Pirate Radio in Australasia

Pirate Radio In Australasia

Australian radio audiences have had virtually no exposure to pirate radio. There were no broadcasts as part of the World War II propaganda campaigns and commercial as well as community stations alongside the taxpayer funded Australian Broadcasting Commission were available during the mid to late 1980s and early 1990s - a period when the UK was experiencing a surge in illegal broadcasts during the early days of acid house and the Second Summer of Love. The absence of pirate radio in Australia is primarily attributed to the relatively large number of commercial licences that were issued, particularly after World War 2, as well as the existence of public (later renamed community) non-commercial broadcasting licenses supported mainly by listener subscription. Additionally, the lack of availability of imported broadcasting equipment and the likely application of severe, legislated penalties including jail for offenders, would also have been a factor. A mere handful of incidents are documented:

Read more about Pirate Radio In Australasia:  Australia, New Zealand

Famous quotes containing the words pirate and/or radio:

    A monarch, when good, is entitled to the consideration which we accord to a pirate who keeps Sunday School between crimes; when bad, he is entitled to none at all.
    Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)

    The radio ... goes on early in the morning and is listened to at all hours of the day, until nine, ten and often eleven o’clock in the evening. This is certainly a sign that the grown-ups have infinite patience, but it also means that the power of absorption of their brains is pretty limited, with exceptions, of course—I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. One or two news bulletins would be ample per day! But the old geese, well—I’ve said my piece!
    Anne Frank (1929–1945)