First Nations Media News July 2022

This is a unique opportunity for you to connect with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander media industry and help support the ongoing development of First Nations Journalists, Community Reporters and Broadcasters particularly in regional areas.

Representatives from across the First Nations media industry will gather on Arrernte country for CONVERGE, Mparntwe (Alice Springs), the national First Nations media conference.

23-25 November, sessions and presentations will include a focus on journalism and digital storytelling, discussions on emerging broadcast technologies, industry best practice and setting the policy direction for the First Nations media sector. These sessions will evolve as we finalise the details.

For more information and to become a sponsor please email here.

Rohanna Angus is a Bardi and Jawi woman from Ardyaloon Aboriginal Community, located in the Dampier Peninsula of Western Australia.

Rohanna has extensive skills, knowledge and experience working in the Media sector and Film industry, which has enhanced her personal and professional development.

She has also conducted workshops for the First Nations Media Australia Leadership Programs, News Stories for PAKAM and participated in National workshops such as FRAIM, National Indigenous Media Festivals and recently attended CONVERGE in Lismore.

As a representative for PAKAM, Rohanna will continue to mentor and support our Remote Aboriginal Communities on a National level.

The indigiTUBE LGBTQI+ channel was launched at the iconic Imperial Hotel Sydney, in NAIDOC Week 2022, and showcased performers Louis Libran, El Beauty, Bee Dazzled Shanks - The Prince of Redfern and Josie Baker celebrating the rich and diverse tapestry of First Nations LGBTQI+ people in Australia.

First Nations Media Australia (FNMA) was proud to announce that its national streaming platform indigiTUBE is launching Australia’s first ever LGBTQI+ Channel in NAIDOC Week 2022, dedicated and catering for Australia’s First Nations LGBTQI+ peoples.

With the kind support of The Aurora Group and Boomalli Aboriginal Art Gallery, FNMA and indigiTUBE has been able to create a platform that will provide a much needed public platform for the First Nations LGBTQI+ community nationally. You can view the First Nations LGBTQI+ channel on indigiTUBE's homepage here.

The FNMA Archiving team hosted the first meeting of the newly revived Central Australian Archiving Network to encourage the exchange of ideas and expertise with a focus on digitising First Nations analogue media archives.

Representatives from Indigenous organisations, institutes and libraries attended the mid-July gathering that saw more than a dozen archivists, librarians and media practitioners from Central Land Council (CLC), Central Australian Aboriginal Congress (CAAC), Batchelor Institute for Indigenous Tertiary Education (BIITE), NT Libraries and Alice Springs Public Library take advantage of the warm Winter sun at the Olive Pink Botanic Reserve to meet and greet, discuss potential opportunities and seek advice to support archiving needs related to First Nations communities.

Construction of the new FNMA office, as part of the AIATSIS Centre build in Todd Mall, has been delayed. The hope is for the building to be ready before Christmas. The official opening is scheduled for March 2023. In the meantime the FNMA Archive Unit is on the hunt for temporary space to set up and continue digitisation of NT RIMO-member collections.

The inDigiMOB Online Safety team are out on community again. Wayne, Myers and Chantal are travelling from Perth to Mount Magnet, Cue, and Meekatharra to talk to people about their experiences with online safety and scam emails, calls and messages.

According to recent ABC News reporting, consumer losses to scams have increased dramatically this year and scams are getting more refined and harder to pick.

It's a big reminder not to click on links in emails or phone messages unless you're sure they're safe, not to give out your private details unless you have called a service and are certain they're legitimate, and also that if something sounds too good to be true, there's a very good chance it's a scam!

The online Master Classes for Reporter training are zooming ahead. The Master Classes are conducted by top line journalists, mainly from the ABC. So far we have had Paul Thomsen (photography), Michael Rayner (photojournalism), Nathan Stitt and Carly Williams (news gathering), Ben Atherton and Nakari Thorpe (News Writing).

These Master Classes are conducted fortnightly using Zoom (see Nathan from the ABC is above). There are 10 Reporters who are going through this training based in regions around Australia, from Kununurra in WA to Hobart in Tasmania.

We headed to Darwin in July to Batchelor Institute and the Community Training Media Organisation took us through an exciting practical program of video and audio production.

We are pleased to announce that Judith Neilson Institute has just funded mobile reporter equipment kits for each of the reporters. The kits will include microphones, lights, tripods and editing software for both audio and video production.

