Investigation ReportNo. 3163

File no. / ACMA2014/97
Licensee / Capital Community Radio Incorporated
Station / Capital 101.7FM (6SEN)
Type of service / Community radio broadcasting
Issues /
  • Representing community interest;
  • Encouraging participation in operations of licensee;
  • Encouraging participation in selection and provision of programs;
  • Policies for membership, internal conflict,complaints handling, community participation and volunteering;
  • Policies to be freely available; and
  • Complaints handling.

Relevant legislation
and codes /
  • Paragraph 9(2)(b) of Schedule 2 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992;
  • Sub-paragraphs 9(2)(c)(i) and 9(2)(c)(ii) of Schedule 2 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992; and
  • Codes 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 2.1, 2.3,2.4 and 7.3(b)of the Community Radio Broadcasting Codes of Practice 2008.

Date finalised / 30 April 2014
Decision /
  • Breach of sub-paragraph 9(2)(c)(i) of Schedule 2 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 [encouraging participation in operations of licensee];
  • Breach of Codes 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 2.1, 2.3, 2.4 and 7.3(b)of the Community Radio Broadcasting Codes of Practice 2008 [policies for membership, internal conflict, complaints handling, community participation and volunteering; policies to be freely available; complaints handling];but
  • No breach of paragraph 9(2)(b) and sub-paragraph 9(2)(c)(ii) of Schedule 2 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 [representing community interest; encouraging participation in selection and provision of programs].

The complaint

On 23 January 2014, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (the ACMA) received a complaint that the licensee of 6SEN, Capital Community Radio Incorporated, was not operating in compliance with its licence conditions under the Broadcasting Services Act 1992 (the BSA) and provisions in the Community Radio Broadcasting Codes of Practice 2008 (the Codes).

Alleged breaches of licence conditions

The complainant alleged that 6SEN:

  • is not representing its community interest;
  • is not encouraging participation in the operations of the service;and
  • is not encouraging participation in the selection and provision of programming.

Alleged breaches of provisions in the Codes

The complainantalleged that 6SEN:

  • does not have policies concerning membership, internal conflict, complaints handling, community participation and volunteering;
  • does not make policy documentsfreely available; and
  • has not properly dealt with his complaint.

The service

6SEN commenced providing a community broadcasting service to represent the Senior Citizens community interest in the Perth RA1 licence area on 1 September 2010. The current licence is due to expire on 31 August 2015.[1]

According to the 2006 Census, the Perth RA1 licence area population comprised 1,445,093 persons, of whom 49.4% were males and 50.6% females. Of the total licence area population, 61.5% were born in Australia and 79.9% spoke only English at home. Persons aged 60 years and over comprised 16.5% (238,440 persons) of the licence area population.

Assessment

The ACMA’s assessment is based on submissions from the complainant(received on 23Januaryand 7 March 2014) and the licensee (received on20 February,17Marchand 24April 2014), including material available on the licensee’s website.

Issue 1: Is the licensee continuing to represent the community interest?

Relevant provisions of Schedule 2 to the Broadcasting Services Act 1992

Schedule 2 – Standard conditions

Part 5 – Community broadcasting licences

9Conditions applicable to services provided under community broadcasting licences

(2)Each community broadcasting licence is also subject to the following conditions:

[...]

(b) the licensee will continue to represent the community interest that it represented at the time when the licence was allocated or last renewed;

Complainant’s submissions

The complainant stated that:

[...] the Committee seems to be in some confusion over exactly who forms its “community”. Until recently, the ‘Welcome’ page of the Station website stated 101.7FM was ‘the only community radio station in WA which is dedicated to providing music for the discerning listeners of Perth’. Currently on that page, 101.7FM is claimed to be ‘the only community radio station in WA specifically dedicated to providing music and information to the Seniors of the Greater Perth area and beyond’.

Whether the Committee believes ‘discerning listeners’ (one might conjecture how, and by whom, they are defined) or ‘seniors’ to be its ‘community’, there has been no meaningful, recent attempt to discern this community’s “interest”. [...] It is difficult to understand how a Committee can represent its “community interest” when it seems to be confused over who comprises its “community”, and also fails to monitor that community’s “interest”.

