In the recent years, the spread of news through digital means has become popular. People read news from Facebook and websites of various newspapers and journals. News organisations are investing more funds in social media campaigns than ever before. However, public service broadcasting is still essential in Australia, and the world as a whole. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is a public broadcasting company that airs both local and international news. ABC is funded by the Australian government but is independent of politics in both Australia and Commonwealth nations. The organization also has educational segments: Education Channel and Children’s Channel. The paper seeks to analyse the various aspects of public broadcasting in the digital era and the cultural relevance of relatable story telling. Thesis statement: public service broadcasters are still significant media institutions.
Body
Public broadcasting is essential to the local, regional, and remote audiences in that it states the perspectives of Australia perspectives, values, and norms to the rest of the world. In the process, it increases the engagement of the citizens with people from all over the world. News, as well as public information such as live feeds of significant events, Parliament, press conferences, are featured on ABC’s international, national, and local newsgathering channels. Radio Australia plans to extend its services to India to enhance an understanding with other people in the Pacific region (ABC, 2015, p. 4). For several years, there have been concerns about the reducing concentration of local news (more so in remote areas) due to the small profitability margin. However, public broadcasting is not defined by profitability and caters to all citizens (ABC, 2015, p. 1). Public broadcasting builds a mutual understanding between country and city Australian on vital issues such as food scarcity, water, and climate change (ABC, 2015, p. 7).
In addition to this, public broadcasting helps in the education of the Australian population in both remote and developed areas. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has an Education Channel (ABC 5), which provides English language curriculum material, tuition, as well as a significant digital resource to cater to the new national schools’ curriculum. The channel is effective in that it meets at least fifty percent of the Australian content relevant to students and teachers (ABC, 2015, p. 2). The ABC 3 is a non-commercial, dedicated Children’s Channel, which contains at least fifty percent of Australian content in a wide variety of subjects such as education, animation, and drama (ABC, 2015, p. 2). The quest for education can be difficult, especially for children with learning disabilities and those in remote areas without adequate facilities. Public broadcasting narrows the gap between the privileged and underprivileged children by enhancing the learning process. ABC’s education and children’s channels cater to children in remote areas and major cities.
The cultural significance of relatable storytelling cannot be undermined. Relatable storytelling preserves the history, culture, and the mode of communication of a specific people. Cultural storytelling develops literacy skills and metaphorical understanding of people of a particular culture (Baldasaro, Maldonado and Baltes, 2014, p.2). Storytelling should target a specific audience, i.e.; it should be adapted to the target audience. Relatable storytelling also enhances engagement of the public in the issues discussed by the particular media channel. ABC’s content is relatable to the Australian audience. Hence, it is easy for the public to weigh in on some issues such as politics and food shortage. Audience engagement also reduces the chances of counterargument (Nilsson, Nordgärd, and Zetterberg, 2015, p.13) Relatable storytelling creates a unique bond between the audience and the broadcasting house. ABC appeals to its audience by invoking the emotions of its consumers. People are more likely to remember stories, which they can relate to. The content is relatable because it addresses issues faced by the average Australian.
The reproduction and distribution of news are two challenging issues in broadcasting. The emergence and popularity of multi-platform news delivery and production via technological innovations questions the purpose of traditional news media as the only information provider for the public. Contemporary media supports the widespread distribution of news content through several platforms, immediately diminishing the barriers of time, geographical locations, and time. Modern forms of media create a landscape, which permits and enhances interactivity and open communication via active consumer engagement. Interactivity between news consumers and content producers shifts blurs and blends the previously distinctive roles of news consumers and producers. The result is challenging the dominance of news media companies as mainstream providers of societal information (Ahmad, 2016, p. 2). ABC faces a challenge in news production and distribution since the same information might be produced by digital news companies, which share the information on platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. Hence, ABC stops being the sole source of information to the public.
The public broadcasting companies in Australia are committed to maintaining the authenticity of their news despite the recent cases of “fake news” in other news platforms. The present media is dominated by instances of fake news since many media houses focus on getting attention, rather than ensuring the authenticity of their news. Many companies aim at monetizing digital content, hence reducing the public’s confidence in the reliability of news systems. The public no longer believes that the Australian media is capable of delivering the full, accurate, and fair news. Due to this problem, ABC, an independent Australian media group, which is highly trusted, has a significant role in the journalistic sector. Research shows that 81% of the Australian population believe in the truthfulness of the news delivered by ABC. The figure is even higher for the organization’s website, i.e., 91% (ABC, 2018, p. 22). In the age of “fake news,” ABC is committed to maintaining a high level of authenticity in its material.
There are different expectations for public and private broadcasting houses; the latter run for commercial purposes. Public broadcasting services have limited funding compared to commercial media houses. The primary challenge to public broadcasting companies is maintaining a high level of reach, value, and impact to audiences due to competition from private/ commercial broadcasters. For commercial broadcasters, there is pressure to stick to traditional business strategies. They have a difficult task in spreading the high cost of content investment across the wide variety of audiences and justifying the possibility of a commissioning failure on the basis of a probable hit. The private broadcasters also have a difficult time in creating and managing channels, which bring the country together around a divergent content schedule, which educate, entertains, and informs, against competition from similar services (BBC, 2013, p. 3). As a public broadcasting service, ABC has higher expectations from the public regarding news quality and programs that promote national integration. Private companies are expected to follow the traditional business models and meet or exceed the standards set by public broadcasters.
Conclusion
Thesis statement: public service broadcasters are still significant media institutions. Public broadcasting companies, such as ABC, states the perspectives of Australia perspectives, values and norms to the rest of the world; it helps in the education of the Australian population in both remote and developed areas. Relatable storytelling preserves the history, culture, and the mode of communication of a particular people. The emergence and popularity of multi-platform news delivery and production via technological innovations questions the purpose of traditional news media as the only information provider for the public. The public broadcasting companies (e.g., ABC) in Australia are committed to maintaining the authenticity of their news despite the recent cases of “fake news” in other news platforms. There are also different expectations for public and commercial broadcasting companies.
References
ABC, 2015. The ABC in the Digital Age – Towards 2020, s.l.: s.n.
ABC, 2018. ABC Submission to the ACCC Digital Platforms Inquiry, s.l.: s.n.
Ahmad, N., 2016. The Decline of Conventional News Media and Challenges of Immersing in New Technology, s.l.: s.n.
BBC, 2013. Public and Private Broadcasters across the World, s.l.: s.n.
Isac Nilsson, A. N. a. M. Z., 2015. Cool Story, s.l.: s.n.
Mary McCullum Baldasaro, N. M. a. B. B., 2014. Storytelling to Teach Cultural Awareness, s.l.: s.n.
