Community television IS worth saving!

Last week, I wrote a piece defending the government's decision to axe community television. Despite cancellation directly affecting my studies, and despite my tendency to disagree with the government, I understood. It was weird. 

Let's recap. On Tuesday, Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced community television will not be licensed to broadcast past 2015. This frees up the sixth spectrum, allowing the government to reassess and resell this frequency space to lucrative telcos (for non-broadcasting purposes like 4G) or existing tv networks to implement MPEG4 (more channels, HD content). In short, kicking community television off the air was an economically-driven decision; it will generate a neat revenue for the government. 

Turnbull recommends community television transition to the internet to stream their content. It's a medium that will enable these stations to reach audiences beyond their niche market in each capital city; perhaps, with the internet, community television will gather more momentum. Currently only 6000 people Australia-wide tune in to community television during prime time. A figure that dwindles in the face of Nine News' average of 1mil viewers for the same timeslot.  

But, and there's always a but...

The internet would be a viable domain for community television ... if current internet available to all Australians could handle live streaming. This will become a particularly evident problem for regional internet users, whose bandwidth and speed are already lagging behind what a developed nation theoretically should have. Considering the questionable prospects of the coalition's planned Fibre to the Node NBN, it is arguable not everyone will be able to stream community television, even if they do have a connection!

While Turnbull decrees the online transition is "especially good news" he fails to understand the distributive means are perhaps not so especially good. You can read more about the NBN here.

Malcolm Turnbull at the ACMA Conference

Economically, freeing spectrum makes sense. However, I argue the worth of community television cannot be fiscally measured. It fosters creativity, it's an outlet for enthusiastic media souls, it enables diversity to reach the community.

Think beyond just the consumers. Community television is a real world media environment where keen-as-mustard students from all media disciplines can gain some experience and get noticed. Arguably, if it weren't for community television, the likes of Waleed Aly, Rove McManus, Corinne Grant, even 2014-graduate Pippa Sheehan would not be known to us.

It makes you wonder how the axing will affect us, as QUT Journalism students. 

Without QUT News on 31 Digital, will out chances of success be quashed?! Just another applicant on the pile. QUT prides itself on offering the most practical journalism course of the four major universities in Brisbane (UQ, Griffith and USQ), and RTVJ1 may very well be the lynchpin of the braodcasting major.

Turn on the television. How many ex-QUT journalists can you spot?!

 

Natasha Exelby

Marion Grasby

 Anna Daniels

 Nathan Bazley

Andrew Lund

If the right to broadcast across the sixth spectrum is discontinued, how does QUT News differentiate itself from those competing students AND every day people with a camera and a YouTube channel? And how can we make sure our laborious productions for RTVJ1 are not lost in the exponential swarm of videos already floating around?!

QUT News is only one example of quality community television embraced. As a grassroots outlet, community television celebrates all diversity in an otherwise highly concentrated media environment. Diversity through provision of a socially-cohesive place for overlooked Australians - ethnic Australians, LGBT Australians, low socio-economic Australians, and students with shoes still too big, to name a few. True, not all content is brilliant and deserving of a sheet of gold stars, but the process is undeniably worthy. These voices will be silenced by the shuttling of community television, and to gain what exactly?

Remember all of the great programming that popped up after the analogue-digital switchover? No, neither. In fact, I only recall Danoz Direct style channels clogging the spectrum. Yet these shopping channels and community television manage to attract similar viewership. The difference: one relies on a business model of minimal cost production of uninspired, lacklustre content tied together with a sell-sell-sell mindset; the other fosters the media professionals of tomorrow, produces worthwhile content, and colours in the lines budget-wise.

Community television does not receive funding from the Australian Government, instead relying on local business advertisers for income. Convincing these advertisers to transition to the internet with the station is a tremendous task. The more pressing issue is exposing the same niche consumers to these advertisements on the web. Take this loyal viewership away and the networks, which usually manage to balance the budget wisely, will be inflicted with a scarring deficit. In the realm of the internet, no one will be rushing to assist with such a collapse. Community television would be dead.

Turnbull may have misread a signal; he endorses the idea our real needs in broadcast are reality tv and shopping channels ... and I'm not yet bursting-with-cash enough to need a new multi-purpose thermomix (read: debt), nor do I require the services of a Soup Mate Pro. It seems unfair to prod independent, quality television off the airwaves if it stands to be replaced by this commercial dribble (sorry not sorry, BB or Bachelor fans).

Your breasts probably look fine.

 

and you're an idiot if you buy that. 

It's free-to-air television. The internet, no matter how widespread, will never be free-to-use. By herding content to the internet, Turnbull creates a barrier for citizens to access what is rightfully theirs: citizen media.

The spectrum is a public asset. A public asset being steadily chipped away to satisfy the interests of corporate Australia. While a reviewed telecommunications framework is no doubt required in Australia, the minister has acted too soon and without proper consideration of the true ramifications. Turnbull has attacked the weakest link, not the least valuable.

Shutting down community television does a great disservice to Australia's media landscape, consumers, current volunteers and employees, and media professionals of tomorrow. The government is overlooking their role to serve society. The only interest Turnbull's decision serves is the government's wallet.

If you'd like to sign the (one of many) petition to keep community television rolling, click here.

Have your say below!