Why community radio is essential to the arts

With a flourishing network of stations and dedicated listeners hungry for local arts and culture, community radio is a key support for the arts.
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With over 444 not-for-profit, locally-owned and operated radio services operating across the country, community radio has the ability to broaden our media choices and shine a spotlight on emerging artists and musicians.

According to the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA), an average of 17 hours is spent listening to community radio each week. That’s a lot of direct engagement the arts has with an audience in an age when it’s difficult to capture the market’s attention.

The latest iteration of CBAA’s Community Radio National Listener Survey found that supporting local businesses, musicians and cherishing community news and information were among the top reasons listeners were engaged. With almost five million tuning in each week, that’s a steady stream of listeners hungry for local culture.

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Madeleine Dore
About the Author
Madeleine Dore is a freelance writer and founder of Extraordinary Routines, an interview project exploring the intersection between creativity and imperfection. She is the previous Deputy Editor at ArtsHub. Follow her on Twitter at @RoutineCurator