Licensee’s submissions

Licensee’s definition of its community interest

6SEN stated that its definition of seniors had changed from persons aged 65 years and over, ‘commonly known for decades as the “pension” age’, to persons aged 60 years and over, the definition used when the licence was allocated in 2010, which it explained as follows:

By the time of our application in mid 2009 for the full metro licence available on 101.7FM, the commonly identified age description Australia-wide for ‘Seniors’ was 60 years of age, with all state governments having introduced ‘Seniors’ cards for persons of 60 years of age and over, and this was accepted by ACMA in their acceptance of our licence application (which included references to the 60-year old threshold for ‘Seniors’) and in fact endorsed by the granting of the licence to CCR over three other applicants.

Whilst the Seniors Card has some restrictions on eligibility i.e. not working full-time is one condition, it has become commonplace all over Australia to refer to those who attain 60years of age as ‘Seniors’.

Monitoring community needs – surveys and listener feedback

6SEN stated that:

  • it had asked survey questions online and by mail for the period November 2008 to August 2010 and had received 110 responses;
  • it has not conducted surveys since, due partly to the limited responses received in previous surveys and partly because of the relative success of collecting information from telephone callers to the station;
  • it is planning to conduct a new online survey in 2014;
  • between July and December 2013, it had recordedcalls from 6,865 persons:

Criticism is almost always relative to a song choice, occasionally relative to the performance level of a volunteer presenter and on a few occasions relate to the drop-out of our fm signal in a couple of metropolitan dead spots. Praise is usually an expression that the station is ‘great’ and can also relate to the appreciation of certain presenters.

  • ‘over the last six month period’, its website had received 15,369 unique hits, 6,075 (or 40%) of which were new visits.

Monitoring community needs – community engagement activities

6SEN stated that it engages in a range of community engagement activities, as follows:

  • it has hosted tours from community groups on a regular basis,often numbering up to 50 people at a time;
  • it has conducted outside broadcastsat community events, such as the Applecross Rotary’s annual Jacaranda Festival, as well as heldannual Radiothons;
  • it has hosted Seniors Week events and is represented at community events, such as the Lotterywest Charities Beneficiaries Function, City of Melville Australia Day Naturalisation Ceremony and meetings of National Seniors Australia Inc;
  • some of its volunteers are members of other associations, clubs, aged care facilities and special interest groups, which are kept informed of the station’s activities;
  • it is ‘just now putting the finishing touches to our new Community Lounge’ – a facility that will provide a community area for meetings, training and social functions; and
  • it publishes newsletters for members (Capital Capers) and volunteers (Heard on the Hill) - copies of Heard on the Hill forMarch 2010 and December 2012were provided, as well as Capital Capers for December 2011, June 2013 and January 2014 (6SEN states that it intends to publish four editions of this newsletter in 2014).

Responding to community needs– programming

6SEN provided an analysis of its weekly program schedule for the fourth quarter of 2013, indicating that:

  • ithad broadcast 18 hours per week of talk, comprising local news, traffic and weather reports, commentary, serial drama, community announcementsand sponsorship messages;
  • 17 hours per day were hosted live by a 6SEN presenter, which comprised the following on weekdays:
  • 2 hoursof local talk-based content (‘most of the talk is about the music we play, which the listeners look for’);
  • 1 hour of national talk-based programming; and
  • 14 hours of music;
  • a comprehensive local and global sports program was broadcast on Saturday mornings.

6SEN stated that:

We are constantly reminded by our listeners that they don’t want talk (and particularly talk-back), but we believe we have the right formula to keep our listeners up-to-date with information relevant to their demographic and special interest.

6SEN stated that its Program Sub-committee reviews all correspondence and listener feedback on a fortnightly basis. It provided some examples of program changes, proposed by volunteers, that the Program Sub-committee had adopted and implemented.

