Revolutionary Radio

Author: Craig Liddell | Source: 2SER-FM | Date: 08-11-03

3CR studio

3CR studio

Students at two Melbourne universities staged similar anti-Vietnam War protests to those in Brisbane. Hamstrung by the same restrictions on civil liberties and freedom of speech, they developed two pirate radio stations to counteract the limited focus of mainstream media. This developed into a loose federation of diverse interest groups who eventually secured a radio licence. However, their philosophy of positive discrimination would also threaten their future.


As the wave of anti-Vietnam War Moratorium marches spread throughout the country in 1971, students at two Melbourne universities were considering their response to the government’s increased crackdown on civil liberties and the right to protest.

The answer was two pirate radio stations. But these were largely a token gesture of opposition and could only be heard through part of the city.

Run out of the Vice-Chancellor’s tool shed at Monash University, 3PR People’s Radio was jammed by the government because the station was unlicensed. The government were also not impressed by the programming but that was not the legal reason for its closure. 3DR Draft Resister’s Radio at Melbourne University was closed for the same reason.

Bevan Ramsden, who played a role in the pirate radio stations, says, “there was a strong public movement, and young people’s movement, against the Vietnam War and conscription. As government policy tended to be implemented by the major media outlets, the ability to talk about these issues publicly was strictly limited.”

Students responded by learning to print their own pamphlets for rallies and protests when printing shops refused to take their business.

Joining Forces

3CR in Armadale

3CR in Armadale

Several people involved with the Melbourne pirate radio stations, particularly those involved with technical aspects, joined forces to start the Community Radio Federation (CRF) in 1974. Those stations also formed the basis of Monash University Radio (3MU), which began broadcasting on campus in 1972.

“The idea of a Federation,” says Darce Cassidy, one of the founding members, “was that a number of groups would get together, they would get a licence, and they would share the airtime. It was built very much on the basis of a kind of coalition.”

Each member would have control of their own airtime and would be able to say what they wanted within legal boundaries.

“There would not be a strong overall station policy,” Cassidy continues, “but rather a policy that within the broad umbrella of the station, people could say what they want.”

The Federation’s philosophy was one of positive discrimination. 3CR “would encourage community participation in the station and provide training to facilitate this,” according to their licence application. “The station would provide a voice for those denied access to the mass media, particularly the working class, women, Aborigines and the many community groups discriminated against by the mass media.”

Only the centre and the left would be allowed to broadcast with sexist, racist, or anti-working class groups refused airtime. Over ninety groups were part of the Federation by the time 3CR began broadcasting in 1976. Unions broadcasted issues of concern to workers alongside The Victorian Jazz Society, who had no interest in politics at all.

Democratising the Airwaves


3CR was able to secure a licence after The McLean Report recommended the introduction of Frequency Modulation (FM) into Australia in 1974. The authors of the report also said the number of AM outlets could be doubled and confirmed demand for educational stations. Community or public, not-profit stations should be established for this purpose, they said.

Bevan Ramsden was working for Collingwood Tech with Herman Safransky when the report was released.

“He told me about the report and said that in The United States they have these public radio stations. So my ears pricked up and I spoke to a few others. Perhaps there was a possibly of a community radio station using these new frequencies or maybe the new Whitlam Government would allow a more democratic use of the airwaves, rather than have it monopolised by a relatively small number of commercial and ABC interests.”

To boost their chances of getting a licence, the Federation became active political lobbyists, which included taking part in the government Working Party that explored public broadcasting in 1975.

Around six months after the Community Radio Federation began in June 1974, the Federal Government invited applicants for a commercial radio licence in Melbourne, which 3CR won.

Bevan Ramsden says that made it difficult for the government to impose restrictions on the station. “It was hard for the government to censor or attack a commercial licence because it had implications for the other commercial broadcasters. So there was value in having it. [However], in terms of taking in commercial advertising, that [could] jeopardise your independence as you were somewhat under pressure from those who advertised with you.”

3CR told the government soon after the announcement they would not take advertising. That inevitably led to discussions about funding, which caused some friction among volunteers, according to Ramsden.

Some believed it was best to finance the station independently to avoid interference. Others believed the government should have provided funding. This led to some tension with ethnic broadcaster, George Zangalis, who moved away from 3CR and focused his energies into a new access station called 3ZZ, which had been initiated by the government through the ABC.

