Imparja Television
Following the unveiling of Imparja's station ID and a series of short interviews from around Alice Springs, the program included the National Nine News, a preview of Aboriginal programs, and the first episode in the acclaimed series "Women Of The Sun" which dealt with the interaction between Aboriginal and European people and "Lousy Little Sixpence", a widely praised documentary about the changing lives of Aboriginal people this century. In 1989, the production of a local weather report was seen as the first step towards commencement of Imparja News. In 1989, CAAMA introduced "NGANAMPA" - an Aboriginal language series still in production and broadcast on Imparja, and the "Benny and the Dreamers" documentary. By 1993, Imparja's viewing audience had grown to 125,000 people, and five successful years of broadcasting were celebrated. A special highlight in 1994 was the allocation of funding to produce Imparja's first program, based on "Yamba" the station mascot. "Yamba's Playtime" is a daily half-hour children's program providing entertainment, education and information. In 1995, Imparja Television received the Telstra Indigenous Business Award for Business of the Year, and launched the Major Employment Strategy as part of its Aboriginalisation policy. Imparja continued its commitment to the development of Aboriginal programming with the launch in 1996 of two new programs: the "BRACS Program", (almost fully produced on Aboriginal Communities), and "Corroboree Rock" an all- Aboriginal music program. Imparja converted to a proprietary company in 1997. At the close of its first decade, Imparja is at the leading edge of broadcasting and is moving to digital satellite technology on the "Aurora" platform with the signing of an agreement with OPTUS. As at May 1998 50% of staff were Aboriginal and the figure is growing, with positive support from all staff within the station.