Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I begin by supporting the comments of all three previous speakers, who I think very eloquently demonstrated the importance of the Broadcasting Services Amendment (Community Television) Bill 2024. I support the legislation and I believe the comments made very well sum up why community television—and, indeed, community broadcasting more broadly—is so important.

As other speakers have said, this legislation delivers on a Labor commitment to keep Channels 31 and 44 going. Whilst I appreciate the comments of the member for Sturt, who said that he also supports this legislation, the reality is that the previous coalition government attempted to close down those channels, and it was only because of the constant campaigning and a commitment by the Labor government and the minister, who is in the chamber with us today, that we now see that those stations will be able to continue.

Community TV and radio are an important sector of our society. Collectively, community radio and TV employ about a thousand people, and some 17,000 volunteers contribute their time to working in community radio and television stations. I know, from speaking to many of them whom I know in Adelaide, that it is something they do with great passion and they enjoy it. It fulfils them, and they would be very disappointed if they weren't able to do it. I understand that there are currently about 500 community radio licences throughout Australia, but there are only two TV licences left. Whilst they serve in a similar way, there are also some critical differences, and I will come to those in a moment.

What's also important with community broadcasting is that 77 per cent of it, I understand, is in regional and remote Australia, places where sometimes reception for the national broadcasters is terribly poor but, even more importantly, the kinds of services that community broadcasting provide would never get any airing whatsoever, because they simply wouldn't be important enough to be transmitted through the major television and radio stations. In that respect, it provides critical services to those communities. The same applies now with Channels 31 and 44. Those channels are able to pick up on programs, services, information and opportunities that the major broadcasters would never, ever engage with and which are yet so important for what I would call niche sectors of society.

We've heard from other speakers to date that those channels provide an opportunity for new talents and careers, whether for actors, performers, newsreaders, producers, camera operators, sound technicians or whatever. If the career is associated with broadcasting, it gives people somewhat of an opportunity to get involved in that industry sector without knowing that they are under scrutiny in a way that would otherwise make it impossible for them to have a go. By having a go, they can then decide whether it's a career they want to pursue. Quite often, because they've had a go, someone notices how good they are and picks them up, ultimately leading to a professional career.

As I've said, it also enables the broadcasting of local news. I often switch on Channel 44 and watch programs I think I would never have known about were it not for Channel 44 being the broadcaster, because those programs are simply not the type that would be relayed through commercial television stations or the like.

There's another area, of course. I noticed the member for Adelaide talked about this at length, and I'm happy to add to it. These stations allow culturally diverse communities to broadcast their programs. Again, they wouldn't get a run on mainstream TV stations, but they do through Channel 44 and Channel 31. That is important. Whilst it might only be a narrow sector of the community who listens and watches, for that narrow sector it's important. For example, on Sunday morning, I attended La Festa di San Giuseppe, or Saint Joseph's Festa, in Adelaide. It was the 52nd year that that festa had been run in the Salisbury community. While it wasn't on Channel 44 in Adelaide, two radio stations of Adelaide—Radio Italiana 531 and Radio Italia Uno 87.6—were both there broadcasting the mass and in fact the whole day's events. Those people who couldn't attend, perhaps due to being in an aged-care home or at home unable to travel, were able to at least feel that they were participating and to know what was going on. Even as I drove away after I attended, because I obviously had to come to Canberra, I tuned into the radio station to listen to what was happening. It gave me a sense that I was still there, even though I wasn't. Many of the people who would have loved to have been there are now aged; they're older people. They simply can't get there. But, through the broadcasting services, they were able to do so. It's even better than listening to the radio if you can see what's happening by switching on the television program on Channel 44 in Adelaide. Both the member for Adelaide and the member for Sturt commented on just how invaluable this all was during the COVID period, when both stations would have been broadcasting to communities live events that would otherwise never have been transmitted.

Another area that I want to touch on with respect to Channel 31, Channel 44 and broadcasting more broadly, including through radio stations, is that broadcasting is important to our democracy. Broadcasting diversity is important to our democracy. We live in a world where too much of the daily news is filtered by and serves the interests of media moguls and sometimes national governments. Depending on which country you're in, both have an effect on what news is relayed and broadcast to the rest of society. That, in my view, is not good for democracy. Others have quite rightly also pointed to the fact that the internet has enabled us to break through much of that. Yes, the internet does serve a purpose. But, as we all know, for most people the simplest thing to do is to switch on either their TV or radio and then choose what they might want to watch. To some extent, those people who know that a particular program is being broadcast on a community radio station will actually do that.

Many years ago, I was involved in setting up one of the local radio stations in the Salisbury area. That station is still going strong after about 40 years, which just shows the importance at the time of getting it going but, more importantly, that it wasn't just a short-term phase of the local community in wanting to have a broadcasting station. Again, that station, like all the others, focuses on many local issues that would never get any airing otherwise.

It's also important because in a democracy we need truthful reporting. It's fundamental to a healthy society. Again, allowing different sectors to come on air and express their points of view about an issue gives everyone a chance to think, 'At least I have now heard the alternative side of the argument,' if there is a contentious issue being debated and so on.

So, for all of those reasons, community broadcasting is, I believe, fundamental and so important. It's why it was brought in in the first place many, many years ago, and it's sad that we only have two stations that are still operating. The previous government, as other speakers have noted, would have been happy to see those close down as well. This legislation does the opposite; it keeps those two television stations going. But, just as importantly, if for some reason the licences need to be terminated, the legislation provides adequate notice and an adequate time to transition out. For all of those reasons, I think this legislation is important. Keeping those stations alive and going is important. I commend the minister for her support of this legislation.

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