Day: November 13, 2024

ABC Radio Australia expands FM transmission service in Lorengau, Papua New Guinea

Residents of Lorengau in Papua New Guinea (PNG) can now tune into ABC Radio Australia on 101.9FM and enjoy its full suite of news, sports, music, culture and health programming.

The launch of the new transmission site in Manus Province, in Papua New Guinea’s northern region, marks a new milestone for ABC Radio Australia and its ongoing FM footprint expansion.

ABC International Head Claire M. Gorman said: “We are delighted to be reaching new audiences in Lorengau and to continue to deliver on our commitment to expand ABC Radio Australia’s transmission footprint. We invite listeners in and around Lorengau to explore the growing offering of programs available every day, connecting its residents with the latest in regional news, conversations and music.”

Manager of Audio Output and Strategy Justine Kelly who oversees the ABC Radio Australia network said: “It has been a tremendous year at ABC Radio Australia with new presenters, the growth of new bespoke programming that includes even more topics of interest from across the region, and the expansion of our transmission network reaching new audiences. We’re thrilled that Lorengau is now on-air and broadcasting the incredible stories, voices and music of ABC Radio Australia.”

ABC Radio Australia has a long-standing commitment to Papua New Guinea and its diverse regions and audiences, and the new Lorengau service comes in addition to existing services in locations including Port Moresby, Lae, Goroka, Mount Hagen, Arawa (Bougainville) and Kokopo.

WAYS TO LISTEN:

There are multiple ways to listen to ABC Radio Australia – live via internet streaming or in your area through 24-hour FM stations, or catch up with full episodes on ABC Pacific online.

ABC Radio Australia is available in Papua New Guinea on 101.9FM in Port Moresby, Lae, Goroka, Mount Hagen, Arawa (Bougainville), Kokopo and Lorengau.

For interview opportunities or general media enquiries, please contact:
Annalise Ramponi
Marketing and Communications Coordinator, ABC International
Ramponi.annalise@abc.net.au

About ABC International Services

For 85 years, the ABC has been broadcasting internationally. ABC Australia television has a monthly viewership across the Asia-Pacific of at least 10.5 million* and is available internationally via more than 100 rebroadcast partners. ABC Radio Australia’s FM radio service has a monthly urban listenership of at least 355,500** in the Pacific and Timor-Leste. ABC Pacific, the digital home for bespoke and curated content for Pacific audiences, has approximately 487,500*** followers on ABC Pacific Facebook. ABC Asia, the digital home for bespoke and curated content for audiences across Asia, has over 5.7 million***followers on ABC Asia Facebook.

*Viewership in Asia measured by Ipsos Affluent Asia data, estimations and extrapolations (May 24), in the Pacific viewership measured by Tebbutt data, estimations and extrapolations (Nov 23). Total audience number is approximate and has not been de-duped.

**Based on ABC-commissioned Tebbutt ‘Media Usage in the Pacific Survey’ (Nov 2023) noting listenership figure is estimated based on urban populations of six Pacific countries with the Timor-Leste audience figure extrapolated.

***Figures taken from Khoros Analytics (Sept 24).

Sammy J to depart ABC Radio Melbourne

Sammy J ABC Melbourne 16x9

After five years of waking up Melbourne, Breakfast presenter Sammy J has announced he will hang up the microphone next month.

Sammy began hosting ABC Radio Melbourne Breakfast just weeks before the COVID pandemic hit in 2020, quickly becoming an important source of fun, information and companionship for locked down Melburnians.

“Hosting Melbourne Breakfast was an unexpected opportunity that became an unexpected joy,” Sammy J said. “But radio demands all of you and deserves nothing less, and after five years I’m ready to trade the 4:15am alarm for more regular hours.

“I leave with pride, gratitude, and a litany of cash-for-comment scandals that will be revealed in due course.”

Sammy has always applied his creative thinking to his program.

Last November, he did a marathon 24-hour broadcast to raise money for SecondBite as part of the annual ABC Gives charity appeal. In October, Sammy wrote and led a skit of all ABC Radio Melbourne presenters for the station’s 100th birthday. As part of his Missing Moments series, Sammy helped listeners experience the big events that had been cancelled due to Melbourne’s lockdowns.

A prolific songwriter, Sammy wrote viral songs to farewell Melbourne’s e-scooters, the Airport Rail Link, Premier Dan Andrews and Captain Cook’s feet, to welcome Taylor Swift and to explain Lord Voldemort’s thoughts on a proposal to build a Harry Potter theme park.

In true Sammy fashion, he farewelled listeners with a song on this morning’s program.

ABC Radio Melbourne Acting Manager Shelley Hadfield said Sammy’s quick wit and creative flair had given Melburnians a unique view of the news of the day.

“Sammy has asked the questions we never knew we wanted answered,” Shelley said. “He’s grilled the Prime Minister and the Premier, he broke the news to Melbourne of the Queen’s death, and he’s interviewed musicians, magicians, meat workers and mathematicians.

“But it’s Sammy’s connection with the audience which has been a hallmark of his time at 774. You only had to see the listeners turn up at the crack of dawn for his outside broadcasts to understand what an impact he has had on people’s lives.”

Sammy will present his final Breakfast program on Friday, December 13. Announcements about the 2025 line-up on ABC Radio Melbourne will be made in the coming week.