Darce Cassidy

Darce Cassidy

Free For All


3CR’s model was quite unique. Organisations paid a nominal fee to join the Federation and could then apply for airtime. So-called affiliates could apply for one of three categories but each only had one vote. An organisation with one hundred members had just as much say in the station as an organisation with one thousand members.

Cassidy says this restricted affiliates, such as unions, from dominating the overall direction of the station. “Although there was a scale of fees, the unions never became significant enough financially. All the unions put together probably never accounted for more that ten percent.”

Linda Marson, 3CR’s Volunteer’s Coordinator in the early 1980s, is bemused by the sponsorship debate. That “always did amuse me because sponsorship is about groups or people or companies or organisations paying for airtime. In that sense, 3CR was the most heavily sponsored community radio station on air at the time.”

Marson presented a Labor affiliated show on Armidale’s community radio station, 2UNE, before moving to Melbourne. She exchanged program material with Bill Hartley, who produced a 3CR program funded by the Food Preserver’s Union.

She believes, “it’s just one of those academic arguments that was going on at the time. There was the purist position [that said] we will never take sponsorship. You will never hear us saying that Joe Blow’s music store down the street supports 3CR. Yet every program that was produced by a trade union or any other group that was paying was actually advertising.”

Cassidy denies the claim.

“The concept of paying for airtime is very different to the concept of sponsorship. Firstly, you have to be a member. Each member pays roughly the same. But those members with bigger memberships did not receive greater rights. It was the reverse in a way. In a commercial station, you don’t have to pay to be a member. You don’t have to pass any test. The more money you pay, the more airtime you get.”

“For example, if you are Coles, you can buy as much airtime as your wallet will permit. But in the case of a station like 3CR, every group had the same entitlement to airtime whether you were a small group or a large group. Every member had a right to broadcast but each member had the same right. Each member only had the same vote at an annual general meeting or any other decision making body.”

Unions did play a significant role in the station’s overall sound, however. From early on, a group of unions employed someone to present a union dominated current affairs program called The Stick Together Show.

Other more radical unions, such as The Builders Labourers Federation (BLF), broadcast an irreverent program called The Concrete Gang, where bosses were often referred to as ‘shiny pants’ and The Plumber’s Union handed out ‘The Golden Sewer Award’ every week to some person they disliked.


3CR: The Voice of Terror



3CR had been broadcasting for two years as an openly left orientated station when their underlying philosophy of positive discrimination resulted in them almost losing their licence in 1978.

The conflict between Israel and Palestine continued to dominate Middle East Politics and group of people at 3CR allowed Palestinians to broadcast. But the Jewish Board of Deputies complained about the program.

The Australian Broadcasting Tribunal eventually called an inquiry with a view to revoking 3CR’s licence.

“There was an extreme amount of debate about the interpretation of 3CR’s constitution,” says Cassidy, “whether it was legitimate to say that Zionism was a form of racism.”

"At one stage, The Bulletin magazine published a cover story showing a person wearing a camouflage uniform and a balaclava speaking into a microphone which was shaped like a grenade. It said, 3CR: The Voice of Terror. Obviously, any station that was anti-Israeli had to be a terrorist.”

Station members were split between two camps. The first argued that 3CR was never established as an access station. Groups normally denied access to the media, such as Palestinians, would be allowed to broadcast. Others were concerned about losing the licence.

At the last moment, the Jewish Board of Deputies withdrew their complaint for fear of damaging information coming out before the courts. However, they made further complaints two years later when the station was up for a licence renewal.

Tensions between the two opposing groups within the station escalated. Those supporting the Palestinian posited were voted out of office and their activity within the station was reduced.

Neither Cassidy nor Ramsden, who were founding members of the Community Radio Federation, believe the incident damaged the station’s history.

Cassidy says, “the station has continued to this day to carry most of the characteristics it had when we began. 3CR still has no advertising, it still maintains that same structure, and it still maintains a position that membership has people of the centre, the left, and apolitical groups but it has refused to admit right wing groups as such.”

Ramsden, one of those station members who supported the Palestinians, would do the same again. “You sort of give in and compromise or you don’t. I wasn’t one of those who wanted to compromise. But I think I would stand up for that principle. You’ve got to stand up for it and you accept the consequences if you get voted out.”

“But the station is still going. 3CR still maintains many of those important principles. I’m very proud of that.”