Finding

The licensee did not breach paragraph 9(2)(b) of Schedule 2 to the Broadcasting Services Act1992.

Reasons

Whether a licensee is continuing to represent its community interest requires an assessment of whether it continues to monitor and respond to the needs of the community in the licence area. Community broadcasting services remain responsive to community needs when they identify those needs and respond by implementing appropriate changes, including to programming.

Definition of licensee’s community interest

A community broadcasting licensee is required to comply with the licence condition to continue to represent the community interest that it represented at the time when the licence was allocated or last renewed.

When the licence was allocated to 6SEN in 2010, it represented the Senior Citizens community interest.6SEN has clarified that it has changed its definition of Senior Citizens over the years from persons aged 65 years and over to persons aged 60 years and over, when the licence was allocated in 2010, to align with the common definition of a senior in Australia. 6SEN’s website also clearly displays its community interest, as follows:

Welcome to the only community radio station in WA specifically dedicated to providing music and information to the Seniors of the Greater Perth area and beyond. Wonderful music from those golden years of radio. We also tell you what is happening in the local community.[2]

There is no evidence to suggest that 6SENis ‘confused’ about the definition of persons who are Senior Citizens for the purposes of its community interest.

Monitoring community needs – surveys and listener feedback

Licensees are able to monitor community needs in a range of ways, includingthrough surveys, telephone calls and online feedback forms. All of these methods have been used by 6SEN. However, the complainant has alleged that ‘there has been no meaningful, recent attempt to discern this community’s interest’. A review of the material provided by 6SEN shows that it has not undertaken an online or postal survey more recently. However, 6SEN has provided reasons for not doing so and has stated that it plans to conduct an online survey in 2014.

Ideally, licensees should have a community consultation strategy to ensure that they implement a range of feedback mechanisms to ensure that they are adequately monitoring the needs of their community interest, rather than just the views of their listeners and supporters. It is noted that 6SEN has avenues for collecting listener feedback, including through telephone calls and an online feedback form. While these are adequate, there is scope for 6SEN to expand its monitoring mechanisms, noting that there are 238,440 senior citizens in its licence area.

Monitoring community needs – community engagement activities

Licensees are also able to monitor community needs through community engagement activities, including through outside broadcasts, participating in community events and having a regular newsletter. Ideally, licensees should have a structured engagement program to ensure that their community engagement activities are implemented in a regular and meaningful way. This is important to ensure that, rather than just the views of their listeners and supporters, they are obtaining a range of views from members of their community interest.It is noted that 6SEN has mechanisms for engaging with its community. While these are adequate, there is scope for 6SEN to improve its community engagement activities, noting that there are 238,440 senior citizens in its licence area.

Responding to community needs– programming

Licensees respond to community needs when they implement appropriate changes, including to programming. A review of 6SEN’s program schedule shows that it broadcasts 18 hours of talk (11%) and 150 hours of music (89%) per week. These figuresare comparable to the national averages of 23 hours of talk and 145 hours of music, with 156 hours (93%) comprising local content and 12 hours (7%) non-local content, for a licensee representing the Senior Citizens community interest.[3]

It is noted that when 6SEN had applied forthe licence in 2009, it was broadcasting 3 hours of talk programming per week. At that time, 6SEN had stated that, in addition to broadcasting music for seniors, it intended to provide information to seniors, including about health, investment, law, holidays and community information. In this regard, 6SEN has substantially increased the amount of talk programming from 3 hours per week in 2009 to 18 hours per week in 2014.

However,6SEN has submitted that it is ‘constantly reminded by our listeners that they don’t want talk’ and that it has ‘the right formula to keep our listeners up-to-date with information relevant to their demographic and special interest’. While this may be the case, it is important to note that licensees are licensed to represent their community interest, so it is not just a matter of what listeners want, but ensuring that the needs of the community in a licence area are met.

It is noted that 6SEN’s talk programming does not cover all the areas that it had identified in 2009 and that there is scope for additional talk programming, including interviews on pertinent topics with local community leaders and representatives of community agencies. It is also noted that 6SEN’s Program Sub-committee reviews correspondence and listener feedback on a fortnightly basis and that changes proposed by volunteers were adopted and implemented.

