters in the field - a bird call, a mother’s cry, or a burst of gunfire - could pull at the heart in a way other mediums did not. Early morning ABC journalists in the capital cities made sure that day’s newspapers scoops were included, while regional reporters and international correspondents tuned in to check their work had made the cut.Įach state had its best newsreaders rostered across the weekday mornings, their voices providing flawless delivery, reassuring warmth and authority, particularly at times of disaster. It provided the agenda for the day’s debate at the kitchen table, at the water cooler, in the halls of government, or in corporate boardrooms. There would often be the big Washington story of the day (because of how much that country influences our lives), but the bulletin had space to also include important reports from the ABC’s foreign correspondents in countries that we should, or need, to care about. The 7:45am bulletin had a big emphasis on international news, catching us up on what happened while we were sleeping. Social media was filled with people talking about the loss of the 7:45am news bulletin. There would be a shorter version of the story at 6am, another for 7am, and then a fully formed report (usually featuring the reporters’ own voices) at 7:45am. Those 15 minutes were all listeners needed to get on with their day as informed and active citizens in a democracy.ĪBC reporters would set up their work to aim for the longer 7:45am radio bulletin, and listeners specifically tuned in for it. It provided a soundtrack to the major events of our nation, bringing to our ears the sounds of wars, invasions, sporting triumphs, political scandals and disasters. It will also be a huge loss to people struggling with an avalanche of misinformation from online sources.įor more than 80 years, the 7:45am bulletin was a uniquely Australian fixture on local radio. From today, ABC local radio listeners will no longer hear the majestic fanfare theme on local radio at 7:45am, signalling the 15-minute morning news.Īlthough it might seem a smart managerial decision to reduce reporting costs and respond to audience behaviour, the move overlooks the wide accessibility of radio, especially to low-income and regional Australians.
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