the australian public broadcaster . for the service launched in 1956 see abc television . australian broadcasting corporation type statutory corporation availability worldwide founded 23 june 1929 headquarters abc ultimo centre 700 harris street ultimo 2007 sydney broadcast area australia owner government of australia key people james spigelman ac qc chairman michelle guthrie managing director established 1 july 1932 launch date 23 november 1923 radio 5 november 1956 television former names australian broadcasting company 1929 1932 australian broadcasting commission 1932 1983 digital channel channel 2 21 22 23 24 television abc abc2 abc me abc kids abc news 24 callsigns abc callsign meaning australian broadcasting corporation official website abc.net.au the australian broadcasting corporation abc is australia s state owned and funded national public broadcaster . the abc plays a leading role in the history of broadcasting in australia . with a total annual budget of a 1.22 billion 1 the corporation provides television radio online and mobile services throughout metropolitan and regional australia as well as overseas through the australia network and radio australia and is well regarded for quality and reliability as well as for offering educational and cultural programming that the commercial sector would be unlikely to supply on its own . 2 founded in 1929 as the australian broadcasting company it was subsequently made a state owned corporation on 1 july 1932 as the australian broadcasting commission . the australian broadcasting corporation act 1983 3 changed the name of the organisation to the australian broadcasting corporation effective 1 july 1983 . 3 although funded and owned by the government the abc remains editorially independent as ensured through the australian broadcasting corporation act 1983 . 3 the abc is sometimes informally referred to as aunty 4 5 6 originally in imitation of the british broadcasting corporation s nickname . 7 contents 1 history 1.1 1920s 40s 1.2 1950s 70s 1.3 1980s 90s 1.4 2000s 1.5 2010s 2 corporation 2.1 structure 2.2 management 2.3 funding 3 politics and criticism 3.1 independence and impartiality 3.1.1 criticisms 3.1.1.1 1960s and 1970s 3.1.1.2 hawke keating government 3.1.1.3 howard government 3.1.1.4 rudd gillard rudd government 3.1.1.5 abbott turnbull government 3.1.2 abc journalists in politics 4 services 4.1 radio 4.2 television 4.3 online 4.4 international 4.5 commercial 4.6 orchestras 5 lissajous curve logo 6 see also 7 references 8 further reading 9 external links history edit main article history of the australian broadcasting corporation 1920s 40s edit see also australian broadcasting company abc mobile studio caravan used for concerts presented by the abc at army camps and other locations 1940 the first public radio station in australia opened in sydney on 23 november 1923 under the call sign 2sb with other stations in melbourne brisbane adelaide perth and hobart following . 8 a licensing scheme administered by the postmaster general s department was soon established allowing certain stations government funding albeit with restrictions placed on their advertising content . 9 following a 1927 royal commission inquiry into radio licensing issues the government established the national broadcasting service which subsequently took over a number of the larger funded stations . it also nationalised the australian broadcasting company which had been created by entertainment interests to supply programs to various radio stations . 9 on 1 july 1932 the australian broadcasting commission was established taking over the operations of the national broadcasting service and eventually establishing offices in each of australia s capital cities . 9 10 the abc s perth headquarters in 1937 over the next four years the stations were reformed into a cohesive broadcasting organisation through regular program relays coordinated by a centralised bureaucracy . 11 the australian broadcast radio spectrum was constituted of the abc and the commercial sector . 11 in 1942 the australian broadcasting act was passed giving the abc the power to decide when and in what circumstances political speeches should be broadcast . 12 directions from the minister about whether or not to broadcast any matter now had to be made in writing and any exercise of the power had to be mentioned in the commission s annual report . 12 it was used only once in 1963 . 12 in the same year kindergarten of the air began on abc radio in perth and was later broadcast nationally . cater argues that reform was urgently needed in 1945 by the end of world war ii the abc was a decadent hollow institution . its authority had been compromised by a poorly drafted charter and further undermined by timid management poor governance and creeping wartime censorship . in april 1945 boyer refused to accept the post of chairman until prime minister curtin issued a mandate of independence which boyer drafted itself . the abc under boyer and general manager charles moses invested as best it could in the cultural capital of the nation establishing viable symphony orchestras and seizing on the potential of television ... . boyer s neutrality was never seriously questioned . 13 1950s 70s edit see also abc television play media the first broadcast of abc tv presented by michael charlton 5 november 1956 james dibble reading the first abc news television bulletin in nsw 1956 the abc commenced television broadcasting in 1956 and followed the earlier radio practice of naming the station after the first letter of the base state . abn 2 new south wales sydney was inaugurated by prime minister robert menzies on 5 november 1956 with the first broadcast presented by michael charlton and james dibble reading the first television news bulletin . 14 abv 2 melbourne victoria followed two weeks later on 18 november 1956 . stations in other capital cities followed abq 2 brisbane queensland 1959 abs 2 adelaide south australia 1960 abw 2 perth western australia 1960 and abt 2 hobart tasmania 1960 . abc 3 canberra opened in 1961 and abd 6 darwin northern territories started broadcasting in 1971 both named after the base city . although radio programs could be distributed nationally by landline television relay facilities were not in place until the early 1960s . 