The ('''ABC''') is
Australia 's national non-profit
Public Broadcaster . Prior to
1 July 1983 it was known as the ''Australian Broadcasting Commission'' http://scaleplus.law.gov.au/html/pasteact/0/43/top.htm.
The ABC provides
Television ,
Radio and
Online services throughout metropolitan and regional Australia and overseas via its Asia-Pacific Television service and Radio Australia. The Corporation runs a chain of ABC Shops selling books and audio and video recordings related to its programs.
The ABC is sometimes referred to informally as ; the origin of this name derives directly from a nickname of the ABC's cousin, the
BBC .
See Also: History of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The first public radio station in Australia opened in
Sydney on
13 November 1923 under the call sign 2SB with other stations following. A licensing scheme administered by the
Postmaster-General's Department was soon established whereby certain stations received government funding but had restrictions placed on their advertising content.
Following a 1927
Royal Commission inquiry into radio licensing issues, the government established the which subsequently took over a number of the larger funded stations. It also nationalized the
Australian Broadcasting Company which had been created by entertainment interests to supply programs to various radio stations. On
July 1 1932 , the '''Australian Broadcasting Commission''' was established which took over the operations of the National Broadcasting Service and over a number of years established offices in each of Australia's capital cities.
In 1956 the Commission commenced television broadcasting and in 1983, with the passing of a new ''ABC Act'', the name was changed to the . As the publicly funded national broadcaster, the Corporation has been run with ''
Free-to-air '' radio and television broadcasting throughout its history.
In
1942 an Act was passed which required that one of the commissioners be a woman. A
1948 Act was later passed to increase the number of commissioners to seven, specifying that two commissioners must be public servants; one each from the
Treasury departments and the
Postmaster-General 's department. Although the requirement for public servants was dropped in the ''Broadcasting and Television Act of 1956'', the need for seven commissioners was retained; this allowed for each state to be represented.
The number of commissioners was increased in
1967 to nine.In
1975 the
Whitlam government introduced, without legislation, a staff elected commissioner position, subsequently discontinued by the
Fraser government.
Another Act was passed in
1976 , which raised the number of commissioners to 11. In addition to requiring a commissioner from each state, this required two women to be on the Commission.
In
1983 the ''Australian Broadcasting Commission'' became the ''Australian Broadcasting Corporation'' by an Act conceived by the Fraser Government and passed by the Hawke government. This remains as the governing Act for the ABC today.
The operations of the ABC are governed by a board of directors.
Establishment of Australian Broadcasting Corporation Board ScalePlus Website, accessed November 26, 2006 The board is made up of appointed directors and a board appointed Managing Director. The authority and guidelines for the appointment of directors is provided for in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 (ABC Act).
About the board ABC website, accessed November 26, 2006
Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 Scaleplus website, accessed November 26, 2006
Membership of Board Scaleplus website, accessed November 26, 2006
The
Governor-General is responsible for the appointments of between five and seven directors, recommended by the Federal Government. The ABC Act specifies that the Governor-General must be satisfied that the recommendations for director appointments are qualified through experience in one of the following areas; broadcasting services, communications, management, financial, technical matters, or cultural or other interests relevant to the oversight of a public organisation engaged in the provision of broadcasting services. The term of the appointment is up to five years, with eligibility for reappointment at the end of this term.
The Board currently maintains one national Advisory Council which advises it on matters relating to the Corporation's broadcasting programs. The ABC Advisory Council consists of 12 members, broadly representative of the Australian community and each serving staggered four-year terms. Vacancies are advertised across ABC programming in October / September each year. [http://www.abc.net.au/corp/nac/ The ABC Advisory Council} ABC Website, accessed 29 July, 2007 The current Chair of the Council is Dr Jane Munro, Head of International House at the University of Melbourne.
The Managing Director is appointed by the board of directors for a term of five years, with eligibility for reappointment to a second term no longer than five years.
Tenure of Managing Director Scaleplus website, accessed November 26, 2006
:Mr
Mark Scott - ''Managing Director.'' Appointed
5 July 2006 .
:Mr
Maurice Newman AC - ''Chairperson.'' Appointed January 2007.
:Mr
John Gallagher QC - Appointed
9 December 1999 .
:Dr
Ron Brunton - Appointed
1 May 2003 .
:Ms
Janet Albrechtsen - Appointed
24 February 2005 .
:Mr
Steven Skala - Appointed
6 October 2005 .
:Mr
Peter Hurley - Appointed
14 June 2006 .
:Mr
Keith Windschuttle - Appointed
14 June 2006 .
The ABC is non-commercial in its delivery of broadcasting content. It receives the vast majority of its funding by direct annual grants from the federal government budget to the tune of /
Société Radio-Canada (CBC/Radio-Canada) and
Public Broadcasting In New Zealand , receive substantial revenue from advertising, and the BBC receives the bulk of its revenue from
Licence Fees and worldwide commercial operations. The
American Public Broadcasting Service (
PBS ), is supported partly with federal funding, but is supplemented greatly by public donations.
Prior to 1974 the ABC was funded by a licence fee, but this was abolished.
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