Issue 2: Is the licensee encouraging participation in the operations of the licensee?

Relevant provisions of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992

Schedule 2 – Standard conditions

Part 5 – Community broadcasting licences

9Conditions applicable to services provided under community broadcasting licences

(2)Each community broadcasting licence is also subject to the following conditions:

[...]

(c) the licensee will encourage members of the community that it serves to participate in:

(i) the operations of the licensee in providing the service or services;

Complainant’s submissions

Participation in operations

The complainant stated that:

“General operations” positions, which might be reasonably expected to include, say, newsletter publication appear to be filled unheralded by associates of the Committee, without opportunities being offered to members to participate.

Access to 6SEN Constitution

The complainant also stated that a request had been made to the Secretary of 6SEN for a copy of the Constitution. In correspondence with 6SEN, a copy of which was provided to the ACMA, the complainant stated that:

It’s surprising that I still have not received the constitution. I believe you mailed a copy to [X] last week, and I’ll appreciate you doing likewise for me.

The complainant statedthat he had not received a copy of the Constitution from 6SEN, although he did obtain a copythrough [X].

The complainant also stated that:

The Committee has, quite recently, placed an ‘intranet’ site on the internet, something I understand is accessible only by the Station’s Committee, presenters and producers. [...] I do believe that on the intranet site, a copy of the Association’s constitution is available to the authorised parties mentioned above. Why it is not freely accessible to the general membership can only be conjectured.

Licensee’s submissions

Members and volunteers

Year / No. of Members / No. of Volunteers
2011 / 193 / 71
2012 / 185 / 94
2013 / 199 / n/a
2014 / 192 / 87

6SEN stated that its members and volunteers participate[4]ina range of roles and the following figures were provided:

No. of Members / Volunteers
Management Committee / 10
Program Sub-committee / 3
Sponsorship Sub-committee / 4
Technical Sub-committee / 4
Constitution Sub-committee / 3
Administration / 11
Production / 43
Presenters / 45

In response to the preliminary breach finding, 6SEN stated that whenits 368 subscribers (in 2013) are included with its 192 voting members, the total of 560 members/subscribers is 40% above the national average of 399 members, as referred to by the ACMA.6SEN also stated that:

Membership numbers have remained static [...] but subscriptions have increased by an incredible 66% over the past five years.

Encouraging community participation in operations

6SEN stated that it encourages community participation in its operations in a number of ways, including by:

  • broadcasting announcements three times a week, asking people to become involved as members and volunteers (copies of scripts for four different announcements were provided); and
  • posting information on its website, inviting people to participate as members and volunteers in 6SEN.

In response to the preliminary breach finding, 6SEN stated that it advises the public of its participation in community events:

by on-air promotion, on our website, in general advertising through other community event organisers and on occasion by dissemination through the local State member’s newsletters and our leaseholder (City of Melville). [...] Additionally, the Citizens Advice Centre at Garden City Shopping Mall provides information on our activities through one of Perth’s largest retail malls and community services centres.

Management Committee and sub-committees

6SEN provided information on its Management Committee, three standing sub-committees and one ad hocsub-committee.

6SEN indicated that:

  • members of the Management Committee are elected for two-year terms at each annual general meeting (AGM), as per its Constitution; and
  • members of the various sub-committees are determined by ‘mutual agreement between the Chairman and interested volunteers’ (6SEN stated that thepractice of appointing rather than electing volunteers to sub-committeescame about as a result of a previous poor response amongst non-volunteer members to a general call for expressions of interest).

In response to the preliminary breach finding, 6SEN stated that membership of the Programming Sub-committee had been temporarily expanded – by three and six members on separate occasions – to consider two recent changes to programming. 6SEN also stated that membership of the Sponsorship Sub-committee had been recently increased to include an extra scheduling officer.

Availability of 6SEN Constitution to members and volunteers

6SEN stated that: