The stories and issues of the Geelong region will be the focus of a pop-up ABC ‘Radio in Residency’ in the heart of the city at Deakin University’s Waterfront campus during October.
ABC Radio Melbourne presenters including Virginia Trioli, Jacinta Parsons and Raf Epstein will broadcast from the pop-up studio throughout the month, bolstering regional coverage from the existing ABC News Geelong bureau and confirming broad interest in our exciting region.
ABC Radio Melbourne Local Manager Dina Rosendorff said the Geelong Radio-in-Residency was part of a long-term commitment to tell stories from Victoria’s largest regional city.
The relationships we’ll build in the Geelong region will further strengthen our connection with the local community. We’re looking forward to hearing from the region’s residents about the issues and topics that matter most to them.
City of Greater Geelong Mayor Stephanie Asher said that this was a valuable opportunity to add to the broad and diverse media coverage we already enjoy in Geelong from a range of mastheads and stations committed to telling our local stories.
The City is pleased to partner with the ABC and Deakin University to make this focus on the Geelong region’s diverse stories possible.
As one of Australia’s fastest growing regional cities, it’s great that Greater Geelong’s local stories and topics will be getting more coverage locally and to a broader audience
This is a valuable opportunity to share more diverse stories and journeys from the community, who are the best part of our fantastic region.
Geelong is Australia’s first UNESCO City of Design, with a long history of creativity and innovation. We’re also home to some of the most spectacular landscapes and waterways and we have a thriving arts and culture community and amazing visitor and hospitality sector.
Our partnership with the ABC and Deakin is about getting the message out there, beyond Geelong, that we are a truly world-class city-region and we anticipate that the ABC residency will drive increased tourism and economic development benefits.
Deakin Vice-Chancellor, Professor Iain Martin said the partnership was an exciting opportunity to provide listeners with engaging and relevant content that would ‘spread the word’ about the innovation happening at the university and in the community.
There are so many untold stories when it comes to amazing work being done at Deakin and in Geelong. As more of these stories reach listeners, it will undoubtedly further strengthen Victoria’s position as the nation’s skills and innovation capital.
Deakin’s Executive Dean, Faculty of Arts and Education, Professor Vanessa Lemm said the initiative would also provide opportunities for students to work closely with journalists, production teams, researchers and industry.
It is so important for students to get workplace experience during their studies. This is a high priority in our course design at Deakin because students need to apply the skills they learn in a real-life setting. These kinds of experiences are just so valuable for their development and preparing them for their future careers.
The ABC’s temporary pop-up radio headquarters will be located on the corner of Cunningham St and Western Beach Rd, overlooking Corio Bay. The space has been provided by Deakin University’s School of Creative Arts.
Popular ABC Radio Melbourne programs and presenters will broadcast live from the studio, including Walkley Award-winning Mornings presenter Virginia Trioli, AFL sporting gurus The Coodabeen Champions, The Conversation Hour and The Friday Revue with Jacinta Parsons & Brian Nankervis.
The month’s full program of live broadcasts and events will be released in September.