15 this meant that news bulletins had to be sent to each capital city by teleprinter to be prepared and presented separately in each city with filmed materials copied manually and sent to each state . 15 other television programs at the time included the popular six o clock rock hosted by johnny o keefe mr. squiggle as well as operas and plays . 15 in 1973 new south wales rugby league boss kevin humphreys negotiated rugby league s first television deal with the abc . 16 in 1975 colour television was introduced into australia and within a decade the abc had moved into satellite broadcasting greatly enhancing its ability to distribute content nationally . in the same year the abc introduced a 24 hour a day am rock station in sydney 2jj double jay which was eventually expanded into the national triple j fm network . 17 a year later a national classical music network was established on the fm band broadcasting from adelaide . it was initially known as abc fm now called abc classic fm referring both to its fine music programming and radio frequency . 17 abc budget cuts began in 1976 and continued until 1985 . in 1978 the abc nsw staff association organised a strike against budget cuts and political interference . sydney abc was off air for four days . 18 a packed free concert in support was held at the regent theatre and compered by bob hudson . it featured fred dagg and robyn archer . 19 in 1991 tom molomby wrote the effects of the budget reductions had been so badly handled that the organisation was to remain seriously crippled for years . 20 1980s 90s edit the australian broadcasting corporation act 1983 3 changed the name of the organisation from the australian broadcasting commission to the australian broadcasting corporation effective 1 july 1983 . 3 at the same time the newly formed corporation underwent significant restructuring . the abc was split into separate television and radio divisions with an overhaul of management finance property and engineering . 21 geoffrey whitehead 22 was the initial managing director ; however following his resignation in 1986 david hill at the time chair of the abc board took over his position . program production in indigenous affairs comedy social history and current affairs was significantly expanded while the corporation s output of drama was boosted . 21 local production trebled from 1986 91 with the assistance of co production co financing and pre sales arrangements . 21 a new concert music department was formed in 1985 to co ordinate the corporation s six symphony orchestras which in turn received a greater level of autonomy to better respond to local needs . 21 open air free concerts and tours educational activities and joint ventures with other music groups were undertaken at the time to expand the orchestras audience reach . 21 abc radio was restructured significantly again in 1985 radio one became the metropolitan network while radio 2 became known as radio national callsigns however were not standardised until 1990 . new programs such as the world today australia all over and the coodabeen champions were introduced while abc fm established an australian music unit in 1989 . 21 radio australia began to focus on the asia pacific region with coverage targeted at the south west and central pacific south east asia and north asia . radio australia also carried more news coverage with special broadcasts during the 1987 fijian coup tiananmen square massacre and the first gulf war . 21 the abc s sydney headquarters in ultimo in 1991 the corporation s sydney radio and orchestral operations moved to a new building built by leighton holdings 23 on a single site in the inner city suburb of ultimo . 24 in melbourne the abc southbank centre was completed in 1994 and now houses the radio division in victoria as well as the melbourne symphony orchestra . 24 the abc multimedia unit was established in july 1995 to manage the new abc website launched in august . funding was allocated later that year specifically for online content as opposed to reliance on funding for television and radio content . the first online election coverage was put together in 1996 and included news electorate maps candidate information and live results . 24 by the early 1990s all major abc broadcasting outlets moved to 24 hour a day operation while regional radio coverage in australia was extended with 80 new transmitters . 24 live television broadcasts of selected parliamentary sessions started in 1990 . 24 abc newsradio a continuous news network broadcast on the parliamentary and news network when parliament is not sitting was launched on 5 october 1994 . 24 international television service australia television international was established in 1993 while at the same time radio australia increased its international reach . 24 reduced funding in 1997 for radio australia resulted in staff and programming cuts . 24 australia television was sold to the seven network in 1998 however the service continued to show abc news and current affairs programming up until its closure in 2001 . 25 the abc s television operation joined its radio and online divisions at the corporation s ultimo headquarters in 2000 . 26 2000s edit in 2001 digital television commenced after four years of preparation . 26 in readiness the abc had fully digitised its production post production and transmission facilities heralded at the time as the greatest advance in television technology since the introduction of colour . 26 the first programmes to be produced in widescreen were drama series something in the air grass roots and in the mind of the architect . at the same time the abc s multimedia division was renamed abc new media becoming an output division of the abc alongside television and radio . 26 legislation allowed the abc to provide multichannels additional digital