There has been a change in direction with of the Data Studio and Google Ad Grants Project and we will be using Google Analytics as the main data dashboard for our members. This proves to be a more user-friendly platform and some of our members are already using it. Alongside data insights available on social media our members will be able to track how many people are visiting their website and when listeners are streaming programs on their page. This is great for programming decisions and is also good feedback for broadcasters to see how far their program is reaching the community.
Noongar Radio Perth, 4RR Charleville and Koori Radio Redfern have set up their Google Analytics dashboard and applied for their Google Ad Grants so they can set up their Ad Words dashboard. Project manager Kirstyn Lindsay will set up the templates to write their station’s campaign and Ad Groups. These ads will bring in a broader audience to their webpage and increase listenership engagement and sponsorship, potentially encouraging more volunteers into the station.

The training Kirstyn has been working though to understand how Ad Grants works is the In-Demand Nonprofit Marketer/formerly Ad Grants Accelerator and the The Mini In-Demand Marketer Course. Both courses are available online with Google Nonprofit coach Nichole Vander Wall. Home - Nichole Vander Wall

The next step for Kirstyn is to meet with the pilot team and write up their Ad Grants Campaign. From here we can look at the benefits of the data for managers and their team and create a module to roll out the project to other members in the First Nations Media sector.

"We're bringing four deadly First Nations acts from across the continent to perform in Darwin on the eve of the National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMAs)!
All acts who have had a track featured on a volume of First Sounds were recently invited to submit an application to be one of four artists selected for this great opportunity aimed to support the growth of their careers, selected by a panel of First Nations music Industry professionals.

The successful acts are:

Akala Newman (Wiradjuri/ Gadigal | NSW),
Carissa Nyalu (Yorta Yorta Dja Dja Wurrung | VIC),
Flewnt (Noongar Wongi | WA) and
the PAW House Band (Warlpiri | NT)

These deadly artists were selected by a panel of First Nations music Industry professionals and will be flying to Darwin next week to:

connect with industry in a series of meeting (including with First Nations representatives from ABC radio and triplej's Blakout, the Australia Council for the Arts, BIGSOUND, Tik Tok and Spotify)
headline the First Sounds LIVE presented by Spotify showcase gig
attend the NIMA pre-show media event (with the opportunity to be interviewed by local and visiting media that will be covering the event)
VIP backstage access to the 2022 NIMA event

For more information or to get tickets to the First Sounds LIVE presented by Spotify showcase gig if you're in Darwin - follow indigiTUBE on Facebook for updates!"

The First Nations Media Australia's membership structure is comprised of two category groups, which are Organisation and Individual Membership and listed below is a descriptive outline of the categories that fall under both of the category groups. First Nations Media Australia, encourages you to choose one of the membership pathways to join the powerful and connected voice of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander broadcasting and media.

Organisation Membership
Ordinary membership (voting membership, $275 inc GST):

A Remote Indigenous Media Organisation (RIMO)
An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit broadcasting licensee (for example Remote Indigenous Broadcasting Service, remote, regional and urban not-for-profit radio station).
An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit media production organisation with media production as a core constitutional objective.

Associate membership ($165 inc GST):

An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit organisation:

Producing media, but without media production as a core constitutional objective.

Affiliate membership ($27.50 inc GST):

A non-Indigenous not-for-profit organisation engaged directly with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander broadcasting and media.

Friend of First Nations Media Australia membership ($27.50 inc GST):

An organisation not eligible for Ordinary, Associate or Affiliate membership and supporting the goals of the not-for-profit Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander broadcasting and media sector.

Individual Membership
Associate membership ($27.50 inc GST):

An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individual working in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander media industry (not-for-profit or other).

Affiliate membership ($27.50 inc GST):

A Non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individual working in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander not-for-profit broadcasting and media industry.

Friend of First Nations Media Australia membership ($27.50 inc GST):

An Individual not eligible for Associate or Affiliate membership supporting the goals of the not-for-profit Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander broadcasting and media sector.

Membership renewals for the 2022-23 financial year have been emailed out. Please check your inbox for a prompt to renew for another year. And if you're not a member already, now is a great time to join!

For more information on membership and what you get out of it, you can reach out to the Membership Officer Stephanie Stone or visit the First Nations Media membership webpage here.

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS EXTENDED TO SUNDAY 7 AUGUST!

Identified position for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander candidates only. Want to work with a great team and help support children and young people thrive through increased participation in arts programs and career development? Apply Now.

The Job and Person Specification is available at here. For further information, contact Bethany Ashley-Ward, Manager – Arts Programs 08 8267 5111 or Please send applications to Hana Fittes.